- 1. 013 GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY TREND REPORT H1 | JAN-JUN
2. GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY TREND REPORT In line with our commitment to
keep professionals in Technology up to date with employment and
recruitment trends, in April 2013 Morgan McKinley conducted
international research with its consultants in eight markets. While
the responses varied between these markets, it is possible to draw
some overall conclusions; The mood is cautiously positive half of
the eight markets see the situation as improving, the other half
see no discernible change. None say that things are getting worse
Overwhelmingly, recruitment is focused equally on replacement and
new hires Economic uncertainty is a factor in most markets nobody
is quite sure if the economy has turned the corner or will dip back
into recession Structural change in the IT landscape is a factor in
several markets but in general, these are stimulating rather than
depressing demand Overall, recruitment budgets are static or
declining Mobile is currently the top specialist area driving
demand, though not in all markets and its influence is expected to
diminish in the future. Big data and analytics, traditional
on-premise ERP and data centre management are also among the most
sought-after specialist areas Social media is not an important
driver of demand within IT Cost saving is the main factor
depressing demand Cloud computing is not having a major impact on
recruitment in most markets Project management is an important
skill for candidates almost everywhere Organisational change is a
key driver of demand In the majority of markets our consultants
believe that candidates will become more proactive in seeking jobs
over the next six months and beyond In this report we have provided
a more detailed description of the trends we have observed in each
of our markets and we hope this gives you some further insight. 1
QUICK LINKS
AUSTRALIA...............................................2
CHINA.......................................................3
FRANCE.....................................................4 HONG
KONG..........................................5
IRELAND...................................................6
JAPAN........................................................ 7
SINGAPORE.............................................8 UNITED
KINGDOM................................9 3. AUSTRALIA GETTING
BETTER AS COMPANIES STRIVE TO IMPROVE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE The
market in Australia shows signs of picking up, driven by structural
changes in the IT landscape and the need to improve customer
experience via digital and mobile channels. A striking feature of
the Australian market impacting on recruitment patterns is the
delay in the uptake and roll-out of Windows 7. One of our
consultants says, Many organisations will be cutting it very fine
in terms of ensuring they have upgraded before Microsoft switches
off support for earlier releases. Economic uncertainty is also a
strong influencing factor, with budget approvals being given or
withheld depending on the current mood and the business case. Where
the business case is strong and immediate (for example mobile
implementations, customer experience, digital and online,
productivity initiatives) budgets are getting the go- ahead.
Conversely, budgets are often being slashed in areas such as
infrastructure and application upgrades such as the roll-out of
Windows 7. There is clearly an increasing demand for digital and
mobile architects and project managers who have a proven
understanding of how to increase customer satisfaction and enhance
customer experience to optimise revenues. There is adequate local
supply to meet demand.To succeed, candidates need to understand and
communicate their value proposition. In order to differentiate
yourself in this competitive market you need to clearly demonstrate
the value that you have added to the organisations that you have
worked with. Ideally this value should be quantifiable and tied to
a result which created revenue, cut costs or boosted productivity,
our consultants advise. In Australia, Morgan McKinley focuses on
senior IT appointments and we observe that Chief Information
Officers still come mainly from the IT function. At the general IT
executive level, there is a trend towards hiring or promoting IT
professionals that have a strong sector or product alignment
experience. For example, it is not uncommon to hire a digital media
guru with a non-financial services background to head up a digital
practice within a financial services company. An MBA or similar
business qualification is a huge asset when trying to land a senior
IT role. THE BOTTOM LINE CAREER MOVERS Simply stating achievements
without tying them to a tangible value is no longer enough.
Understand and communicate your value proposition. Work with your
career ally to restructure your CV around this proposition and
learn how to market yourself effectively at interview. RECRUITING
EMPLOYERS Delaying upgrades in order to cut recruitment budgets
will turn out to be a false economy in most cases.There is some
excellent talent out there and it is worth your while to work with
a strategic partner who will focus on delivering candidates who
offer best value and potential for growth within your organisation.
Candidates and employers should take a long-term view of business
value, customer experience and growth potential. TOP FACTORS
DRIVING TRENDS Structural changes in the IT landscape Focus on
customer experience Economic uncertainty 2 4. NO DISCERNIBLE CHANGE
The current mood of economic uncertainty makes it hard to draw any
hard conclusions on recruitment trends in China. In some areas
budgets are increasing and in others they are static or declining.
Desire to cut costs is certainly having an overall impact on the
market. On the whole, candidates will prefer to stay put and ride
out the current economic situation. Specialist roles currently
driving demand for talent in IT include mobile technologies and
business process re-engineering/rationalisation. However, longer
term interest in mobile is expected to subside and more attention
will be directed to filling roles in traditional on-premise ERP.
Candidates with SAP knowledge and skills will be in demand for the
foreseeable future. It is the services sectors that are driving
strongest demand. In this difficult market, candidates looking to
take the next step in their careers are advised to improve their
vertical sector knowledge and to develop their skills in project
management. Employers are also emphasising the need for good
communications skills in both Mandarin and English, alongside
strong technical skills. CAREER MOVERS Improve your technical,
project management and communication skills if you wish to move
ahead in a competitive marketplace. Your career ally will help you
identify your skills and weaknesses. THE BOTTOM LINE RECRUITING
EMPLOYERS Its a buyers market with an adequate local talent pool
but this situation will not last forever. Project management and
communication skills are highly valued, alongside strong technical
knowledge. TOP FACTORS DRIVING TRENDS Economic uncertainty Economic
downturn Declining or static recruitment budgets CHINA 3 5. FRANCE
In France economic uncertainty and static or declining recruitment
budgets have deterred strong candidates from coming forward over
the past few months. Most recruitment is for replacement headcount.
However, there is strong demand for candidates with skills and
experience in mobile technologies, together with specialists in
business process re-engineering and IT rationalisation. Within
vertical sectors there is especially strong demand from
manufacturing companies and demand is expected to pick up in
service sectors. It has been difficult to source strong candidates
but the signs are that this may change over the coming year, says
one Morgan McKinley consultant in Paris. Now is a good time for
strong candidates to seize the opportunities that are out there. In
particular, employers are on the look-out for candidates with a
high level of education, ideally graduates from engineering schools
or with a university Masters degree. Even though experience is also
very important, French companies are always looking for candidates
with an excellent education, and indeed, French schools equip their
students with the right skills, says our consultant. Candidates
with skills in Ubisoft, Dassault Systmes, Microsoft, Oracle and SAP
are much sought after. IT professionals aiming for senior positions
must broaden their horizons. Generally speaking, a companys Chief
Information Officer comes from within IT (IT is very strategic for
companies today, and although it is essential to have a good grasp
of the business strategy, a CIO must bring technical solutions and
a deep knowledge of the function). Senior IT managers must also
keep an eye on the new technologies to remain competitive and
employable, in order to be able to manage new talents effectively.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR STRONG CANDIDATES THE BOTTOM LINE CAREER MOVERS
Do not be put off by the current economic uncertainty.The best way
to improve your chances is to review your situation with your
career ally on a regular monthly basis. Hone your skills and keep
an open mind about new opportunities as they arise. RECRUITING
EMPLOYERS You may have been disappointed by the quality of
candidates coming forward in 2012. But the signs are that over the
next year quality candidates will be more proactive in seeking new
employers. French companies are always looking to recruit people
with an excellent education. 4 TOP FACTORS DRIVING TRENDS Declining
or static recruitment budgets Economic uncertainty Creation of
talent resources centres in large companies Tight recruitment
budgets 6. HONG KONG THE BOTTOM LINE CAREER MOVERS The lengthy
recruitment processes can be frustrating, especially when you know
that your prospective employer needs your skills! The answer is to
be patient; your career ally will provide comprehensive details on
the employer and the interviewer and will prepare you accordingly.
RECRUITING EMPLOYERS Clearly there is a local talent shortage but
there is a pool of high-quality professionals, particularly in
Europe, who are looking for a move. Companies prefer to recruit
internally for senior positions but there is a skills shortage
especially in the new- generation technologies like mobile. TOP
FACTORS DRIVING TRENDS Lack of local talent Economic uncertainty
Structural change in the IT landscape 5 INADEQUATE LOCAL SUPPLY
CREATES OPPORTUNITIES The recruitment market is picking up in Hong
Kong and the talent shortage is creating opportunities for good
candidates. There is particularly strong demand for IT
professionals with specialist skills in mobile technologies, data
centre management, social media, IT security and business process
re-engineering; the main source of this demand is currently the
financial services sector. Given the current economic conditions
and the talent shortage, senior IT managers are challenged to drive
down costs while maximising outcomes. Cloud computing,
virtualisation and standardisation, outsourcing and offshoring are
all responses to this conundrum. On the other hand, CIOs are
constantly debating the efficiency of outsourcing strategies and
often prefer to retain control over development through
in-sourcing. In these circumstances, companies are finding it
difficult to reach decisions quickly and the hiring process can be
lengthy.This can be frustrating for candidates but our advice is to
hang on in there and rely on your career ally to see you through.
We have one candidate who had been waiting for our clients approval
for more than nine months. During the process, we managed his
resignation from his previous role and through a short term
contract until the approval finally came through, a Morgan McKinley
consultant in Hong Kong reports. The talent shortage is causing
many companies to recruit from abroad and in particular from
Europe, while many functions are being outsourced. Multinational
organisations are constantly on the lookout for recruitment process
outsourcing opportunities for technology resources, according to
the same consultant. Mobile and online technologies are really hot
at the moment and companies looking to recruit should consider
overseas talent. Skills and qualifications that are in demand and
will boost a candidates chances to move forward include PMP in the
project management sphere. IT professionals seeking to move forward
in development roles are advised to pursue web- based and mobile
technologies such as Flex, Ruby, Python and PHP. CISA/CISSP will be
very helpful for candidates who would like to pursue opportunities
in IT security. 7. IRELAND LOOKING FOR OVERSEAS TALENT There are
very positive signs that the Irish economy is coming back to life.
With strong inward investment from companies looking to locate
their IT operations in Ireland, there is a growing skills shortage.
In particular, employers are seeking developers and quality
assurance (QA) engineers for software and online development
projects. We have noticed an interest in training courses in
development methodologies such as scrum, as well as online
technologies. Experts in mobile technologies and data centre
management are also keenly sought after and there is a growing
interest in big data and analytics. If you want to get ahead in IT
then you should focus on the online areas, whether it be analytics
or development, as online will drive the sector in the short to
medium term, according to one of our Dublin-based consultants. A
surprising recent trend has been the sharp increase in demand for
user interface and user experience (UI and UX) professionals.
Candidates with knowledge of Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, SAP and Citrix
are in demand. Consequently there are big opportunities for IT
professionals based elsewhere in Europe. Ireland is still playing
catch-up with regards to education in technology; while the country
has produced many high quality graduates, employers tell us that
there is a shortage of well-rounded candidates who can focus on
design issues in software development, something which is now being
addressed with new courses such as Dublin City Universitys BSc in
Problem Solving and Software Development. However, the window of
opportunity for graduates from elsewhere in Europe is unlikely to
close in the foreseeable future. The pursuit of overseas talent
also applies to senior positions. Companies increasingly prefer to
attract new talent from outside the organisation, our consultant
adds. To address shortages in finding experienced talent in the
short to medium term, employers in Ireland may need to look beyond
the European Union. Irelands ability to provide a fast and
efficient work- visa processing system for highly skilled
technology candidates will be critical to Irelands position as a
global technology hub. In the short to medium term, Irelands
ability to attract talent from across the EU and beyond will be
critical to its position as a global technology hub. THE BOTTOM
LINE CAREER MOVERS There are plenty of opportunities for people
with the right mix of IT skills. If you can add to that an ability
to solve problems and lead development projects, the skys the
limit. RECRUITING EMPLOYERS Talent is scarce so explore all options
from all sources. Also, be aware that there is a new generation of
locally educated talent coming through. TOP FACTORS DRIVING TRENDS
Lack of qualified local talent Increased inward investment
Structural changes to the IT landscape 6 8. JAPAN SIGNIFICANT SURGE
IN DEMAND IN VERTICAL SECTORS Modernisation and inward investment
in the pharmaceutical, medical, insurance and retail industries is
driving a significant surge in demand for IT professionals in
Japan. In particular, there is a strong demand for business
analysis and project management roles that serve as a link between
IT (which may be offshored) and local business users. In addition,
professionals with skills and experience in traditional on-premise
ERP and in regulatory compliance are much sought after. There is
inadequate local supply to meet this demand so companies are
looking overseas, although there is a strong preference to
repatriate Japanese nationals who are currently working abroad.
SAP, Oracle E-Business Suite and MS Dynamics are key software
competencies currently in demand. In short, if you are Japanese,
young and bilingual and are looking to take a major leap forward in
your career, learn project management and SAP and head back to
Japan! In Japan, it is expected that IT skills are picked up on the
job, Japanese companies tend to recruit bilingual professionals
with social science degrees and then train them. On the other hand,
in some areas demand is still being depressed by the desire to cut
costs. Unfortunately, many companies whose corporate HQs are
overseas still do not understand the high costs of doing business
in Japan, says one of ourTokyo-based consultants. In the past we
saw many CIOs coming from non-technology areas. However, as IT has
developed into more of a strategic IT function, today there is
quite a good pipeline of senior level candidates coming from within
IT itself. If you are Japanese, young and bilingual then learn
project management and SAP. THE BOTTOM LINE CAREER MOVERS There are
major opportunities if you have the right blend of skills.
RECRUITING EMPLOYERS Set yourself the right expectations; finding
the right people will not always be easy.Try to accelerate the
hiring process with the help of a local expert. TOP FACTORS DRIVING
TRENDS Upswing in demand in key verticals Lack of local qualified
talent Structural change in the IT landscape 7 9.
SINGAPOREOPPORTUNITIES FOR LOCAL TALENT THE BOTTOM LINE CAREER
MOVERS Do what it takes to get ahead. And if you are wondering what
that is, speak to a career ally who can set you on the right path.
If you are a highly motivated Singaporean, the opportunities are
there. RECRUITING EMPLOYERS Its understandable if your preference
is to employ a local but consider other options it could make your
organisation more agile. Seek assistance to identify and recruit
leaders in new technology areas such as analytics it could be key
to your organisations future competitiveness. Singapore-based
companies would like to employ local talent but there is
insufficient supply. Yet in many sectors they are unwilling to
consider looking abroad, the exception being financial services
companies, which are often prepared to consider candidates from
Europe or the USA. Increasingly, companies are relying on IT
vendors to fill the gaps and are moving towards direct sourcing. So
how can you get ahead in this situation? As the market for talent
gets tighter, dynamic candidates who have pushed to get involved in
exciting projects will stand out.There is a big demand for local
(i.e. Singaporean Chinese) candidates who present and communicate
effectively; they are often difficult to find but they will always
secure a good role if they come forward. I know local candidates
who have taken elocution lessons in order to get ahead, according
to one of our consultants in Singapore. Candidates are also advised
to get the best formal qualifications, such as PMP for project
management. SAP and Oracle are probably the most in-demand software
competencies. At senior levels of the organisation, up to CIO,
appointments are typically made internally, sometimes from outside
the IT function (change management, finance etc).This can have its
advantages but the downside is that Singapore-based companies are
sometimes slow to embrace new technology trends, because there are
fewer leaders bringing in new ideas. For example, cloud computing
is a massive buzzword at the moment but the uptake is not great.
Likewise, client companies often know that analytics and big data
are hot topics but do not know where to start and need help to
identify and recruit talent. The hottest candidate is a local with
technical expertise and great communications skills. Such a
candidate will always land a good position. TOP FACTORS DRIVING
TRENDS Economic uncertainty Static or declining recruitment budgets
Lack of local supply 8 10. UNITED KINGDOM BIG DATA IS THE BIG STORY
In the UK the current hot topics in IT are big data, data quality
and open source technologies. Candidates with skills in these areas
are likely to find good positions regardless of the current
economic uncertainty.The IT landscape is changing, with a focus on
analytics and regulatory compliance. Surprisingly, mobile
technologies do not loom large as a specialist competence demanded
by UK companies. Across the board, the biggest concern for large
companies today is to get a grip on their data. Within investment
banks there is still a degree of caution, as they watch each other
to see who is going to take the lead in what is an uncertain
environment. In the past, we have seen that when one company
increases headcount to build market share, the competition quickly
follows. The funds are still there but new headcount sign-off has
proved elusive. Areas within financial services where we have seen
increased activity include data architecture, mapping, governance
and migration due to continued pressure to meet regulatory and
compliance standards. Several reputed consulting organisations are
taking a new strategic direction towards digital, mobile and big
data. One of these is increasing its UK Digital practice from 120
to a 2015 headcount of 400.The Big Four are also driving similar
levels of growth in digital. These are not companies you would
associate with everything cool and funky in the IT industry but
this is the new landscape in which we are operating, says one of
our UK consultants. In order to stand out from the competition,
candidates should seek to gain experience or training in project
management the Prince2 qualification is highly valued and in
fast-track development methodologies such as agile. Overall there
are considerable grounds for optimism as companies embrace new
approaches. However, one other big trend, cloud computing, is
tending to depress demand for IT professionals at the moment.
Recruitment budgets are static or declining. Many companies would
prefer to retrain rather than recruit, in particular where the
technology ecosystem is evolving, says a London-based
consultant.They will typically only look at candidates if they have
the most relevant and up-to-date experience. If you worked with a
piece of technology three years ago, thats helpful, but not as
helpful as if you have worked with every new release since. He adds
a further interesting development; the HR function is having the
final say in many recruitment decisions within major investment
banks. To land a job you must get HR buy-in as well as that of the
executive director. CAREER MOVERS Focus on big data analytics and
open source technologies and acquire skills in project management
and development methodologies. Be aware that to land a great job,
its not enough to have the requisite IT skills. You also need to
convince HR. THE BOTTOM LINE RECRUITING EMPLOYERS Candidates are
becoming more proactive in retraining and seeking new employers its
a good time to take a look at the talent pool. TOP FACTORS DRIVING
TRENDS Static or declining recruitment budgets Structural changes
in the IT landscape Economic uncertainty Data analytics and data
quality are massive concerns across all industry sectors in the UK.
9 11. 013 A MORGAN McKINLEY GROUP COMPANY GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY TREND
REPORT
