Sharp rise in IT job vacancies

Number of applicants per job falling

Registered IT vacancies have increased

The number of registered IT vacancies rose sharply in the second quarter of 2010, according to IT recruitment agency CV Screen, suggesting that the IT sector may be heading out of the recession.

When the agency compared the number of registered vacancies in second quarter of 2010 with those in the same quarter last year, it found an increase of 47 per cent.

It also found that during the same period of time the number of applicants per job role had dropped by more than a third, from 295 to 187.

Matthew Iveson, director of CV Screen, said that the market had started to pick up in the fourth quarter of last year, and had continued to grow throughout 2010.

“Companies are more confident and candidates are as well, so the natural churn within the marketplace is back,” said Iveson.

“Whereas 12 months ago candidates were saying ‘I’ve got a job so I’m sitting tight’, now those candidates want to move on for a variety of reasons and they’re not scared to do so.” He thought that the reason for the smaller number of candidates for each vacancy was that IT professionals were being more selective in the roles they applied for.

He added that there was no obvious difference in demand between industry sectors, but that there was a growing demand for staff with SEO or e-commerce experience: “All businesses are suddenly realising that to sell a product or improve their website ranking, they need expertise in this area.”