The PlanetRecruit Blog

Don’t turn your back on IT Opportunities in Hong Kong

By Neil Holland

Despite mixed messages about IT opportunities in Hong Kong - the UK’s largest IT graduate employer - FDM has begun accelerating its recruitment drive in the region. The recent revelation that a number of investment banks are set to introduce major job cuts in Hong Kong in the coming years, came as unwelcome news to many, particulary those considering roles and job placements in the area. However, the employment prospects for IT professionals and graduates seeking Hong Kong based IT roles may not really be so bleak after all.

As the UK’s ‘Best Technical Graduate Recruiter’ of 2010, FDM is aiming to place 150 candidates in the region within the next year for a number of reasons. The Hong Kong Computer Society (HKCS) recently reported that more than 70% of the IT professionals questioned for its latest employment survey received an average pay increase of four to six percent in 2011. The results of the survey also revealed that 51.2% of the firms questioned hired fresh graduates this year, 90% of which received an entry level salary of over HK$10,000 a month.

The Job of the Recruitment Futurologist

Being a futurologist has always struck me as an odd job, like a professional daydreamer or fantasist. Personal feelings aside, their musing makes for good copy in the tabloids. Recently I read a piece discussing the future of tablet computers, phones and social media suggesting that all of these would be combined into a single headset with a drop down visor over one of our eyes, which displays information about the person you are looking at based on the their social network profile.
 
The 'vision' was that you would be able to see people who have similar hobbies or pastimes, their relationship status so on. I'm not heavy on social networking but this whole thing just sounds strange to me. This said, it did occur to me that in the same way you could display your personal availability and other details, you could use your social network profile it to find a new job.

Maybe you could indicate your current role and willingness to be approached about new work in a floating bubble above your head, possibly even with a salary attached. For example: ‘Java Developer, Available, no less than £350 per day’. You might be doing your weekly shop and you get a tap on the shoulder from an IT Director on his weekly shop who then gives you his card and asks you to get in touch (perfect!); although there would probably be no such thing as business cards. Maybe you'd have to bump heads or something. Finding a job would be so easy. 
 

Industry Event: Women in IT Advantage Session

As part of its commitment to encouraging more women to work within the IT industry, FDM Group will be holding a “Women in IT Advantage Session” on 17th August at its London Bridge office.
 
The free event will give female graduates and students the opportunity to learn more about the different career options and support available to them, should they wish to pursue a career in the field.
 
FDM Chief Operating Officer Sheila Flavell said, “We are delighted to be holding this event with the aim of promoting the lucrative world of IT to this latest generation of female graduates.”
 
Representatives from key organisations such as the UKRC and Women in Technology will be delivering presentations to give graduates an insight into how their organisations operate and benefit women in IT.
 

Why IT Graduates are Seeking International Job Opportunities

While questioning a focus group of graduate IT consultants recently, we discovered a key reason behind the phenomenal amount of graduate applications we have received this year – international opportunities.
 
The chance to travel the world after graduating – when ties have not yet been formed and the thirst for discovery is at its peak – has always been popular with university leavers.
 
As the economy creeps back on to its feet, it is no surprise that many graduates are taking on pre-university jobs to fund a post-university gap year.
 

The Job Interview Mind Reader

Wherever you happen to be at the moment, take a look at the person next to you – what are they thinking? Can you tell? Don’t be surprised if you can’t; it turns out that human beings are surprisingly bad at guessing what others are thinking.

In 2005, scientists at the University of Cambridge began developing a device to help autistic people decode the emotions of others via their facial expressions. People with autism find this apparently simple task extremely difficult, so such a device would be very useful for them.

While calibrating their device, the scientists discovered that the average person correctly identifies the emotion behind an expression just 54% of the time – a useful skill to have for a job interview. Their prototype device, on the other hand, was right 64% of the time.

More Women Required to Combat the IT Skills Shortage

On 30th June 2011, UCAS revealed that 378,138 women applied for a place at university this year, compared to 291,818 men.

The statistics also revealed that 60,219 prospective students applied to study Computer Science, with 12,023 seeking to take technology courses.

But according to the e-skills 2011 report ‘Technology Insights’, only 9% of students studying A Level Computing and 15% of those reading the subject at university are female. 

And in March 2011, around the time of International Women’s Day, industry research revealed that only 16% of all IT job seekers are women.

Bob Clift, Head of Higher Education Programmes at e-skills, explained one of the reasons behind the female shortage: “What a lot of women don’t realise is that most IT roles are business focused and are equally applicable to professionals of either sex. The problem the industry still faces, is the common perception that IT roles are reserved for ‘geeky’ men but this couldn’t be further from the truth.”

IT Jobs Rise...But Who’s in Demand?

Recent research published by the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo) has confirmed what many professionals in the IT industry have known for some time – IT jobs are on the increase and have been steadily rising for the last year. In fact, the research finds the number of new IT jobs created in the UK has risen 28% year-on-year.

However, this research seems to be based largely on the numbers of job adverts posted, information that is freely available online through several monitoring sites. Using job ads alone is quite a blunt measurement of the health of any employment market but unfortunately, such is the fast-paced nature of all employment markets that in-depth qualitative-based research is more or less impossible – the results likely to be out of date by time of publication.

The report I saw gave generalisations around movement in the contract market (less) and permanent market (more), but my own research suggests that contract positions currently remain flat and the growth appears to be in the number of permanent roles registered.
 

How Equipped Are You For Employment?

The unemployment rate in the UK is currently 7.7%, with almost a million Britons between the ages of 16 and 24 unemployed. These numbers look alarming, but it isn’t necessarily the case that there aren’t enough jobs to accommodate a good number of worried jobseekers. The truth is that finding the right candidates is no mean feat: the majority of job applicants are simply not ready for the business world.

We are not the only organisation to have noticed a ‘skills gap’. A recent survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel (CIPD) found that employers are being swamped by unsuitable candidates, and David Frost, the outgoing director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, recently commented that the UK’s education system leaves school-leavers so unequipped for the workplace that “five years later we spend billions offering them remedial training to make them work-ready”.

Where is the Skills Gap?

Finding intelligent and knowledgeable candidates isn’t the problem. There are plenty of knowledgeable people around, particularly in the IT industry. It’s not just about having some understanding of technology and its business applications, it’s about quickly recognising clients’ problems and identifying the most appropriate solutions.

Find a Job Through Your Social Network

In such a competitive job market, job seekers, employers and employment agencies are continually looking for means to gain an advantage. Consequently, the methods and tools by which new talent is sourced and acquired are constantly evolving.

Following the emergence of social media giants like Facebook and Twitter, social networking has become an integral part of both our personal and professional lives. So what impact has the increased popularity of social networking sites made on those involved in the recruitment industry?

For those looking for work, social networking can provide a useful tool with which to market themselves to would-be employers.

Are SMEs really more appealing to the younger generation?

I read some comment on the job market recently that put forward the opinion that corporate / blue chip employers are struggling to attract younger talent. According to the article, this demographic is more naturally drawn to smaller start-up companies over the big players in any given market. 

The theory is that smaller organisations are more adaptable and agile, allowing them to change quickly to meet the demands of their customers, but also are more concerned with the needs of their staff. This is offset against a perception that in a corporate company you will become a tiny cog in a big machine and no longer be rewarded with significantly better pay or benefits. This seems a reasonable enough proposition, and there is always the chance that working in a small organisation you'll get in on the next big thing. 

The whole theory feeds into the ‘anti-corporate message’ that has always been there, but has arguably become more commonplace since the recession. People are more aware than before of the impact that big brands can have on the UK economy and local businesses – a big well-known supermarket on your side of town will hurt local shopkeepers for example. And let’s not get started on the general antipathy towards other large corporates such as oil companies, energy suppliers and telecoms companies.