The number of chief information officers looking to increase their IT staff is forecast to dip in the third quarter, but hiring should remain positive because of expected business growth, a recruiting company said Tuesday.
A national poll of 1,400 CIOS from U.S. companies with at least 100 employees found 8 percent expecting to hire IT workers in the next quarter, Robert Half Technology said. With 3 percent of CIOs planning to decrease staff, the net gain projected for the quarter is 5 percent. The majority of CIOs, 88 percent, expected to maintain existing staff levels.
The latest projection is less than the second quarter, when a net 9 percent of CIOs expected a hiring increase, the highest level in two years, the Menlo Park, Calif.-based headhunter said in its quarterly report. Nevertheless, signs pointed to a positive job market, as business expansion for the third consecutive quarter remained the leading reason for IT hiring.
The survey also found that the largest companies were most optimistic about hiring. Microsoft Windows administration remained the skill set most in demand by CIOs, and the strongest employment growth is forecast in West North Central and Mid-Atlantic regions of the country.
Despite the positive news on job growth, there was no indication that hiring was returning to the worker-heyday of the late-90s, when unemployment reached record lows, Robert Half said. Instead, companies were cautiously adding staff and hiring temporary workers to restart projects that were on hold during the recession.
Nevertheless, 51 percent of CIOs planning to increase staff cited more business as the primary reason. This compares to 46 percent of in the second quarter and 37 percent in the first quarter.
System upgrades and a need for more customer and end-user support were the second most cited reason for more hiring, each receiving 13 percent of the response.
Large companies were more likely to hire than smaller companies. A net 15 percent of CIOs in companies with more than a 1,000 employees said they planned to increase staff.
Microsoft Windows (NT/2000/XP) administration was the technical skill set needed by 84 percent of survey respondents, with Visual Basic development cited by 46 percent of CIOs. Check Point firewall administration ranked third with 41 percent.
The most sought-after specialty among CIOs was networking, with 25 percent of respondents listing a need for the skill set. Security improvement was the leading reason for the demand.
CIOs in the West North Central states led the country in hiring expectations, with 12 percent planning to increase staff, and none expecting decreases. Those states include Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
Mid-Atlantic states were second, with 8 percent of CIOs looking for talent. Those states include New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.
Among industries, the business services sector was most optimistic about hiring, with a net 13 percent of CIOs expecting to boost staffing. Wholesale, finance, insurance and real estate industries were second with a net 8 percent.
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