Specialist IT recruiter Modis International have revealed a key challenge facing IT employers in the UK - recruitment. An issue much ignored as the downturn has gripped the country in 2009, key industry leaders raised it as a crucial challenge facing the industry over the coming months.
Recruitment was at the head of a debate in Sheffield's Cutter Hall that brought together many of the UK's top IT directors and HR professionals working in the sector. Many of the companies represented at the event reported that attraction and retention was now firmly on the agenda as a critical and immediate business issue.
As the economy witnesses the first fragile green shoots, the IT sector is in a scramble to ensure it has the right people in the right places to facilitate effective recovery and return to growth. Identifying key people and attracting them, as well as retaining the top talent already within organisations, is now at the top of the agenda in many boardrooms.
In response to the discussion in Sheffield, Modis International produced a best practice guide: Recruiting In A Tight Market. The guide explores the best ways for IT employers to attract the best people at a time when the most talented in the market are reluctant to leave current positions. The guide provides clear, practical help, aiming to cut through much of the traditional double-speak of recruitment to deliver truly useful guidance.
Jim Albert, managing director at Modis International, comments: "The temptation has been to ignore issues around recruitment and retention as the economy has slowed down, but now that many organisations are in a position to look seriously at recovery, talent has become increasingly important. Those companies that marginalised things like their employer brand or retention strategies in the last year or so find themselves in a position where it's incredibly difficult to attract people of the calibre required."
"It's something we hear of every day when we speak with our clients, but the high level debate in Sheffield truly brought the issue home. We had a room of senior IT professionals, all saying the same thing - they need help to know when and how to get new faces through the door. Few companies can afford bad hires at the best of times; at a time when the recovery remains incredibly fragile, wrong people decisions made now could be disastrous. Our best practice guide draws from a number of sources and clarifies a lot of issues in a highly practical, lucid document that can help IT and HR professionals make those decisions," Albert added.
The guide can be accessed online at www.modisintl.com
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