Good news! Our industry is recession proof

But how we are ever going to solve the skills shortage after recent figures show the demand for IT skills is unstoppable?

Recent figures from specialist IT recruiter Randstad have revealed that the IT professionals are the most recession proof sector in the UK.

That is pretty clear from the amount of people I talk to who are desperately looking to increase their headcount, but are struggling with finding the right skills. And the continuing move towards a service-based model, means more skills than ever before are needed.

In fact many people have told me recruiting the right staff, and retaining the good ones is the number one headache they are facing this year.

I could add to that by saying the same about good journalists - the market is so competitive and companies are literally fighting over good candidates - it is intensely frustrating to be recruiting at the moment!

For those who haven't read the article, the least recession proof profession was travel agencies.

A recent article on Channelweb said that strong IT professional candidates were basically allowed to name their price and choose what benefits they want from a prospective employer and they will just get everything their heart desires. The recruitment process has basically turned on its head.

And according to some industry bodies, the situation is only going to get worse as older generations retire, and youngsters snub the industry for professions such as blogging and singing (oh dear!).

There is only so many times you can approach the staff of your rival and try to tempt them over, surely the benefits of training up a new person are attractive?

Indeed more and more VARs are launching their own apprentice training schemes as they try to attract new talent from the ground up.

And CRN is trying to recognise that vital service of bringing new talent into the industry, by launching a dedicated category at our Sales and Marketing Awards in July.

But is there more that could be done? We at CRN have batted the idea around of some sort of IT fair aimed at schools/colleges/universities to try and get young people interested and excited about the industry, and thinking about a career that offers real returns, rather than aspiring to appear on X-factor and The Voice.

I'd be interested to know from our reader(s) whether this would be something you would support?

Please get in touch and share your thoughts.