Summer is the time to hire top talent, firm claims
Specialist IT recruiter Randstad Technologies claims the best way to nab a high flier is to recruit in August
Despite the general consensus that August is among the worst times to hire staff, one IT recruiter is claiming the opposite.
According to specialist IT recruiter Randstad Technologies, there are 3.1 candidates on average going for every new job in August, compared with January (traditionally thought to be the best time to recruit) which has an average of just 1.2.
Mike Beresford, managing director of Randstad Technologies, said: “If you want the best odds on scooping up high flyers, August is the month to hire. These figures show the competition for the best talent is less intense. With the ratio of candidates to potential vacancies so advantageous to the hiring organisation, the summer is an ideal time to recruit.
"You might not be able to count on the sun during a typical British August but if you are in the IT and technology industries, you can count on having to fight that little bit less hard for every candidate you want to hire.”
To gather its findings, the recruitment firm analysed the times of year that 5,950 IT, digital and telecoms professionals started looking for new roles.
The firm claimed its research also highlighted the significant demand for IT and technology professionals, with just 2.3 new candidates for every new role advertised, compared with an average of 2.7 new candidates for every fresh role across the UK.
Beresford added: "The UK lost a lot of skilled technology and IT talent over the dark days of 2009 and the worst of the economic downturn as overseas markets offered more work and better pay. But the industry has rediscovered itself since the sharp decline in recruitment in 2008 and 2009. Increased demand has driven hiring across the UK although there are still significant skills gaps in the workforce. That’s been reflected in salary growth.
"We’ve seen salaries for IT systems experts grow by over 65 per cent outside London over the course of the past three years. There’s a real shortage of skilled people – a shortage that the pitiful number of appropriately trained graduates and post-graduates cannot be expected to fill. But timing can help. If you want the tap up the top talent, the summer’s the time to do it.”