Soaring salaries and out-of-hours interviews: channel job seekers wield power as skills gap widens

Recruiters report a busy start to January as channel workers put getting a new job at the top of their new year's resolution list

Job candidates in the channel wield more power than employers, demanding higher salaries, out-of-hours interviews on neutral territories, and guarantees written into their contracts, according to recruiters who claim this month is shaping up to be extremely busy.

The start of the new year signals the beginning of two major factors which spice up the recruitment market, channel jobs experts claim: approval of staff budgets, and candidates full of new-year vigour looking to move on to better things.

Craig Austin, director at channel recruiter Genesis Associates, told CRN that things are hotting up already.

"At this time of year, we see a 40 to 45 per cent increase in active roles we take on at any one time. That's a fact," he said. "Between now and April is notoriously the busiest time of year, so we see a 45 per cent uplift in the roles our clients give us. I've seen an increase in the average salary from about £45,000 a year to £55,000 for the average account director across the channel. This demonstrates that it is a candidate-driven market. People are willing to pay more for someone they wouldn't have done a few years ago."

Zoe Chatley, managing partner at recruiter Wallace Hind, agreed and said a new job is high on many people's agenda in the new year.

"There are a couple of reasons it is so busy," she said. "A lot of the time, companies get to November and December and think about their budgets and what they need to put in place, so now is the best time to start that recruitment. If people have long notice periods, you need to start looking now. That's the main reason it gets so busy now, so it is a great time of year to recruit.

"From a candidate perspective, they've had time off and thought about what they want to do, so we are bombarded with calls. We joke that they've had a think about how much they hate their jobs, so they give us a call!"

Austin said the old days of employers calling the shots are long gone.

"It is a candidate-driven market now," he said. "Most organisations are looking for good people. Three or four years ago, people would take the first offer they got; now they are getting multiple offers.It is great for the candidates, as they can pick and choose and are far more selective. They won't just take a punt - they are waiting for the right thing."

The IT skills gap has been talked about for years in the channel, and Austin claims that specific pockets of the market feel it more than others.

"The majority of people we represent are people we approach," he said. "Jobs boards tend to be no good - why are you looking for a job? As far as the skills gap is concerned, there's always demand in the middle tier, for the second or third jobber. [Clients] don't want to pay us to find a graduate; they can do their own thing there. They want those on an upward trajectory in their careers. They don't want someone who's done 15 years at HP to go to a reseller as they would be HP-ified. They want someone with a good understanding of cloud and who understands the services. That's where the skills gap is."