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The
demand for degreed computer specialists will more than double in the next ten years,
according to a recent survey of high-tech personnel managers. The survey, reported by
The Van Zant Resource Group (VRG), an Atlanta-based high-tech recruitment and staffing
firm, found ten-year growth rates surpassing 115 percent for key jobs such as database
administrators, computer support specialists and other computer science positions.
Following close behind will be jobs for computer engineers and systems analysts.
The company said the growth in high-tech jobs will far surpass even those in the
medical field, which the U.S. Department of Labor sees as the second fastest employment
sector as the U.S. population ages.
Rather than improving, today’s tight technology talent market will likely become
more constricted," said Kathy Van Zant, President and CEO, VRG. As a result,
employment standards for high-tech positions may weaken and pay levels will rise as
companies continue to compete for scarce skills.
As a high-tech employment specialist, VRG expects companies to explore innovative
compensation programs to attract and hold quality people in technology positions.
Even
vocationally trained computer positions, such as computer repair technicians, will see
growth rates exceeding 50 percent, said Van Zant. So, companies will increasingly rely on
performance bonuses and other innovative compensation techniques to prevent employee
raiding and ownership dilution, while giving employees a strong incentive to stick around. Unlike
some projections, the survey data suggests the strongest demand will be for hardware
specialists instead of programmers. "The demand for programmers will remain high for
obvious competitive reasons, as well as for companies still struggling with Y2K
issues," Van Zant said.
According to the survey, the greatest demand will come not only from computer and data
processing service firms, but also from engineering, finance, management, manufacturing,
and accounting. All companies will be pressed to upgrade, support and maintain their
enterprise IT infrastructure.
According to VRG, many companies expect the greatest challenges in the early days of
the new millennium will be integrating their various technologies into sensible, cohesive
business systems.
This employment data comes from a survey of human resources personnel among the
nation’s high-tech employers.
The Van Zant Resource Group is a management consulting company specializing in
candidate sourcing, contract staffing and recruiting solutions. Serving clients
nationwide, VRG’s industry focus includes, information technology, software services,
cable television, telecommunications and related industries. VRG is expert at mining
specialty skill sets for multiple openings and meeting the demand for continuous candidate
pool requirements.
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