As is well-reported, New Zealand is in the grips of a tech skills shortage, with many organisations expecting to feel its impact well into 2023. According to Hays, one of New Zealand’s leading recruitment firms, the situation is unparalleled in their 46 years in the business.
The emergence of COVID-19 sent the world into a flat spin and a global lockdown. Many opted to repatriate to their home country, taking their skills with them. With international borders closed globally, countries had to settle for local talent. N.Z’s tech sector, primarily dominated by immigrant workers, were left fishing from a shallow pool.
Before COVID, immigrants filled as many as 4,500 high-paid tech roles in some 20,000 tech firms annually; in their absence, there was a significant disparity between supply and demand.
The good news is that our international borders are reopening to the world, and with that, will come a flood of skilled labour; this will boost N.Z’s economy and give the tech industry the wings it needs to achieve phenomenal growth.
However, plugging these gaps will take time, and there is concern that international competition will challenge N.Z’s allure, especially where salary, job prospects, and career mobility are concerned.
If you are a Kiwi, now is a great time to upskill or reskill – particularly if you already work in tech or have been considering redirecting your path. Digitisation is rampant across all sectors and the tech industry is on a clear and rampant trajectory in a skyward direction globally. Now is the time to act.
According to the Hays 2022/23 Salary Guide, 88% of organisations surveyed said they have offered higher salaries than initially planned to find the right employees, while 66% of employees said they benefitted financially from changing jobs in the past year.
Furthermore, with the pressure to deliver firmly in the employee’s court, Hays recommend that any job offer be compelling. Along with a competitive salary, they suggest the promise of flexible work environments, professional development opportunities, and alignment between personal and professional purpose.
It’s an employee’s market!
With software engineers and cloud specialists named among the most in-demand tech jobs, Mission Ready’s Full Stack Developer Accelerator and Advanced Software Developer (AI and Cloud) Accelerator courses will prepare you to enter the workforce and hit the ground running.
Be ready to stake your claim in a thriving industry. Be ready to grow with an industry where the sky is the ceiling. Be Mission Ready.
Contact us now to learn more!