We're in the money

If you're an IT director looking to employ staff, news that wage rates are starting to go through the roof is as welcome as a hole in the head, especially if it means having to go begging to the board for a budget increase.

Conversely, though, if you're one of those also looking for a new position, then the prospect of Loadsamoney - a la Harry Enfield - isn't such a pain after all.

Either way, silly times are here again, at least if you believe what the specialist recruitment agencies say. Roger Hatfield, divisional manager with recruitment and contract consultancy IBS Consulting, insists: 'The market is back to the high-earning days of the mid to late 80s. Because of the millennium issue, demand for skills outstrips supply across the board. Even skills like RPG/400 and PL/1 can't be had for love nor money.'

A contributory factor could be that hitherto a lack of economic confidence has made people reluctant to change jobs, he speculates. 'Depending on how things change under the new Government, people could become more willing to move on. Year 2000 and potentially European monetary union will increase the temptations for those people to move. At the same time, we're seeing companies putting handcuffs on the staff they have by offering them bonuses to stay until after 2000.'

Like building societies and banks talking up the property market, specialist IT agencies naturally have a vested interest in emphasising the rewards. Yet when asked what skills in particular they are looking for, many recruiters don't know where to start, perhaps confirming that talk of a surge in IT wage rates isn't, after all, mere hype.

C++, PowerBuilder, anything to do with GUIs, any relational databases - especially the latest versions - are all skills cited as being heavily in demand. Java skills are similarly reported to be eagerly sought, despite the fact that the technology is taking longer than was thought to permeate the industry. Then there's networking.

Matthew St John-Richardson, head of Angel International's recently relaunched IT recruitment sector, says: 'The City is our specialist market, and we're finding that everyone wants NT and NetWare skills - preferably the two together, and people with hands-on experience rather than gurus. I'd say that demand for the former has increased tenfold over the past three to six months. We're noticing the increase in both contract and permanent staff.'

Agents also identify niche skills that are hard to find. Angel's special interests include Cics Huron and other specialised Cics add-ons. St John-Richardson complains: 'I've got 260 jobs in the US to fill, all paying a hell of a lot, but I can't find enough of the right people.'

He reckons that even the worst payers today are willing to shell out #1,750 a week for Cics Huron skills.

Meanwhile, some agencies seem to aim for quantity of prospective vacancies rather than quality, sending CVs out like grapeshot. This is the agency that can inadvertently send your CV to your current employer. While a number of these agencies were said to have been 'shaken out' during the recession, quite a few seem to be back in force.

Given that few candidates or employers seem to be enthused by agents who deal in bulk CVs, how do they stay in business? The answer is that when employers are desperate for a particular skill, they will invariably take what's on offer, however annoying the method through which they hear about the candidate.

Victor Biriotti is a messaging and office automation specialist employed by Intelligent Networks and working on contract with Philips in the Netherlands. Previously, he was on the other side of the fence, working for BT and recruiting staff himself.

He reveals: 'Some agents will aggressively ring up a potential employer and throw anyone they can at them, even if there isn't an actual post. I used to get a lot of candidates coming to my door who were unscreened, or had knowingly been sent even though they were unsuitable for the vacancy I had.

'And yes - I did often make use of them, because I saw that they had skills that I could use. But I wouldn't want an agency like that to place me.

It's an approach that I think usually works only for commodity skills, such as Windows 95 support.'

Elsewhere, candidates are increasingly expected to be renaissance men or women, with not only in-depth technical knowledge and experience but also vertical market expertise, plus a wealth of business savoir-faire.

On the other hand, some of the recruitment companies are focusing on quite specific areas. Ray Baptiste is sales director of Comms Liveware, which he reckons is one of 20 to 30 agencies that specialise in communications.

'Out of those, we're unique in that we have substantial in-house expertise, including our own Cisco CCIE [Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert], for vetting candidates' skills and understanding client needs,' he claims.

More generally, specialist recruitment agencies boost their earnings by providing supplementary services - something that freelance IT workers, especially, should look out for. These range from helping new contractors to set up limited companies through to negotiating red tape on behalf of those going to work abroad. Perhaps the most valuable help they can provide is basic career counselling.

Rachel Pennycuick used Apex to find her current job as support coordinator with a London-based communications company. 'A friend recommended them,' she says. 'I was working in Derbyshire at the time and I sent them my CV. They invited me down for a chat, which was awkward because of where I was working, but they were accommodating about scheduling meetings either side of the weekend. I got on very well with the consultants I met.

'Talking to them was helpful, because I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do next. They talked through what I could and couldn't do, and what I'd like, and we agreed that the salary I was asking for was reasonable for a graduate with three years' experience. They would have helped me with the presentation of my CV and with interview preparation if I'd needed it as well.

'They got me three interviews for three jobs, and they were all of interest - I feel they picked them very well.'

Candidates look to agencies to manage the client's expectations, although this may be easier said than done.

Vijay Singh,a senior support specialist with Citibank in London, says: 'Companies are demanding so much of candidates - not just professional and academic qualifications, but also a wealth of experience on not one, but several platforms. Agencies should help them cut down a wish-list into something a bit more realistic. That's particularly true for medium or small companies which normally don't have an IT specialist on board and therefore don't really know what sort of person they need.'

For most people, choosing which agency to use is primarily a matter of seeing who's advertising jobs that appeal. Victor Biriotti found his current position through Angel, having spotted a likely job that they'd advertised on the Internet service JobServe.

'When I left BT, I'd sworn to stick with one agency which I'd dealt with as an employer and thought highly of. But then nothing happened for three weeks and I got a bit desperate - I had to pay the rent. I applied for the job I saw on JobServe, but they actually ended up putting me forward for a different one. It was a bit of a fluke that I found an agency that suited me.'

Having established a rapport with an agency, it's good to put all your cards on the table. Tim Skelding, team leader of networks skills at Apex Computer recruitment, says: 'We need as much information as possible. Don't be afraid to tell us exactly what you want. There's nothing worse than doing a lot of work, getting someone an offer, and then being told, "actually I don't want to work in east London".'

Skills that were out of vogue during the recession now appear to be in demand once more. Vanessa Coleman, business development manager at Executive Recruitment Services, says: 'In the recession, there was less demand for project managers, and a lot of people decided to stay hands-on as a kind of insurance policy.

'That left a dearth of the sort of people who can deliver the million-pound project, assessing and managing all the risks. And now there are a lot of bespoke projects that need that sort of people.

'Project managers who have worked both for consultancies or software houses and for users are particularly in demand - it adds value to them to have delivered from both sides.'

Coleman adds that staff short-ages are more acute further down the project hierarchy. 'There's always the pyramid effect - more programmers needed than project managers. The shortages at junior levels are exacerbated by the fact that during the recession companies cut back on graduate recruitment and training. So we don't have as many graduates with two to three years' experience.'

Signing on with too many recruiters is not recommended by agents or candidates. Pennycuick says: 'I went to see Apex at the beginning of January, having decided that if they hadn't found me anything suitable by the end of March I'd get my CV circulating round some other agencies.

But by the end of February I had two offers.'

But Coleman points out: 'It shouldn't be necessary for a permanent IT person to register with more than two or three agencies.' She suggests looking for one who's a member of Fres, the recruiters' professional body.

Skelding goes further. 'For someone with the right skill set, I don't see that they need to sign on with anyone else. I'll say: "Give me 24 hours and you'll see that I can find you what you're looking for". But if someone wants a bit more than I can offer them based on their skills and experience, then I'll tell them to go ahead and open the net wider.'

There are still Cinderellas left behind while everyone else is going to the ball. Ageism is a problem, although the year 2000 problem has made it easier for older technicians to get work. 'If someone with MVS Cobol, Cics, and DB2 skills comes in, I can get them a job. Age is no barrier,' says St John-Richardson, admitting that no 'crumblies' have presented themselves to him so far.

Coleman isn't so sure. 'I think there is still ageism, and a feeling that the market is young and young people are needed.

'But on the other hand, companies such as SAP UK are prepared to go on television and say that they want people with experience, and that's valuable.' SAP is the first IT company to join the Employers' Forum on Age, an anti-age discrimination initiative, according to a spokesman.

Candidates themselves feel that they have suffered from ageism. 'I've noticed that when I put my age - 56 - on job applications I don't get a reply,' says an IT trainer and experienced Web designer.

A manager says: 'I was approached by an agency about a post as senior IT manager. He thought my experience was ideal for this company. A few days later I was told that I was over-quali-fied for the job. That's the first time I've had that thrown at me.' He suspects that his age - 50 - was the real objection.

Candidates who are limited geographically may also experience problems. A VM specialist says: 'Travelling or commuting long distance so that I'm away from the house all the time while the children are awake are not options I will consider. If I were more mobile, I could have had constant work, in London, Benelux or the US. But here in the Midlands, there aren't many VM jobs, and I have had periods without work.'

Agencies The good, the bad and the ugly

Not surprisingly, the agencies are licking their lips at the prospect of some juicy commissions. But in the klondike rush to fill jobs there's a suspicion that the less scrupulous will place candidates in the first available job - even if it is against his or her interest.

So, what can the applicants do to weed out the good agencies from the bad?

'The high-quality agents fall into two categories,' says Vijay Singh, a senior support specialist with Citibank in London - a position he found through Angel.

'Some have people who have worked in the IT industry and have moved into recruitment, and others approach it from the personnel side. The industry ones understand the requirements; the personnel ones understand more about the company profile.'

Whatever their perspective, better-quality agents demonstrate the personal touch, he believes, talking to candidates, meeting them whenever possible and checking with them before sending their CV to a prospective employer.

Presentation Dress maketh the worker

Besides interview and CV-writing techniques, agency advice can extend to sartorial matters, which, in the City at least, are considered more important by HR people than by IT specialists, according to Matthew St John-Richardson. 'Techie people don't care how you look, as long as you can do the job. If you're someone they can go for a drink with after work, then that's a bonus. But HR departments can get in the way - they look for a more professional level of presentation.

'I sometimes say to candidates "Make sure you dress as they want you to. If you have to pay a trip to Armani, then so be it". If they're earning #100,000 then they can afford to dress the part.'

Looking for a break IT wannabes

Ageism apart, there are other categories of candidate who may have trouble. One is the IT wannabe. Roger Hatfield of IBS Consulting says: 'Because of the growth in home computing, we get candidates who've built an Access database on their home PC and would like to move into IT, and on the whole it's difficult to place them. But if they're not too expensive, have good skills and are prepared to put in the effort, they may be in with a chance.'

Users who want to make the move into IT are usually better off trying to get their current employer to give them some IT experience, rather than teaching themselves at home, he adds.