IT consultancy and systems integrator Eurodata Systems has launched a new service for midmarket firms designed to provide them with short to medium cover for IT skills shortages. The company said the service would be particularly effective for providing cover when IT staff are on leave or during spikes in demand for IT resources caused by new projects.

Neil Keating, commercial director at Eurodata Systems, said that midmarket firms faced with short-term skills shortages have traditionally had little choice but to recruit new staff or sign up contractors. However, recruitment is time consuming and costly, Keating argued, while it is difficult to guarantee service consistency when using individual contractors. Eurodata's new TeamEuro service aims to overcome these issues, he added.

"[The TeamEuro service] is particularly useful for covering a new project," Keating said. "It allows your full-time staff to work on the new project, which is what they want to do, while we cover the support work. It also means that when the project is done those who have worked on it then get to support the new software."

The ability to tap into an approved team of technical staff can also deliver efficiency benefits, according to Keating. "We work with one firm where contractors need security clearance that takes three months before they can work there," he said. "With the new service, several Eurodata staff already have clearance so the customer can use them whenever it wants without any delay."

Eurodata predicted it will see strong demand for the new service during the summer months when IT departments at midmarket firms often come under pressure as staff take holidays - sometimes leading to IT staff being contacted to resolve problems while on leave.

"If you have four people in your IT department then you are going to spend most of the summer with 25 percent less staff than normal," explained Keating. "Those firms can't afford a fifth permanent person so access to a consistent pool of technical experts would prove beneficial."

The new service will be available on a pay-as-you-go basis, Keating said, and is likely to be slightly more expensive than contractor rates but still significantly better value than full professional services contracts.

Meanwhile, IT training firm Computeach has launched a new recruitment division designed to help firms find suitable IT staff from amongst its pool of graduates. The company said the new service would help IT managers find a shortlist of recruits with relevant experience and a good mix of technical and soft skills.

Helen Lisle, head of Computeach Recruitment UK, said the new service would be open to both recent and experienced Computeach graduates and would offer employers a range of potential recruits. "We've known our students for between 12 months and three years, so it is not like they've just popped in for a five minute chat or been interviewed on the phone," she added.