IT and Project Management Jobs on the Decline

LONDON, Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ --

• Number of IT Manager jobs continues to decrease, for fifth consecutive month
• IT support roles are now the highest number represented on the site
• Sector sees an increase in demand for roles including: SQL, web developer, Java and .net

For the first time this year, IT support roles have taken over from IT manager jobs as the highest number represented on The IT Job Board (www.theitjobboard.co.uk). That's the finding from the company's latest Skills in Demand report (September 2010).

As per previous reports, IT support and IT manager roles continue to represent the highest proportion of jobs on The IT Job Board site. But, since January 2010, the number of IT manager Jobs advertised have almost halved, and – today – they account for 32 percent of the available jobs.

Demand for project managers has also decreased month-on-month, between May to September of this year.

Commenting on these findings, Alex Farrell, managing director of The IT Job Board, said: "As the UK's biggest IT specialist recruitment website, we believe our Skills in Demand report provides a real industry barometer. It's interesting to see that IT support roles have taken over from IT manager jobs as the most widely advertised on the site, and perhaps a reflection that companies are cutting back on bigger IT projects, which require specific project management skills.

On a more positive note, the number of roles in SQL, web development, software engineering, PHP, Java, ERP and .net have each witnessed increases for the last three months; with only Java jobs seeing a small dip in August.

Alex Farrell added: "2010 has certainly been a year of peaks and troughs in the IT recruitment sector, and demand for jobs across various skill-sets have changed from month to month.

"At the end of 2009, we predicted that skills such as .net, web development, SAP and Java would be in real demand for the year ahead. And the findings from this third quarter report certainly seem to indicate such a trend. As companies get to grips with social and business networking, Web 2.0 skills are proving to be critical."

Both contract and permanent positions have steadily decreased over the last few months; with contract jobs now representing one quarter of all those advertised.

Notes to editors

About The IT Job Board:

The IT Job Board group of companies was set up in April 2002 in recognition that recruitment in the IT sector was increasingly dominated by the internet.

Today, The IT Job Board (www.theitjobboard.co.uk) is the UK's biggest IT specialist recruitment website with over 14,400 (as at October 2010).

Online technology enables sophisticated targeting – for example by skill, region or experience – of The IT Job Board's database of 800,000 IT professionals. The company always tries to get closer to candidates either via planned content campaigns, or through the use of social networks.

The site also offers employers services such as branded job postings, a featured employer zone, targeted email campaigns and guidance on advertising copy.  The managed campaign service filters responses to provide companies with a shortlist of applicants most suitable for the advertised position.

www.theitjobboard.co.uk's clients include Accenture, The Metropolitan Police and Yahoo!

SOURCE The IT Job Board