As we move into February 2012 companies continue to hire and the demand for top talent explodes. In December of 2011, the Justice Department reversed its previous stand on the 1961 Wire Act — saying that it applied to sports betting but not online gambling —thus casino operators can now apply for an online gambling license. As a result, Las Vegas companies are ramping up their ecommerce gaming and web development and quality assurance teams, and the need for Java and mobile developers continues to increase. We, ourselves are working on an iOS app that we hope to release in the second quarter.
In Phoenix, the market is hot. We got off to a slower start across the desert, but the baton seems to have switched heading into February. The need for business analysts, project managers, quality assurance engineers and integrators grows. Some of our larger Fortune 500 clients in the region are continuing to hire as the economy grows. Opportunities for both fulltime and contract employees exist.
We also have sales and business development opportunities in the St Louis or Kansas City area for a cloud based ERP system provider. If you know someone in that market, please refer them our way, and we will send you our thank$. (www.hereismyreferral.com)
On top of the ladder we have a need for a CISO in Phoenix, and in Las Vegas, a Development Manager with a background in gaming. We are also relaunching our CIO Breakfast. Information is available on our site or call us.
This year we are expanding our market to the Austin/San Antonio area, if you want to discuss opportunities in Texas, please give us a call. We are looking to build our team and have a spot in San Antonio opening soon.
This is going to be a great year—both on the employment and technology fronts. Mobile development will take us new places and present us with solutions we never considered. Where are you with mobile? Do you have a security plan as mobile devices continue to infiltrate the corporate environment and infrastructure? Are you reaching your customers on their device? How about gaining and retaining employees? Mobile is the next desktop, and the tablet is the new PC. What is your strategy?
For more information on IT for mobile, or your local market—network with like-minded technology professionals, the first Tuesday of every month at “The BarCode Network”. (See www.barcodenetwork.org for more details, and locations in your area)
When we see start-up companies setting their compasses toward hiring (in multiples), it is always a great sign. Though the local media has recently reported that there are still those who don't see the signs of growth I am reporting, I sense that they are either speaking to those outside of IT or to companies who didn't have to scale back when the economy got hit and therefore still have enough resources on board to get the new work done.
The companies that I speak to every day are showing clear signs of hiring more people near-term. These hires are not to back-fill people who left, in most cases they are to bring on new people to aid in completing new projects.
In cases where the hires are being made to backfill someone who left the company, there is another positive indicator - companies are hiring at a higher level than the person who vacated the role. This means that they are now looking to pay more, do more with the role and help grow their teams skills and abilities. All of these are long-term strategies. Whether the people hired are contractors or full time employees, they are making the decisions and starting to make them more quickly than before.
In the Phoenix market today, there are literally tons of IT roles available – we are actively recruiting for at least 25 ourselves. The catch is that even though hiring managers appear to have flexibility in the required skills, that still has not translated to the actually pulling the trigger when that candidate appears. The tendency remains to “wait and see” for the even better candidate to walk through their doors. We cannot determine if this is simply hesitancy or a misunderstanding, still, that there are a lot of really qualified IT people looking for new jobs, there aren’t OR if the positions get opened and then go unfilled until money is freed up for the specific role – maybe they decided they would continue to do more with less as we have all been doing.
The skills gap remains.
We have a need for several SAP professionals (consistently in high demand), several Java developers and .NET developers.
The great news is that, in recent weeks, we have seen an increased demand for technology leadership. One reason this is a great indicator, there are many, is that once new leadership is brought on board, we can only assume that this will move the company toward more strategic planning and hiring. If the current leadership has either been stuck in “maintain” mode or concerned with things that are more tactical, they are also sometimes reluctant to hire those who can help “move the ball down the field” so to speak. We have seen quite a bit of this of late.
From what we see – things are changing for the better albeit slowly. There is a deliberate move toward getting things done and growing the teams that we work with. There is a demand for talent and the demand definitely is pent up demand. Dollars are being spent on hiring and the people hired have plenty to do once they join. All great news and we see every indication that it will continue for the long-term.
Today in Las Vegas the general unemployment is just south of 13.5 %. While that is a “tad bit” lower than we started off 2011, the important part of that number is that it is just the “general population” and it accounts for all verticals including casino and hospitality. That number in no way reflects what is happening in the field of information technology. If you have the right skills and the right personality - finding a job in Las Vegas or Phoenix is as easy as finding the right recruiter. Building solid relationships with a recruiter can be your best bet when trying to find a job in today’s market place.
Jobs are out there; game manufacturing, hospitality, travel and financial companies are all hiring. There is always a great demand for Quality Assurance Engineers with backgrounds in automation and testing. It is not uncommon for these roles to pay in the neighborhood of $80,000 a year. Business Analysts, with a strong background in documentation and process are also in high demand. These roles are paying $30 an hour. Mobile development is an area where we see the greatest demand locally. All flavors and sizes: Cocoa and the iStuff, Android and Windows. There are also a few left-over opportunities on RIM’s platform; but between you and I, I wouldn’t focus my efforts there. Help desk and tech support, also in high demand, are paying a decent wage starting around $15 an hour.
The bottom line is the market is good and there are opportunities out there; but it is Vegas and who you know counts… Who do you know?
Give me a call, my team and I are happy to help you.
