Fastest-Growing IT Careers

Where are the jobs? High-tech companies are hiring! Due to a robust economy, more companies are making new investments in technology and require additional IT staff to support their growth. Business services, finance, insurance and real estate companies are looking to hire the most IT staff. According to a new survey of more than 1,400 Chief Information Officers by Robert Half Technology, 16% of technology executives anticipate hiring full-time IT staff by Q1 of 2006.

“Technology professionals with the most desirable skill sets are beginning to receive multiple offers,” says Katherine Spencer Lee, executive director of Robert Half Technology. “ Individuals who may have been dissatisfied in their positions in recent years also are starting to pursue other opportunities, making employee retention a growing concern for companies.”

Networking in High Demand

According to top technology executives, the specialty most in demand within IT departments is networking (19%). "Network architects and engineers with security expertise are highly valued," says Katherine Spencer Lee. A growing number of companies are upgrading outdated systems, and executives also want to ensure that their networks are secure from attacks by the latest virus or worm."

Windows, SQL and Cisco Admins

In terms of specific skills, 79% of respondents said Windows administrators (NT/2000/XP) were in shortest supply in their organizations, followed by 39% for SQL Server administrators and 34% for Cisco administrators .

Help Desk & Applications Development

Businesses also seek help desk/end-user support specialists (16%), applications developers (12%) and database managers (11%).

IT Job Growth

106,000 — Projected number of new network systems jobs by 2012
179,000 — Projected number of new applications software engineering jobs by 2012
16% — Percentage of high-tech companies planning to increase head counts
4% — Percentage of high-tech companies planning to decrease head counts

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics and Robert Half Technology (September 8, 2005)