Oulton College

Once down, IT jobs now abound
Jobs are there for new computer grads, but the biggest demand is for skills plus experience

Times & Transcript - Published Saturday February 2nd, 2008
Appeared on page B1

By James Foster
Times & Transcript Staff

In one day in January alone, there were more than 80 information technology positions in New Brunswick alone posted on Careerbeacon.com, an impressive number considering that's just one job board.

If nothing else, it speaks volumes about job prospects in a field that was once thought to be in decline.

Nobody thinks that any more, except perhaps for prospective students because the number of applicants for computer-science and IT classes have been on a downward slope in recent years.

Those in industries that rely heavily on employees with computer science degrees or diplomas in other areas of IT sometimes don't like to speak publicly about it, but will secretly admit the lack of enough good people to fill their IT jobs crimps their expansion plans and stymies economic expansion.

"For some employers, the need is so great it is holding back their growth," says labour development officer Patrick Goguen of Enterprise Greater Moncton.

"It is actually holding them back."

A human resources officer from one booming Metro Moncton company says on condition of anonymity that if they can't get the IT experts they need here, then their next expansion will simply occur at a branch office they'll open elsewhere. It deftly illustrates the impact that a manpower shortage in just one type of work can have on not only one company, but an entire region's economy.

While the situation might not be quite that dire at Atlantic Lottery Corporation, there nevertheless is almost always a need for experienced IT professionals.

"While it is a challenge, the IT industry in this region is healthier than ever in terms of long-term career options for IT professionals who want to come home or stay," says Peter Price, ALC's vice-president, Business Technology Solutions.

"For ALC that means we need to demonstrate that we offer a stimulating, exciting work environment that allows employees to grow, leverage their strengths and position them for their future success."

ALC encourages their existing employees to attract new ones with cash incentives.

"What better way than to have current employees speak to their experience, and we've formalized that by offering recruitment incentives to current employees when that interaction results in a hire," Price says.

The need for IT professionals is what convinced ALC to join several other New Brunswick companies on a recruiting mission to Montreal and Ottawa last year.

"We talked to people about Atlantic Lottery and why we think it's a great place to work, and about who we are," ALC's Robert Bourgeois says.

"There's a lot of competition out there for these jobs."

In fact, not only are companies across Metro Moncton competing for the same employees, but so are firms across Canada and around the world, creating even more of a challenge. At world-beating lottery and gaming development firm Spielo, for example, there are about 400 IT specialists at work, from software developers to network administrators to business analysts, to project managers and much more.

"And we have 40 more spots open right now, from junior to senior positions," says Leanne Murphy of Spielo, which has also noted a decline in the number of IT graduates coming out of New Brunswick colleges and universities.

She describes the IT jobs at Spielo as "good positions; career-building positions" that are sometimes filled right out of the classroom, in particular from grads of the New Brunswick Community College system and computer-science classes at the Université de Moncton and the University of New Brunswick.

But there's not enough grads to go around, so Spielo is on their way to career fairs across the Maritimes and Ontario.

As with many fields, pay rates will vary according to the amount of skills, and these days especially the amount of experience, a candidate can offer an employer.

Goguen notes that some IT specialists have returned home from elsewhere secure in the knowledge there are jobs in their field right here. And recent grads know that there is no need to head west -- or south -- to make a living in their own area of expertise.

"What we have to offer now are local opportunities. There is a place for everybody right here in greater Moncton," Goguen says.

"And it will continue to grow."

Quick facts

A few realms of information technology in demand today in New Brunswick:

Software engineers
Program analysts
Programmers
Application specialists
Project managers
Media developers
Graphic artists
Instructional designers
e-commerce
Advanced Training Technologies I
nformation management
Networking Network support
Data base administration