New Zealand's skill shortfalls revealed

Civil Engineers, Salespeople, Construction Managers and DevOps professionals are four of the skills sought by the 49 per cent of employers who plan to increase permanent staff levels in New Zealand over the next 12 months, according to recruiting experts Hays.

In a survey of more than 900 employers in New Zealand, representing over 259,000 employees, for the annual Hays Salary Guide, 53 per cent said technical skills have the highest impact on the effectiveness of an organisation or department. This was followed by trade-specific (47 per cent), staff management (30 per cent), business development (26 per cent) and digital (25 per cent).

“Labour supply has been an ongoing issue across New Zealand for some time, so with employers telling us they want to continue adding to their headcount in the next few months, highly-skilled professionals will be in high demand and can access strong career-advancing opportunities,” says Adam Shapley, Managing Director of Hays in New Zealand.

According to Hays, 81 per cent of employers - up from 78 per cent last year and much higher than Australia’s 70 per cent - say skill shortages are likely to impact the effective operation of their business or department in either a significant (37 per cent) or minor (44 per cent) way.

The latest Hays Jobs Report, released today and covering the July to December 2019 half, shows that the skills in greatest demand include:

• Accountancy & Finance: Accountants with experience working with robotics or innovation, Commercial Accountants, Financial Analysts and Payroll Administrators and Managers. In professional practice, Senior Accountants in tax, BAS and audit.
• Architecture: Project Architects, Registered Architects and Revit and ArchiCAD Technicians.
• Construction: Experienced Quantity Surveyors, Estimators, Project Managers, Site Managers, Construction Managers, Carpenters and Skilled Tradespeople.
• Contact Centres: Customer Service Officers, Outbound Sales Professionals and Inbound Salespeople.
• Engineering: Civil Engineers, Civil Infrastructure Engineers, Structural Engineers and Land Surveyors.
• Facilities Management: Facilities Managers with proven project management experience, Building and Maintenance Managers and HVAC Maintenance Technicians.
• Human Resources: Learning & Development, Employment Relations and Industrial Relations Managers, Advisors and Consultants.
• Information Technology: DevOps professionals with CI/CD skills gained in agile development environment, .NET Developers, Cloud and Security Architects and Engineers, UX/UI Designers, Data Scientists and Engineers, and Cyber Security experts.
• Insurance: Claims professionals, Commercial Brokers, Account Brokers, Property Underwriters and Property Loss Adjusters.
• Legal: Construction Lawyers, Resource Management Lawyers, Commercial Property Lawyers and Corporate and Commercial Lawyers.
• Marketing & Digital: Insights Analysts, Customer Experience specialists, Content Editors and Communications Executives.
• Office Support: Multi-skilled candidates such as Receptionists who handle facilities administration or PAs and EAs who support projects and manage change.
• Policy & Strategy: Policy Advisors, Governance specialists and Program and Project Managers.
• Procurement: Category Managers, Procurement Specialists, Procurement Managers and Coordinators with specific skills in property, IT and services.
• Property: Commercial Property Brokers with office leasing experience, Residential and Commercial Development Managers, Property Managers and Client-Side Project Managers.
• Sales: Salespeople with relevant industry experience, an existing network and the ability to assist with strategic planning, commercial analysis and reporting.
• Trades & Labour: Building Tradespeople and Civil Machine Operators.

View the full Hays Jobs Report at www.hays.net.nz/report

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