Every advance in technology, from the plough to the rail road to the computer, has fuelled a demand for specialists who can operate the new technology. In software in particular, the speed with which new technologies are implemented usually out paces the ability of universities and firms to train people properly qualified to operate the technology.

The competition among major corporations to secure advanced specialists is as fierce as ever. For IT jobs the competition is especially fierce. Such individuals are essential to a modern organisation’s ability to remain competitive. The high demand for IT specialists, companies that are short of these skills will often employ multiple specialist recruitment agencies to hire the needed professionals, whether they come straight from university or from another firm.

One particularly large branch of this industry is Microsoft recruitment. There are many specialist agencies who recruit professionals in a wide range of Microsoft programs. Server administrators and enterprise programmers are particularly in high demand. Even though there are tens of thousands of certified Microsoft professionals worldwide, the demand is such that there are dozens if not hundreds to specialised Microsoft recruitment firms working to fill their clients needs. Two of the most in demand Microsoft specialists are Sharepoint and Dynamics professionals.

A newer and consequently very high demand niche is sharepoint recruitment. Sharepoint is an integrated software that combines the management of a firm’s web sites, intranet, and extranet. Sharepoint allows companies to greatly improve integration and productivity, but it requires highly specialised professionals to operate it. With these professionals in such high demand, sharepoint recruitment agencies go through great effort seeking out qualified professionals for their clients.

Microsoft dynamics is an advanced Client Relationship Management tool, or (CRM). It utilises the newest advances in cloud computing to provide clients with a reliable CRM system that does not require the client firm to invest in expensive hardware. Being a new breed of CRM, however, means that Dynamics specialists with the proper certifications are in very short supply. As a result of these, Dynamics recruitment firms have risen to the challenge of matching qualified specialists with employers that are keen to take advantage of this new technology.

These categories are but scratching the surface of the opportunities available to qualified IT recruitment professionals. The competition for their services makes it a market leaning heavily in the specialists favour. Even expatriate opportunities with such benefits as paid relocation and a company provided lodgings are commonly available. Of course, even with so many specialist recruitment agencies out there, the IT staffing face the constant challenge of remaining certified in the newest versions of these in-demand programs, not an easy feat when next years version may be completely different beneath the surface!

By Carl Liver and Barry Summers