Recruitment and jobs blog

When it comes to finding the right IT talent in Canberra, businesses often find themselves in a conundrum. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, has long been known for its vibrant IT sector and is home to some of the most renowned tech companies in the country. With such a bustling tech environment, the demand for IT professionals is perpetually high. Enter IT recruitment agencies in Canberra, the true unsung heroes of the tech industry. Understanding Canberra's IT Landscape Before diving into why Ignite holds one of the top position among recruitment agencies in Canberra, it's essential to understand the broader tech landscape of the region. Canberra's proximity to government agencies and universities makes it a hotspot for IT advancements. There's a continuous inflow of tech talent from the educational institutions, and government contracts often require top-tier IT professionals. The challenge? Matching the right talent with the right company. That's where recruitment agencies come into play. These agencies are the bridge between businesses looking for IT specialists and professionals seeking rewarding opportunities. Why Ignite? In a sea of IT recruitment agencies in Canberra, Ignite shines bright for several reasons: Deep Understanding of the IT Sector: Ignite isn't just another recruitment agency. Their team consists of professionals who have either worked in IT themselves or have years of experience recruiting for IT roles. This ensures that they understand the nuances and specific needs of both businesses and job seekers. Broad Network: Over the years, Ignite has built an expansive network, encompassing both emerging IT professionals and seasoned experts. This network ensures that businesses can find the right fit for their requirements in the shortest possible time. Personalized Approach: Unlike some recruitment agencies that treat recruitment as a numbers game, Ignite focuses on understanding the unique needs of each client and candidate. This approach ensures that every placement is a perfect fit, reducing employee turnover and increasing job satisfaction. Continuous Learning: The world of IT is continuously evolving. Ignite ensures that its team remains updated with the latest developments in the IT sector. This commitment to continuous learning makes sure they can match businesses with candidates that have the most relevant skill sets. The Role of IT Recruitment Agencies Now, one might wonder, why not hire in-house? Or use generic job portals? Here's the thing: the IT sector is unique. The roles are highly specialized, and the requirements can vary dramatically from one business to another. Recruitment agencies in Canberra, especially those focused on IT like Ignite, bring expertise that's hard to replicate. They: Save Time: Sifting through thousands of applications can be time-consuming. Agencies already have a curated list of professionals, speeding up the recruitment process. Ensure Quality: Every candidate recommended by top agencies like Ignite undergoes a rigorous screening process, ensuring that businesses only interact with the best. Provide Market Insights: Being in the recruitment business means these agencies have their finger on the pulse of the IT sector. They can offer valuable insights regarding market trends, salary benchmarks, and skill availability. In the ever-evolving world of IT, having the right talent can be the difference between success and stagnation. Recruitment agencies in Canberra play a pivotal role in ensuring that businesses find the professionals they need to drive growth. And among these agencies, Ignite has carved out a niche for itself, setting the gold standard in IT recruitment. If you're a business in Canberra, looking to expand your IT team, or a professional seeking the next big opportunity, it's time to light up your prospects with Ignite.

Commercial IT spend is on the rise as new technologies emerge, data consumption rises, infrastructure evolves, and core business offerings migrate online. In turn, this is affecting how businesses utilise and manage their IT resources, to ensure they deliver a valuable return on investment (ROI) for their business. Over the last decade, we’ve seen the proliferation of Managed Services Providers (MSP’s), enterprises that deliver their unique products and services to support and optimise the fundamental departments that underpin all businesses. This rise in popularity has changed the way companies approach their capital expenditure, looking to streamline costs and boost performance. For IT departments, this has resulted in more companies looking to replace or augment their existing in-house teams to better leverage the power of technology. Some may call this digital transformation, but we call it the rush to stay competitive in a forever changing world. In this blog, we discuss four key reasons why this is the CASE. Cost Efficiency Simply put, managing IT resources internally is expensive and takes up precious time. Not only do you have the rising expenses of buying and maintaining hardware and software, but you also have the hefty price tag of acquiring and retaining the right talent to manage them. All these activities take time, and add risk to a business’ bottom line. As organisations become increasingly reliant on technology, it becomes increasingly unrealistic to possess an in-house IT team capable of managing everything from infrastructure upgrades to software updates, and everything in between. By outsourcing to an MSP, you can remove a significant amount of these cost burdens by managing these processes remotely and only paying for the products and services that your business actually needs. Access to talent pools Ask any technology recruiter in Australia, and they will tell you the difficulty of sourcing top technology talent, let alone retaining them. Companies across all industries are competing for an increasingly finite resource, meaning finding the right talent to execute your IT strategies is a challenging proposition. One way to combat this shortage is to leverage the talent pool of an MSP. MSPs are experts in their specialist field (or fields), typically underpinned by high quality talent who can deliver their products and services on demand. This means by outsourcing your IT resources, you immediately gain access to hard-to-find personnel you may struggle to find on your own. Scalability Are you about to commence a new IT transformation project? Or about to go through a period of high seasonal demand? Your IT needs are constantly fluctuating, meaning you need to be equally as agile in how you address them. Internal IT teams will always have their strengths and weaknesses, unable to adapt to changing capacity requirements to accommodate your evolving needs. Conversely, MSPs provide you with access to the personnel, products and services you need when you need them, granting you extra flexibility if you need to scale up or down. Expertise Ultimately, you want what’s best for your business. You want access to the best products and services that can be delivered professionally to streamline your operations and boost your business. Outsourcing your IT resources is one way to achieve this because it enables you a superior breadth of expertise. MSPs can cover your skill gaps or add to your internal capabilities. From cyber-security to cloud migration, data analytics to network management, MSPs provide businesses with the technical capabilities you need to get the most out of your IT function. Technology is constantly evolving, as is the way companies manage and leverage its power to enhance their business. MSP’s are one available avenue for companies to save costs, access talent pools, increase scalability and add expertise to their IT function. Whether you choose this avenue or not, or adopt a blended approach, is up to you. At Ignite, our IT managed Services division On Demand can provide all your IT outsourcing needs and more to support your business and drive your strategic technology objectives.

On the one hand you’ve got what an organisation needs or wants their employees to do. On the other you’ve got what the employees are in fact capable of doing. Sometimes the two will align perfectly. At others time they won’t, forcing the organisation to track down workers who are capable of filling the gap. But what if such workers aren’t available? What exactly is the IT skills gap, and why does it exist? Moving swiftly from the hypothetical world to our real one, the situation described above is increasingly the case in the IT job market. IT is a field in which demand for specific and high-end skills is increasing at far beyond the rate that professionals are entering the space. In recent times, this has only accelerated with increased digitisation of industries, adoption of technology, shift to remote work, demand for data and rising cyber-crime faced by organisations.  This skills shortage creates issues for both employer and employee. Organisations lack the talent resources they need to grow, evolve and compete – according to PwC, 78% of Australian CEOs believe that the availability of key skills is a top threat to growth – while workers are handed tasks that are far beyond their pay grade, with job satisfaction and mental wellbeing affected as a result. While a lack of necessary talent is the major contributing factor to the IT skills gap, many organisations are also experiencing self-inflicted wounds. Many businesses are yet to experience the full impact of the skills gap, making it crucial they recognise the problem early and implement mitigation strategies in place to avoid it.  The expectation of the IT skills gap is that it’s out of control. Too much demand, not enough talent. However, the reality is that you have far more control over the situation than it may first appear.  Strategies to deal with or avoid the IT skills gap How can you avoid falling into the IT skills gap? There are a number of strategies that can help to either deal with or entirely avoid the issue – they simply demand resources and commitment. Understand your IT needs Understanding your IT needs can greatly reduce the impact of the IT skills gap on your organisation. If you know exactly what you need (personnel, infrastructure, software, etc.) now and into the future, you can streamline your overall IT spend and plug all gaps that may arise.  To do this, you need to ask the following questions: What degree of on-premise IT infrastructure do we actually require?  How much of our IT setup could be converted to technologies that relieve our team? Do we have any major IT projects coming up? Do we need to scale our IT workforce? What are key trends influencing IT usage moving forward?  By gaining a deeper understanding of your IT needs, and how technologies could reduce or remove the need for on-premise assistance, you can then work towards developing a strategic IT plan.  Make a strategic IT plan It’s quite surprising how many organisations still don’t have a strategic IT plan in place. An IT plan should outline your ongoing IT needs, and provide clarity on the skills and resources you need to fulfill them. Many organisations waste considerable time, money and effort on their IT function, because they haven’t put a strategic plan in place to guide their decision-making.  Bring clarity to your hiring processes Strategic plan in hand, focus your talent acquisition efforts on talent and skills that you actually need. Bring clarity to your hiring processes by creating clear job descriptions that offer a detailed (and ideally alluring) picture of what working at your company looks like. Remember, competition for talent is high, so you need to stand out by being clear about what the role actually entails. When skills gaps exist, building strong relationships with relevant candidates is invaluable to negating any future potential impact.  Once you make a hire, turn your focus to attention.  Offer appropriate reward An IT professional’s worth is determined by what the market is willing to pay. When skills are in short supply, and competitive intensity is high, the market is willing to pay more. This means, if you want top IT professionals, you need to be willing to pay a rate that reflects their scarcity. For example, software engineers, cloud architects and cyber-security talent are demanding larger pay packets than ever before.  However, for some companies, competing for talent solely on remuneration is simply not an option. In these cases, there is opportunity to offer non-financial rewards such as flexibility and career progression opportunities, which are increasingly valued by top IT candidates. . Upskill from within If you can’t buy talent, then why not build the talent you need. Many organisations already have great resources across their teams - it’s just a matter of identifying them and investing in them. Big banks, for example, are training thousands of their employees to use various IT softwares to boost their internal IT capabilities. Government agencies are pushing for less use of external IT contractors in favour of developing their internal workforce. While such initiatives are time consuming and expensive, they enable organisations to develop talent and skills tailored to their current and future IT needs. If they have their own exclusive supply of talent, then they are significantly more resilient to skills gaps.  Closing an ever-expanding gap The IT skills gap is an ever more pressing issue for organisations reliant on IT – i.e. all of them. However, like my doctor says, “prevention is far better than the cure”. This means, If organisations want to minimise the impacts of the IT skills gap, they can do so by utilising the strategies above. Essentially, this comes down to their willingness to invest time and resources now to secure greater long-term talent outcomes. This will simultaneously enhance satisfaction of current employees but also position yourself as an employer of choice for scarce talent in the process. Do it well, and the attraction of IT talent will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.   If you need help navigating the IT skills gap as a business? Get in touch with Ignite for a no-obligation chat to see if we can help.

An odd year has birthed an odd IT talent market - one with fewer candidates than usual and in which recruiting budgets are strained. Trying to rebound during what is now officially a recession, businesses find themselves in a difficult spot: they need to invest in recruiting that rare top talent, but may not have the resources to do so. With both the candidate count and recruiting resources low, the ability to efficiently and effectively attract IT talent has never been more valuable. So how do you go about doing just that? Today we’ll take a look at a few strategies that will not only help you attract the cream of the available IT crop, but perhaps a few drops of dairy that aren’t even looking for new opportunities. Invest in your internal tech Just as the first accountant to use a calculator was never going back to an office of abacuses, top tech talent won’t be keen to join a company that doesn’t invest in its internal technology. Adopting new and improved processes and technologies makes your employees’ jobs easier, while also making your business more efficient and competitive—a classic win-win. Turn employees into brand ambassadors With utilities like Glassdoor laying your workplace cards on the table, candidates now have more insight than ever into whether they’ll enjoy working within your four walls. Building a strong company culture and spreading the good word about it is therefore critical. Google is the oft-cited employer brand archetype. They offer great salaries, a transparent, strong and supportive culture, and cool benefits that’ll get employees talking - the ping pong tables, the in-house chef and the scooters in the hallway. Word of mouth remains the most effective form of marketing, so building a workplace that your workers will want to tell their networks about is amongst the most effective ways to attract top tech talent, particularly for hard-to-find IT talent in niche sub-sectors where everyone knows everyone. Find your unique What do you offer that your competitors don’t? Identifying your unique selling position (USP) is the key step in developing your employer brand, as it allows you to set yourself apart. Perhaps you offer particularly flexible work arrangements, unmatched autonomy, or the ability for employees to bring their pets to work. USP identified, your employee value proposition (EVP) should be built around it. This is the complete package that you offer your employees - the value they gain from you in exchange for the value you gain from them. Put your name up in lights “Did I mention I did some work for Canva?” “Yeah, I spent a few months at Slack.” There’s no two ways about it, some workplaces are more brag-about-able than others. While you might not necessarily be the disruptive upstart or the Fortune 500 company, there are still a myriad of ways that you can get people to both know and care who you are. Position yourself as a thought leader by publishing insightful articles on LinkedIn. Get involved in tech conferences and industry events, even if they’re currently remote or online. Better yet, host your own virtual or in-person meet-up, bringing together industry players and talent. At Ignite we recently hosted a virtual event focusing on women in tech, She’ll Have What He’s Having. UberEats was delivered to each of the attendees so they could have breakfast together. Unique events like these build your reputation while being fun, memorable and perfectly shareable. In short, you should do all that you can to establish your brand in the broader tech community. Be prepared to be flexible If a global pandemic has been good for anything, it has opened our collective eyes to the possibilities of remote work. In the tech sphere in particular working flexibility is no longer seen as a plus, but a must. The tech giants have been quick to extend their remote working arrangements long-term (e.g. Microsoft) or have even made the offering permanent (e.g. Atlassian). Not only does offering remote work enhance your EVP, it also grants you access to a veritable and borderless world of talent! Geography becomes less relevant in hiring when every candidate  is only a Zoom call away. Promote your career pathways According to this Linkedin study, 59% of candidates' primary motivator for a new role were career growth opportunities. Top talent is often characterised by an inherent interest in professional development; it’s no doubt how they became top talent in the first place. Furthermore, the technology sector is a highly dynamic environment requiring constant upskilling by talent to maintain relevant skill sets of value to employers. By showing that you’re prepared to nurture professional development and career pathways, whether through external or internal programs, you’ll be positioning yourself as an employer of choice. While 2020 continues to deliver its share of challenges, it’s also offering up a healthy dose of opportunity. Demand for data and strain on IT systems amid remote working has never been greater. Many technology companies find themselves in the same situation - in need of top talent, but seemingly lacking the resources to obtain it. Your ability to rise above the noise will determine your success next year and beyond. Securing the best workers needn’t be about spending big. Standing out from the crowd is often a matter of working smarter. With years of experience recruiting for the IT and digital spheres, we at Ignite are ready to help you do just that. Get in touch with the team today!

Nearly a quarter of Australian employers regularly use contractors to manage workloads and another 44% engage them for special projects. As organisations continue to reap the rewards of on-demand employment models – paying for resources only as needed and avoiding management obligations required with full-time staff – the use of contingent workers is increasing. But the benefits aren’t just for employers. If you’re not one of the 1 million Australian independent contractors partaking in the ever-increasing on-demand economy, you may want to reconsider, especially if you’re in IT. IT contract work is on the rise more so than with other disciplines. Imagine getting to choose when you’d like to work and the type of work you’d like to perform, and getting access to new and different environments and technology with every project. Add to that the reduction of some of the hassles that come with full time work – such as meetings and office politics – and the benefits of contract work just may outweigh those of a steady gig. Roubina Giragol is General Manager of Ignite On-Demand, the IT services division of the recruitment firm. The division provides IT solutions and skilled resources for short term, long term and project-specific work, either on a time-and-materials or fixed price basis across all IT sector clients. “There is so much freedom in contracting. You have the option of saying yes or no to a project and you can work ad hoc – 2 hours, 2 weeks or 2 months, etc. You can also supplement your income by working weekends, or before or after work,” she says. While greater numbers of IT professionals are choosing contract work long-term for the flexibility and to add more variety to their work, Giragol says it’s also a great short-term strategy. “Taking on project work is extremely beneficial for those who’ve just finished Uni or are new to the country and want to get a foot in the door,” she says. “They can build up their experience and make connections.” But with all the advantages of on-demand/contracting work often come some drawbacks, such as having to market yourself and managing the administration that comes with running your own business. While contractors who go-it-alone may struggle with these areas, Giragol says working through Ignite On-Demand will take away all those administrative headaches. “We have hundreds of clients who rely on us to provide pre-vetted, qualified contractors on short notice. This is all we do. We can keep contractors busy – they don’t have to worry about finding their next gig. They receive pay checks from us with Super and taxes paid.” Ignite On-Demand places all levels of support engineers for desktop-related projects, such as IMAC (install, move, add, change), as well as Wintel, server and network engineers. With client sites throughout Australia, contractors are placed in every corner of the country – cities, suburbs, small towns and remote areas. “We really care about our contractors – we want to see them happy and reaching their full potential,” says Giragol. “If that means providing them with as much variety as possible, we do that. If that means releasing them from their contract with us to work for a client full-time, we also do that.” Ready to experience the freedom, flexibility and variety offered by on-demand IT work? Email the Ignite On-Demand team at [email protected].