Strong economic growth to spur further jobs creation

New Zealand’s strong economic growth to spur further jobs creation

Structural Engineers, Commercial Accountants and HV Electrical Fitters are just three of the professionals sought by employers as the New Zealand economy expanded at the fastest pace in seven years in 2014.

New Zealand’s economy grew 3.5 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier led by consumer spending and momentum in the construction industry. Confidence in the economy will continue to fuel an active recruitment market, says recruiting experts Hays.

According to the recruiter’s April to June 2015 Hays Quarterly Report, there continues to be an increase in permanent as well as temporary/contract employment opportunities.

“Strong economic growth and employer confidence in many sectors is leading to hiring activity, with demand greatest for highly-skilled professionals,” says Jason Walker, Managing Director of Hays in New Zealand.

“Other key factors behind current vacancy activity include the next phase of the Christchurch rebuild, a growing number of residential projects, and increased private sector investment in commercial construction within our main centres. Together these projects are leading to more optimism in the market. Add good hiring intentions in the business services sector, a focus on cost savings and the importance placed on sales to increase revenue growth, and job activity is increasing.

“For hiring employers, technical skills are not enough. Employers are looking for highly-skilled professionals who can not only add value to their business, but who are the right cultural fit. They are looking ahead and are keen to secure candidates who are aligned with their way of operating and who are therefore more likely to be retained and support the business long term,” he said.

According to the Hays Quarterly Report for April to June 2015, the following factors will drive job growth in the months ahead and create hotspots of skills in demand:

Hays Accountancy & Finance: With a growing and rapidly changing market in Christchurch off the back of the rebuild, businesses are seeking Commercial Accountants who can help them to better understand the drivers of performance and develop meaningful KPIs to measure and track these drivers.
Hays Architecture: Revit Architects and Technicians are needed to keep up with the shift to Revit software, and employers typically want candidates with New Zealand experience.
Hays Construction: Demand for Supervisors and Foremen/women is increasing, particularly for candidates within foundations experience for residential and commercial projects. We’re also seeing a need for candidates with experience in retaining walls and civil structures.
Hays Contact Centres: We’re seeing high demand for customer service professionals, from entry level through to senior Customer Service Representatives.
Hays Energy: New Zealand registered HV Electrical Fitters are sought across New Zealand’s construction and property market and from network contractors. Given demand, there are few higher level Electrical Fitters in the market.
Hays Engineering: We’re seeing high demand in Christchurch for Structural Engineers, from entry to senior levels. Given the amount of ongoing residential building insurance work across Christchurch, and the number of refurbishment and new build design projects moving to design stages, this demand will continue.
Hays Facilities Management: Facility Managers with budgeting expertise are highly sought after. Employers want FMs who can get underperforming contracts back on track.
Hays Human Resources: The shifting of the organisational development function has led to growth in demand for Change Management Specialists who can fill temporary assignments.
Hays Information Technology: Javascript Developers with specific framework experience such as AngularJS, NodeJS, KnockoutJS or Bootstrap are in particular demand. This is a new way to develop, which is ultimately a lot lighter and quicker.
Hays Insurance: Demand is high for Commercial Brokers across all regions. The internal transfer of staff to other branches within the same firm, the development of new product initiatives, and the resignation of employees for roles that are more senior or offer a higher salary or more accounts all add to turnover and vacancy activity in this area.
Hays Legal: Lawyers in the construction and property industry are particularly sought after. Commercial and commercial property teams are very busy thanks to our strong economy and the number of large-scale construction projects currently underway, especially in Auckland.
Hays Marketing: Online Communications Channels and Web/Content specialists are in demand. With the consolidation of central government websites, recruitment has increased in the digital channels space.
Hays Office Support: Sales Support Administrators are in demand due to the increased workloads of sales managers. Multi-skilled and strong candidates are in short supply.
Hays Property: We’re seeing high demand for client-side construction Project Managers as there are a lot of new projects in the market. We’re also seeing demand for Property Consultants with public works act experience.
Hays Sales: There is high demand for new business acquisition specialists (Business Development Managers, Sales Representatives and Sales Executives) who are good ‘hunters’.
Hays Trades & Labour: Plumbers are in high demand in Auckland, thanks to the city’s busy construction market. Given the shortage of local candidates, employers are recruiting overseas qualified tradespeople.

To see the full list of skills in demand and trends for your industry, please visit www.hays.net.nz/report.

Hays, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people.

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