Head of Digital, Data & Technology, Sarah White, gives her take on the industry for Q2 of 2020.
Post COVID-19, the workforce is going to look extremely different and as a result the new working norm will mean more reliance on technology to support key business outcomes. While other markets suffered greatly during lockdown, NZ’s reliance on technology has meant an increasing need for talent in the digital, data and technology space. June alone saw a 130 percent increase in digital roles being advertised compared to April.
Competition has been aggressive for the top talent, with time taken to fill key roles cut in half. The mantra ‘you snooze you lose’ has never been more prevalent as candidates are coming into the market and being offered roles in record time, as hiring managers have had more time to concentrate on their recruitment. The fastest time to hire we experienced was four days!
SaaS companies have seen growth where other industries saw well over 50 percent in decline during April’s quarter. Those that fared best were nimble and acted quickly to reflect market conditions and could pivot to suit.
Other industries that performed above market expectations were eCommerce and consumer technology. This is due to a demand for technology to work from home appropriately and buying online as opposed to heading to the shops to purchase consumables. Being stuck at home generated more interest in picking up hobbies and completing online education courses, as well as ensuring parents kept their children accountable for schoolwork!
In technology, we saw the end for development and software engineering talent, while in digital we saw a demand for any role that directly impacted the overall customer experience. The prevalence of CX-focused roles - from strategic and design to implementation - shows businesses place value on being customer-led in their design thinking, as companies learn to adapt their customer offering. Cross-functional teams are seeing core functions working in harmony to deliver a seamless customer experience within a brand or service.
Data-driven decision-making and the functions within businesses that support these decisions have fared well, whereas more traditional roles have suffered greatly. The Public Sector (particularly within the health and economic sector) has seen a huge demand on analytical resources as they try to make sense of what COVID-19 will mean for resource planning and economic support.
Over the next quarter, we may see a slight flattening of growth as of August 30 when the wage subsidy ends. Some businesses may need to look at headcount to get them through, however there will still be a demand for innovation which will keep digital and technology at the forefront for their survival.
