Charlotte CIOs Reveal Hiring Plans For Second Half Of 2014

Robert Half Technology Survey Finds Accelerated IT Hiring Through Year-End

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Jun 25, 2014, 08:14 ET

CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The just-released Robert Half Technology IT Hiring Forecast and Local Trend Report for Charlotte shows that 17 percent of Charlotte-area chief information officers (CIOs) surveyed recently plan to expand their IT teams in the second half of 2014. This is up eight points compared to projections from the previous six-month period (January – June 2014). Another 77 percent plan to hire only for open IT roles, 4 percent plan to put hiring plans on hold, and 2 percent expect to reduce their IT staff in the second half of the year.

Charlotte IT Hiring Trends (PRNewsFoto/Robert Half Technology)

Charlotte IT Hiring Forecast	Jan. – June 2014	July – Dec. 2014
CIOs adding more staff to IT departments	9%	17%
CIOs planning to hire only for open IT roles	69%	77%
CIOs who plan to put IT hiring plans on hold	20%	4%
CIOs who plan to reduce their IT staff	2%	2%
Don't know future hiring plans	0%	0%

"We are seeing companies build out their IT teams in the Charlotte area," said Lucy Marino, Charlotte metro market manager of Robert Half Technology. ".NET developers and system engineers with experience in the financial services and logistics sectors are currently in high demand. In addition, employers are looking for IT professionals who can take on more client-facing roles."

The 2014 hiring projections are based on interviews with 100 CIOs who were asked to provide a six-month hiring outlook. The surveys were developed by Robert Half Technology and conducted by an independent research firm. In order to ensure that companies from all segments were represented, the sample was stratified by number of employees. The results were then weighted to reflect the proper number of employees in the greater metropolitan Charlotte area. Robert Half Technology is a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis and has been tracking IT hiring activity in the United States since 1995.

Recruiting Challenges
In terms of recruiting, 66 percent of Charlotte CIOs said it's somewhat or very challenging to find skilled IT professionals today. It is most challenging to find skilled talent in the functional areas of applications development (24 percent), networking (22 percent) and security (13 percent).

Confidence in Business Growth and IT Investments
The survey results suggest that Charlotte CIOs are optimistic about their companies' growth and IT investments. Ninety-one percent of CIOs reported being somewhat or very confident in their companies' prospects for growth in the second half of 2014. This compares to 87 percent in the first half of the year.

Sixty-seven percent of CIOs also said they are confident that their firms will invest in IT projects in the second half of 2014. This number is unchanged from the first six months of the year.

Skills in Demand
Fifty-six percent of Charlotte technology executives surveyed said that database management is among the skill sets in greatest demand within their IT departments. Network administration and desktop support followed, with 55 percent and 51 percent of the response, respectively.

About Robert Half Technology
With more than 100 locations worldwide, Robert Half Technology is a leading provider of technology professionals for initiatives ranging from web development and multiplatform systems integration to network security and technical support. Robert Half Technology offers online job search services at rht.com. Follow Robert Half Technology at twitter.com/RobertHalfTech or visit our technology blog at blog.rht.com.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140624/121258

SOURCE Robert Half Technology