NZ high-demand tech skills requiring premium salary

Full-Stack, Front-End or Cloud: Filling roles in New Zealand's busy technology sector demands excellent contractor rates and salaries combined with workplace flexibility, according to Beyond Recruitment.

Recruitment agency Beyond Recruitment has released its salary guide for the technology, transformation and digital sector. Based on recent job placements data, the guide gives insight into both contractor and salary earnings across Auckland, Wellington and the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.

"We're seeing that high-demand skills are still requiring a premium rate or salary. New Zealand is especially short of all types of software developers, automation testers, DevOps, site reliability engineers and integration architects," says Liza Viz, chief exeutive at Beyond Recruitment.

"However, the curve is flattening slightly on permanent salaries and where flexibility is allowed, we are seeing a plateau," she says.

"Auckland roles tend to pay the highest, but IT professionals across New Zealand are securing six figure salaries. In the Bay of Plenty, agriculture, council, power and utilities are key industries needing IT professionals," Viz says.

"Whereas in the Waikato, there is a growing tech sector, along with demand for software development projects, systems upgrades and cloud technologies in the health, education and council sectors."

Ben Pearson, executive general manager – Wellington, Beyond Recruitment, adds, "In the capital we're seeing a slight increase in roles driven by both the government sector and general growth.

"There tends to be a lot of contract roles in Wellington, especially as government work is often project driven. With the tight labour market, there has been an increase in rates and salaries," he says. 
 
"As well as skills in the technical side of IT, we're noticing that project managers, product managers, and product owners are growing in demand."

Viz recommends that organisations seeking to be an attractive employer of choice should focus on the full package, not just the money.

"Flexibility with when and where you work has become a very important consideration for job seeking candidates. Almost all candidates are seeking hybrid options that combine working from the home and from the office," she says.

"We're seeing quite a range in the types of flexibility offered by organisations now. Some employers are open to hiring 100% remote workers however this isn't the norm. Some organisations are trialling a 4-day work week.The options that trumps is hybrid working as organisations understand the importance of their teams working together and ensuring the culture stays intact.

"Workers are also wanting to take extended holidays of 4 to 8 weeks, so job seekers are taking this either before starting a role or having the leave agreed on before accepting a role.

Further benefits that are becoming more commonplace in New Zealand organisations are company-paid training, a mobile phone/ telecommunications allowance, and health and life insurance.

The New Zealand technology sector employs approximately 113,000 professionals, making up roughly 4% of the nation's total workforce.