While most employers across New Zealand anticipate minimal headcount growth this quarter, over half of the IT industry intends to hire more staff.

The latest Hudson Report: Employment Trends released today claims that while 60.1% of Kiwi businesses intend to keep headcount steady, industries with the strongest intentions to hire include Information Technology where 51.4% intend to hire more staff this quarter, followed by Government (32.2%) and Financial Services/Insurance (32.1%).

“Investment in technology and the focus on efficiency gains by New Zealand organisations are driving demand for senior IT people, business intelligence, in-house IT support and customer engagement roles," says Roman Rogers, executive general manager, Hudson New Zealand.

Yet Rogers admits not every industry is following suit: “Intentions to hold headcount at existing levels represents a continued focus by employers on building capability and driving productivity within their teams.

“Economic growth remains gradual and with the majority of employers holding staff numbers steady, Hudson is seeing a growing focus by organisations on talent management and retaining top performers."

Leader of the pack

Hudson’s research shows that 37.8% of respondents perceive the greatest shortfall of leadership as poor people management followed by poor change management (25.5%).

“Consulting and communicating with your team is crucial to managing your team well," Rogers says.

"However the quick decision-making that is often required in today’s challenging and unpredictable economic environment means this can prove difficult in practice.

"Despite these challenges, it is essential that time is allowed for this."

A lack of clear vision and direction is cited as the most likely reason for a leader to derail in an organisation (20.0%), followed by poor collaboration within an organisation.

“Employees are looking for leaders to be able to understand and guide them through a complex environment," he says.

"This is achieved by having great relationships, being cognisant of the realities of frontline staff, acting on consultative decision-making and making sure not to move on to the next project before change is bedded in."

Best leaders

The Report showed that the best leaders develop a vision and inspire people to buy-in to it (55.4%), while developing a positive company culture (53.6%) was also seen as a greater issue in New Zealand than in any other country surveyed.

“Involving teams in the direction and decision-making process is key to achieving both understanding and buy-in,” Rogers says.

“Perceptions around a lack of clear vision or direction often arise when there is a lack of alignment between leaders and employees.

"Leaders cannot create a strategy and vision in isolation and need input and support from their teams.

“Leaders with a clear vision, who collaborate and communicate with their teams can maximise opportunities in these uncertain economic times."

Does your IT company have a clear leader and vision? Tell us your experiences below