Optimation Managing Director Martin Butler (pictured) told The Channel last night that New Zealand’s IT industry has come through one of the most turbulent periods the market has ever seen. “I’ve been spending a lot of time talking to customers and partners, and I’m now seeing cautious signs of recovery,” he said.

According to Butler the decline was first noticed in the Auckland service sector before moving onto Wellington. Auckland was then the first New Zealand city to show signs of recovery. Butler also said that, while margins will remain tight for the short term, the next decade would be a great time for software.

“Despite the struggles everyone in this industry has experienced over the last year or so, I’m convinced there has never been a better time to be in the application development business,” Butler said. “Bandwidth availability and cost is no longer a major issue, we’re seeing all sorts of exciting developments in both the consumer and business spaces like the boom in social networking and the rapid uptake of devices like the iPhone and iPad. If you look at the ideas and creativity flowing through New Zealand  businesses it’s clear we’re moving into an era where the possibilities are really only limited by your imagination.”

With this in mind, the company expects to hire 60 new members of staff in 2010, Butler said 35 new hires had already been made during this calendar year.

“In terms of securing local expertise, we’ve been looking to fill a number of new roles across the business," he said. "Over the last couple of months we‘ve definitely noticed increased competition for good people, particularly project managers, architects and senior developers. While this means we need to focus hard on keeping the great people we’ve got, it’s also encouraging as it shows project activity is starting up again.”

Optimation recently worked with the Medical Council to develop and implement MedSys, a medical registration and certification system it says will enable the Medical Council to ensure doctors working in New Zealand are fit to practise.