IT Hiring in Asia Expected to Pick-up

Close to seven of ten information security professionals polled in Asia are looking to hire permanent or contract employees in 2010 with 54% planning three or more additional headcount.

This is significantly higher than the global average of 53% who plan to hire more staff this year, according to the Career Impact Survey by global not-for-profit membership body of certified information security professionals (ISC)2. But over 85% of hiring managers both globally and in Asia said their biggest hiring challenges were finding candidates with the right skills and the right level of experience. Respondents in Asia said they want candidates with specific skill sets in these top five categories: information risk management; security management practices; auditing; security architecture and models and telecommunications and network security.

Executive director for (ISC)2 W. Hord Tipton said organisations, especially those in Asia Pacific (APAC), are “placing an even higher value” on the work that information security professionals do after the recession. “It’s a sign of the private and public sectors’ ever-increasing dependence upon the stability and security of the online world,” Tipton added. Hence, this will provide “a plethora of career opportunities for knowledgeable, qualified, motivated security professionals”.

While around 60% of respondents in APAC expect no headcount reductions or layoffs in 2010, 12% are expecting additional layoffs this year, compared to 40% of respondents from the previous survey in 2009. But salary increments look to be on the rise. Slightly more than half of 320 information security professionals polled in the Asia Pacific region, including Japan, received salary increments in 2009. Less than 10% of respondents saw their salaries or benefits cut and only 4% were laid off by their employers. Globally, only 53% of nearly 3,000 professionals surveyed received salary increases in 2009, while around 5% lost their jobs.

Similarly, 28% of respondents believe the economic downturn is causing an increased security risk within their organisation. Around 54% have identified employee misconduct as the most common security risk, compared to 38% globally. Outside attacks from hackers was identified as the second most common risk by 31% globally and 25% in APAC.

Sources and references: HRO, (ISC)2