John Lamb's week: How will the UK government solve the IT skills crisis?

The old time relational database company has rebranded itself as an enterprise portals business and recorded record revenues on the strength of it. Chen has even been shopping, snapping up ebusiness service company New Era of Networks (Neon) for $373m.

Closer to home eBookers, the UK online travel agency, is also expected to unveil positive results on Monday. Chairman Dinesh Dhamija, who earlier this year said 2001 was the year of break even, also promises a significant business announcement. His company has so far beaten off competition in Europe from US rivals Travelocity and Expedia by ensuring it keeps in with the airlines and gets better deals on discounted fares.

It goes to show that soundly managed businesses can still show a profit even in a time of business uncertainty.

IBM, the company that once ruled the industry, is now putting its servers up for auction. From Monday businesses in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Austria will have the chance to bid for configured rack-mounted and entry-level Unix servers through the eBay auction site. The company says it has identified a clear demand for this method of online procurement for industrial-strength Unix solutions.

E-minister Patricia Hewitt, will be announcing her plans to tackle the IT skills crisis on Tuesday. The doughty champion of the new economy will be unveiling fresh research from pollsters MORI and NOP into the vexed question of why there is a shortage of people coming into the industry.

Hewitt will also present a three-pronged programme that will aim to improve the poor image of IT as a career increase the number of work placements for school leavers and broaden recruitment to attract groups such as women who are under represented in the IT workforce.

The initiative is backed by IT services company EDS, the biggest employer of IT staff in the public sector. There could be as much as £15m available from the Government for this and other measures to boost IT recruitment.

The IT industry has always been short of some skills. It is inevitable that at the leading edge there is a is a lag between a new technology becoming available and the appearance of a critical mass of people who understand it.

However, Hewitt is trying to tackle a more fundamental problem. Even with new economy fever there has been a general lack of new recruits. The industry, says Hewitt, will require an additional one million IT professionals over the next five years. At present IT operations are an average 10% under strength.

It is the clerical nature of much IT work rather than a fear of technology that puts people off working in the industry. To fill bread and butter vacancies, employers will have to invest more in people. That means higher salaries (on average IT people are paid no more than bookkeepers) more training and better career paths.

Networking club First Tuesday raised eyebrows recently by suspending one of its trademark social events. New economy types, deprived of action need look no further than ClubSix, a computerised dating agency that provides romance for 'cash-rich, time-poor busy professionals'.

ClubSix, which launches on Wednesday, will arrange dinner parties in top London restaurants for groups of six of its members who share similar interests. The club claims to act as a virtual social secretary using its personal-group-profile selection method and online technology to match highflying couples.

Personally the ClubSix model seems much more attractive than the First Tuesday cattle market with its coloured badges and rather nerdy clientele. At least you don't have to bang on to everyone about your plans for an initial public offering.