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Story URL: http://comment.silicon.com/0,39024711,10004284,00.htm

How to earn more money by 2004
Start with brushing up on those skills in time for the green shoots of recovery

By silicon.com

Published: Wednesday 21 May 2003

After almost four years of continued decline there are signs that the IT jobs market could well begin to pick up towards the end of this year.

A salary survey by recruitment company Roger Walters claims the market hit rock bottom last year and there are indications companies are beginning to step up their IT activity again.

But before every helpdesk support worker, database administrator, programmer and IT manager start re-working those CVs and rooting the interview suit out of the back of the wardrobe for a trip to the dry cleaners the advice is that not everyone is going to benefit.

This is by no means a return to the heady, free-spending IT projects of the late 1990s. Companies are still focused on getting the best out of their existing systems but there are areas they need to address.

Our own silicon.com Skills Survey 2003 earlier this year indicated that Linux developers are one of the few areas in demand. Roger Walters says companies who have stuck with NT are now beginning to embark on Windows XP upgrade projects, while many banks in the City are moving over from Sybase to Oracle databases. Projects involving PDAs and mobile workforces are also taking off, according to the survey.

The message is that IT staff at all levels need to look at their skills and make sure they are flexible enough to adapt to the changing technology demands of UK businesses in order to take full advantage of any areas of growth in the market.

Those outside the IT industry may joke that techies get paid enough already but those in the industry know it has been a rough old time. So make sure your skills are up to scratch and don’t miss out when the green shoots start showing.