With a current slowdown in I.T. spending in companies there has a been a systematic effect on software, hardware and services suppliers and also with recruiting firms in allocating jobs

Last year, I.T. was hit by the biggest recession it has seen in nearly 10 years in its industry. I.T. Departments faced slow growth in I.T. spending and in some cases, budget cuts or freezes. This was in large contrast to the late 1990s when I.T. investment soared. Likewise, I.T. recruitment activity has dropped dramatically; where employers were once desperate for I.T. staff, now opportunities are far more scarce. Last year was hard for I.T. staff across most industries, as companies cut budgets and laid off I.T. professionals and contractors in response to the sharp downturn in the economy.
But the news in the UK is that the worst is over. Although there are few signs of a recovery in I.T. spending, most I.T. Departments expect modest growth throughout this year and most departments have adapted to the stringent conditions. Moreover I.T. managers and I.T. Directors can benefit from the new realism towards the use of computers in business. It is predicted by analysts that the worst of the slowdown will be over and will have improved by 2003. While the UK has been having it's problems it is believed it is a chain reaction from other continents that have had recent economic downturns such as the US and parts of Asia, from where a lot of business is generated from.
Just a year ago business managers were convinced by the dotcom hype. I.T. could provide a frictionless and synergistic profit if firms just invested heavily in Internet Technology, according to most I.T. suppliers as well. This put a lot of businesses under pressure to live up to expectations.
The current climate gives I.T. in businesses the opportunity to demonstrate that the Internet and other technologies can deliver benefits for most companies, if they are aligned with firm's business challenges.
This will also be the year when new technologies that have suffered from being associated with the dotcom boom will prove their worth. Third-generation mobile data networks will come into operation in a gradual fashion. The slow but steady growth of the UK's broadband infrastructure will allow Internet applications to show what they can really do, particularly in e-business and e-commerce.

Skills demand in the UK

The demand for I.T. skills has been generally low recently but there have been some job categories that
have seen growth

With regards to different skills in I.T. many job categories have seen a rise and fall due to many circumstances within the I.T. industry as a whole.
With the dot com boom there was a sudden need for web specialists and developers resulting in a skills shortage in the late 1990's, but now it has settled the rise in demand has fallen. Also, this is part of an effect from most private companies now being online. But the public sector has fallen behind in this respect and the prediction is that demand will rise as they intend on using Internet Technologies to their advantage and they are catching up with the private sector rapidly now.
The change in demand for Database Administrators and Operations specialists has risen which has been good news.
Also, the jobs demand in London and the Southeast, which generates the majority of the UK's I.T. workforce has fallen, while jobs in most other areas of the UK have risen. This may be due to the fact the Southeast invests in new technologies before most other areas of the country.

Below are the results taken from a quarterly survey carried out by a popular British I.T. journal, they show the demand for job categories based on web-based advertising through I.T. recruitment agencies, which is the main method for private companies.
Also they have been compiled from advertisements placed in papers and in I.T. journals, direct advertising from public sector companies, as the public sector usually recruit for I.T. personnel in this way.

Change in demand by job category

Management -16%
Systems -2%
Development -28%
Programming -15%
Software Engineering +30%
Database +27%
Networking Specialists -39%
Operations +80%
Web specialists -76%

Note: percentages represent the increases or decline in Web-based/journal based advertising for each group of jobs in the fourth quarter of 2001 relative to the fourth quarter of 2000

Breakdown of jobs by region

Inner London -39%
Outer London -30%
Southern England -4%
South West & Wales +10%
East Anglia & West Midlands +10%
West Midlands +13%
North West +42%
North East +43%
Scotland & N Ireland +31%

Note: percentages represent the increases or decline in Web-based/journal based advertising for each group of jobs in the fourth quarter of 2001 relative to the fourth quarter of 2000

Breakdown of jobs by region

Electronics companies +46%
Software houses -8%
Comms expenses -41%
Banking/finance +2%
Distribution/retail -19%
Media/publishing -34%
Manufacturing +177%
Engineering +296%
Utilities/energy +201%
Public sector +139%

Note: percentages represent the increases or decline in Web-based/journal based advertising for each group of jobs in the fourth quarter of 2001 relative to the fourth quarter of 2000