Increase in demand for Aussie IT execs

The crisis of confidence in Australian business circles may be over with demand for executive employees in December rising for the first time in five months, according to the E.L Executive Demand index.

In what is typically a quieter month due to the onset of summer, December demand rose by 7% across the country compared with the previous month.

Demand was especially strong in the troubled Information Technology sector indicating that the immediate economic effects of the September 11 terrorist attacks is now washing out of the system.

"Summer is bringing brighter times for Australian executives," said Mr Grant Montgomery, Managing Director of leading executive search firm and publisher of the E.L Index, E.L Consult.

"With over 10 years of historical data the E.L Index is a proven lead indicator. It has consistently led changes in the economic cycle. The next couple of months will confirm the trend but it is our belief that a trend of recovery is occurring," Mr Montgomery said.

"Despite Australia being largely sheltered from the severity of the economic downturn of the past year it has suffered none the less. Possibly more than any other area executive employment has suffered.

"There has been a sizeable downturn since the last quarter of 1999. However the downturn in demand was brought into stark contrast by the events of September 11, triggering a crisis of confidence.

"The 7% increase in December is consistent with our view that we are looking for a more wide-ranging up-turn by June this year. It is our belief that by December many businesses will be regretting that they did not make better use of the opportunities presented by the 2001 downturn.

"There is no doubt that the IT sector over corrected and the long jobs drought is finally breaking."

Among the states, Victoria recorded the best result due to an increase in demand in a range of sectors. New South Wales benefited from a rise in IT demand while an increase in engineering saw Western Australia rise for a second consecutive month. Tasmania, the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland registered mild declines while South Australia recorded a flat result for the month.