The job market in Japan will see strong hiring of information technology professionals, driven by huge demand from the retail and pharmaceutical industries.
According to recruiting experts Hays, efforts by large companies to overhaul their current systems and fast-growing new technologies have prompted hiring managers to actively pursue application developers and technical support engineers.
“A busy season of recruitment can be expected with large firms leading demand for IT professionals,” says Marc Burrage, Managing Director for Hays in Japan. “Strong candidates with good knowledge of new technologies such as big data will be primary targets sought after by hiring managers.”
In its latest Quarterly Report for July to September 2016, Hays finds that those candidates with troubleshooting capabilities to solve large-scale problems are in high demand amid IT system upgrades.
“Software application developers adept with technologies such as Java and Ruby will stand out,” says Marc. “Companies are hungry for talent to help improve their IT systems. They are fully aware of how the latest trends in big data and machine learning will play a big role in reshaping the business world.”
Further, infrastructure-related project managers will see the biggest demand from employers because they are viewed as the central point amid the overhauling process.
See: Japan’s jobless rate hit 21-year low of 3.1% in June
“Capable infrastructure-related project managers will help companies save costs and enhance efficiency as they upgrade their IT systems,” Marc says. “Strong candidates will receive several offers.
“Technical support engineers are also in great demand as businesses, when conducting transformation of their sales or logistic systems, are in need of IT experts to satisfy demands from clients.”
In terms of candidate trends, Hays says that IT professionals are showing keen interest in hardware and infrastructure areas that generate the majority of new roles. “Based on ongoing IT projects, there are a huge number of positions within hardware and infrastructure,” says Marc.
Most businesses will make further moves to better use Cloud and visualisation technologies, and we believe candidates will also closely monitor the trend and hone their skills to seek career advancement.
“It’s advisable to diversify your skills in the fast-moving realm of IT,” adds Marc. “Server engineers with a background across a wide range of platforms are quite popular since employers believe that they have the right skills to move or change their systems.”
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Also read: One Bright Spot in Japan’s Economy: Higher Wages for Part-Timers
