Software development companies in Malaysia are steadily increasing their portfolios, but there is a shortage of skilled software development candidates for the growing number of jobs, says recruiting experts Hays in Malaysia.
Candidates with high-quality agile software development skills are in particularly high demand.
“Software development companies’ portfolios now include web design, web application development, mobile application development, desktop application development, software maintenance and much more,” says Chris Mead, Regional Director of Hays in Malaysia and Singapore.
“There are many software companies in Malaysia that offer a fully-fledged and multi-faceted portfolio of agile software development service offerings, from Facebook app development to visually appealing and highly interactive apps for iOS and Android.
“Their agile software development portfolio often consists of technologies such as PHP, Java, .NET, Android, iOS & Windows Phone, XHTML, JQuery and HTML.
“Also, we continue to see a skills shortage in the areas of IT security, risk, compliance and audit,” says Chris.
“One of the main factors behind the shortage is the inability of employers in Malaysia to offer salaries that can compete with other countries. While neighbouring countries are also experiencing a shortage of these skills, they are able to offer more attractive salary packages and therefore secure candidates.
“Another factor is the lack of opportunity to train people locally in technologies such as SAP, Mainframe, CISC, JCL and Cobol,” he said.
The growing number of vacancies is making it more challenging for employers to secure the top IT talent.
As a result, those people with high-level skills will be particularly sought after. “Such candidates are already looking to change jobs to improve their prospects and career development,” said Chris.
According to TalentHide, the six IT skills in greatest demand are:
- IT Security – “The demand for IT security experts is set to continue not just this quarter, but throughout the entire year,” says Chris. “Given increasing threats and new technologies, there will always be demand for security professionals with the most up-to-date training and knowledge.”
- Business Analysts – “Employers are looking for professionals with both technical and business acumen to translate business plans into technical requirements by liaising with clients, business users, the production team and vendors. Candidates need experience in performing UAT and SIT. Demand for BAs is highest in the banking industry.”
- SAP Consultants – “Demand is high for SAP Consultants for permanent roles as most companies move towards a SAP platform. These candidates therefore need to be able to provide end-to-end implementation for FI-CO, IS Retail, ESS & MSS, QM, MM, PP-PI and ByDesign.”
- IT support specialists – “The global IT shared service industry is expanding rapidly and this is fuelling high demand for IT support specialists. In most demand are candidates with SQL, .NET, JAVA, Crystal Report, SAP and Cognos skills.”
- Development Managers – “These professionals are in high demand in all IT businesses in response to expansions in the global IT industry and the need to meet the service quality of deliverance. Candidates need to be able to direct and deliver the project within a set timeframe. AGILE methodology experience is in tremendous demand.”
- Software Developers – “These candidates are sought after by IT consultancy and banking employers. In high demand are PHP, C++, C#, JAVA/J2EE, ASP.Net, SharePoint and Mobile Application (Android / iOS / Mobile Web) Developers.”
According to Hays, there is also a shortage of the following particular skills:
- JAVA / J2EE
- SharePoint
- Biztalk
- ASP.NET
- Android
- iOS
- Agile
- PHP
- C++
For more details on these skills in demand, please see our TalentHide and UTERN Portal.
TalentHide, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people in IT specialize.