It is 2013 and in the grubby basement of Reynholm Industries’ glittering tower in Central London, the IT Crowd are keeping the computers running in the plush offices above them.
Fast forward two years and the situation couldn’t be more different.
IT staff today are no longer the poor relations of the business world, shoved into a space no bigger than a cupboard and paid in buttons.
Today IT salaries are rising faster than almost any other sector and the demand for staff is far outstripping the supply.
If you work in IT, now is the time to capitalise on your talents because according to industry-watchers, including the Robert Half Salary Review 2015, technology advancements coupled with years of underinvestment are driving business changes? in the UK, delivering growth and innovation across multiple sectors and prompting the need for additional IT talent.
As companies get set to expand, they are looking to the latest technological advances to drive their businesses forward.
At the same time cyber threats and IT security have become hot topics and business leaders are looking for people who understand the issues and have the solutions, so these threats never become real problems.
Industry body, The Tech Partnership, says the employment of tech specialists is growing at four times that of UK employment as a whole and industries of all kinds are reporting problems with hiring staff and skills shortages.
What all that adds up to is that companies are now having to offer high salaries in order to lure in new staff and to prevent existing IT staff from handing in their notice and heading for higher-paid jobs.
Currently in Scotland there are hundreds of vacancies for positions, including analysts, networking engineers, software developers, IT support professionals . . . a whole range of roles now offering highly competitive salaries.
Not all of the opportunities are for people with established careers; there are apprenticeships and entry-level jobs on offer, too, which provide access to careers with real earning potential, particularly for those who move into niche areas.
At the moment the average salary in IT is £43,000 – that’s an increase of £846 since this time last year and one of the largest increases of any business sector.
This level of increase is set to continue for as long as the demand for IT staff continues to outstrip supply and as the economy picks up, business growth increases and the rate of technological change continues to accelerate, it looks as if anyone with IT skills can look forward to a rosy future.
Oh, and if you’re already in IT, it’s your round.