US CIOs are hiring

US CIOs are expecting to recruit more and more IT professionals before the end of the year, while UK CIOs claim to be doing less of the hiring and more of the firing.

The study by RHI consulting revealed US CIOs are increasingly hiring IT professionals, the number of those hired rising to 15 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2001. A further eighteen per cent of respondents said their firms plan to increase their IT personnel over the three months, while only 3 per cent expect staff reductions.

Katherine Spencer Lee, director at RHI Consulting told a US news wire: "While companies do not appear to be undertaking as many large-scale IT initiatives in the current economic climate, they are investing in smaller projects to maximise their existing information systems."

However the view in the UK is not so optimistic. David Bevan, MD of IT recruitment specialist Zebra Managed Services, said very few companies are looking to recruit in the next few months.

"I don't see the IT recruitment drive picking up in the UK before next year because companies are trimming their operations rather than spending more money on staff. I think many CIOs views are optimistic rather than realistic, " he said.