spicton1979 Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Hi, I arrive in Brisbane on 2nd September (so a week on Sunday) and will be looking for work (175 permanent residency visa). I have heard two things recently that have concerned me; apparently the IT sector in QLD is heavily reliant on the insurance and public service sectors and both have been hit hard recently, I've been told the following: 1) Due to the floods from 18 months ago, the insurance companies are on their knees and have had to make a lot of cuts to IT services etc. 2) There have been big cuts to the government service sector due to some new austerity measures. I have a strong CV and haven't had any problems getting work in the UK but I must admit that I am concerned as I don't have any contacts over there and can't afford to be out of work for months on end. If anyone is in the know about how the market is for Software Developers, I'd be greatful to hear what you think? Thanks Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calNgary Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Hi steve Im not sure how things are in your profession at the moment but the best advice i can give would be to contact every company you can find who may need someone with your skills, its best to do this in person or via the phone once you arrive and regardless of if they are advertising or not. I think with your visa ,you can do what ever you want and not necessarily the trade it was granted for, so you could find an unskilled job to tide you over until you find something if you do start to struggle. Good luck with everything Cal x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Hi, I arrive in Brisbane on 2nd September (so a week on Sunday) and will be looking for work (175 permanent residency visa). I have heard two things recently that have concerned me; apparently the IT sector in QLD is heavily reliant on the insurance and public service sectors and both have been hit hard recently, I've been told the following: 1) Due to the floods from 18 months ago, the insurance companies are on their knees and have had to make a lot of cuts to IT services etc. 2) There have been big cuts to the government service sector due to some new austerity measures. I have a strong CV and haven't had any problems getting work in the UK but I must admit that I am concerned as I don't have any contacts over there and can't afford to be out of work for months on end. If anyone is in the know about how the market is for Software Developers, I'd be greatful to hear what you think? Thanks Steve Not heard about number 1, nor seen any mention of insurance companies on their knees (I haven't even heard about insurance being over represented in IT), but definitely number 2 is happening. Of course this just means more competition as it is a bad time to come, not that you can't get a job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenon4017 Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Hi Steve, I work as a software developer in Brisbane, but not in the CBD. You're quite right that insurance companies margins are being squeezed because the cost of reinsurance has gone up due to the floods. But since what they sell is information, they're unlikely to chuck out the people in their organisation who allow information to flow from A to B. But it's true, some big Capex project might get postponed and new big ticket items will be cancelled. You're also right in that the public sector is being reduced in size, and computer programmers/IT profis are seen as classic non-frontline positions, so many of them will be hitting the market soon. And there's considerable sympathy for them locally, so they might jump the queue if the person doing the recruiting has a neighbour that's just been laid off etc. However, on the bright side, IT recruitment is, and always has been, about finding people with the right skill set. I'm not sure where your skills and experience lie, but if there's a match between you and an employer you're in with a chance. Seek is the best place to find realistic job vacancies. After all, you only need one job. Stay in touch. I'd be interested to see how you get on. Yesterday I was at a Qld MSDN evening, and there appears to quite a few companies operating here, and there was even a request if anyone is looking for a job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadcon Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 HI folks, Im a software developer (.net and SQL Server) from Ireland heading to Brisbane in Feb 2013. From what I can see on the jobs websites there seems to be plenty of jobs. Bear in mind you only need to get one :-) I might be sticking with my current company as they are looking to get started with a Brisbane office and me moving here actually was a pleasant surprise as they dont have any staff in Australia with experience in what we do at the moment. I will also be using this as a bargaining chip to name my price for a contractors rate hopefully :wink: How many years experience do you have? I wouldnt worry, software is booming everywhere... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwgster Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 Hi bigbadcon I have residency and my experience is C# .NET (winforms), SQL Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008/10, SSReportServices..If you company are looking for more staff with similar skills I would definately be interested in hearing from them/you.. Cheers M Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozziepom Posted November 20, 2012 Share Posted November 20, 2012 I'm in IT (not Dev) and work in Brisbane. 1) Hadn't heard about the insurance companies but makes some sense. 2) Govt cut a mass of IT jobs recently, they seem to have started slowly re-hiring the roles at much lower pay, there was a hell of a lot of dead wood in govt. I see a fair bit of "its not what you know, its who you know", and sorry to say IT in Brisbane seems pretty backward compared to the UK, or even Sydney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loopylu Posted November 22, 2012 Share Posted November 22, 2012 Hi, I arrive in Brisbane on 2nd September (so a week on Sunday) and will be looking for work (175 permanent residency visa). I have heard two things recently that have concerned me; apparently the IT sector in QLD is heavily reliant on the insurance and public service sectors and both have been hit hard recently, I've been told the following: 1) Due to the floods from 18 months ago, the insurance companies are on their knees and have had to make a lot of cuts to IT services etc. 2) There have been big cuts to the government service sector due to some new austerity measures. I have a strong CV and haven't had any problems getting work in the UK but I must admit that I am concerned as I don't have any contacts over there and can't afford to be out of work for months on end. If anyone is in the know about how the market is for Software Developers, I'd be greatful to hear what you think? Thanks Steve There are currently several jobs advertised in IT at Q Super. If you google Q Super careers it will take you to the list of jobs. Might be of interest to some of you on reading this Thread.:biggrin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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