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Kiwi tech firms set to raid Australia for talent in digital marketing campaign

Screen Shot 2014-09-25 at 11.26.53 AMNew Zealand companies are set to raid Australia for digital and technology experts, with a marketing campaign underway to entice workers across the Tasman.

The Kiwi Government has joined forces with NZ recruitment agency Workhere as it looks to solve a talent crisis that is in danger of stifling the technology sector.

The recruitment campaign, branded “The Innovation Islands”, includes the launch of a website containing a broad range of job vacancies, company profiles and industry news, while online advertising will also form a major plank of the recruitment push.

It will aim to showcase the opportunities available in NZ, with the campaign targeting not just Australians but ex-pat Kiwis and other nationalities. Workhere managing director Jonny Wyles told Mumbrella the skills shortage is “pretty bad” with more than 300 vacancies already listed on the website. That number is expected to rise to at least 400 as more companies join the campaign.

“Research has been done and I know lots of technology companies feel the biggest constraint and concern is the lack of talent,” he said. “It is putting a hand break on their business growth.”

Digital marketing experts are among those being sought with several roles needing to be filled, Wyles said. “I know New Zealand is not unique in this but we are relatively small and remote and we need to put our best foot forward and compete hard,” he said.

News of the campaign comes just a day after the CMO Council said Australia has a skills crisis of its own. 

Wyles said the campaign will look to target Australians and ex-pats who may be oblivious to New Zealand’s burgeoning technology industry which has attracted “significant investment” in recent years from high profile investors including James Cameron, Paypal co-founder Peter Thiele and Seek founder Paul Basset.

“New Zealanders who moved to Australia four or five years ago may not be aware of how much the industry has grown over the past two or three years. Several companies have listed on the Stock Exchange in the past six months and there are lots of companies doing some very cool things on the global stage,” Wyles said.

The website will host video interviews of those who have recently crossed the Tasman so “people can hear real stories for themselves”.

“Top of the list seems to be a fantastic work-life balance, spending less time commuting while enjoying a great salary and unrivalled standard of living,” Wyles said. “Companies are also relatively small with less hierarchy and the ability to get ahead faster in your career.”

Steve Jones

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