If you are a qualified website developer, the chances of getting a job are good, especially if you have several years' experience.
New Zealand's website industry is experiencing sustained growth as companies are increasingly moving their information and communication systems online. The number of registered websites with their own domain (an organisation's unique name on the Internet) has been growing by more than 20% a year for the past four years, and a corresponding increase in the number of computer industry employees has occurred.
The number and growth of websites between 2004 and 2007| Date | Number of
domain names | Increase since
previous year | % growth |
|---|
| 31 Dec 2004 | 174,061 | 31,593 | 22.2 |
| 31 Dec 2005 | 209,927 | 35,866 | 20.6 |
| 31 Dec 2006 | 261,283 | 51,356 | 24.5 |
| 31 Dec 2007 | 314,053 | 52,770 | 20.2 |
| Source: Domain Name Commission, monthly and annual statistics |
The number of people employed in the computer industry (1996, 2001, 2006)| Census Date | Computer industry full-time employees,
which includes web developers |
|---|
| 1996 | 8,785 |
| 2001 | 19,400 |
| 2006 | 25,455 |
| Source: Business and Economic Research (BERL) |
Growth in jobs is expected to continue. A Dominion Post newspaper article mentioned a 2006 study by International Data Corporation, which predicted that more than 11,000 jobs would be created in the information technology (IT) industry by 2010.
Shortage of IT professionals
IT professionals, which includes website developers, are listed on Immigration New Zealand's long-term skills shortage list for 2007. The list identifies jobs where there is a critical or absolute shortage all over New Zealand.
According to the Web Developers Association of New Zealand (WDANZ), there is a particular shortage of website programmers, and this looks likely to continue until at least 2018. Only 51% of the 366 computer programmer vacancies advertised in 2006-07 were filled.
However, industry sources say demand is greatest for people with two to three years' experience, and new graduates may find it difficult to secure work initially.
Website developers are usually employed by companies with in-house IT departments or by firms that specialise in websites, web applications or other Internet services.
Many web developers also choose to be self-employed.
Opportunities for website developers are mainly in the major cities:
- Forty-five percent of people employed in the computer industry work in Auckland.
- About 14% of employees work in Wellington.
- About 12% of employees work in Canterbury.
WDANZ reports that website developers starting their career usually need to be in or near a major city to gain work and experience. However, once established, a web developer can often work anywhere with an Internet connection. Contract work can often be done remotely.
