Up to 53.6 per cent of information technology (IT) companies said they hope to increase their workforce by 10-30 per cent this year.

This number was included in the results of a recent survey by ITviec.com, a leading IT recruitment site in Viet Nam.

In the survey, about 26 per cent of IT companies said they needed to recruit 30-50 per cent more workers. In addition, 8.7 per cent of companies wanted to recruit more than 50 per cent this year.

More than half of all surveyed IT enterprises said Viet Nam has many advantages that could make it a hi-tech centre. These factors include good IT personnel, competitive salaries and stable politics.

Up to 52 per cent of foreign IT companies said they had considered many other countries before deciding to set up an office in Viet Nam.

More than 95 per cent of recruiters said workforce training investment in Viet Nam was leading to good personnel and higher salaries.

Nearly 90 per cent of companies agreed Viet Nam was stable in politics, which was an important factor in developing the industry over other countries.

Chris Harvey, CEO of ITviec, said Viet Nam was becoming a technology hub not only of Southeast Asia, but of the whole world.

More and more foreign IT companies are entering Viet Nam, he said.

The survey results also showed that 48.3 per cent of the companies said wages in IT industry increased by 10-20 per cent last year, while 26.7 per cent revealed salaries for IT personnel increased by more than 20 per cent.

Despite high salaries, employers still find it challenging to hire high-quality personnel; 51.7 per cent said they were lacking senior developers. A further 40 per cent are in need of junior developers.

Despite being appreciating Vietnamese IT workers for their technical capabilities, 35 per cent of employers recommend their personnel increase software design capacity and critical thinking. 26.7 per cent advise them to improve their English ability. Thirteen per cent of employers think employees should not change jobs frequently. — VNS