Welcome to B & M Bulletin, produced specifically for users of IT technical services. In this issue:
• Re-balancing the permanent / contract equation
• Tech View: Hyperconnectivity
• 10 benefits of strategic technical consultancy
• Real Skills, Real People – B & M’s Ed Hopper
• B & M TechConsult
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Re-balancing the permanent/contract equation
Amanda Dunn, Sales Director for B & M Europe, notes that in these difficult economic times employers are taking advantage of the increased pool of technical specialists to rebalance the proportion of contracting and permanent staff
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"Rebalance contract and permanent staff"
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In the current economic climate, some employers are choosing to take advantage of the surplus in supply of IT contractor skills to fill their permanent IT vacancies. Many feel that permanent staff could offer reduced costs, greater loyalty, continuity and, in the long-term, a better understanding of the business and company ethos.
At the same time, IT technical specialists who have spent a number of years in the contract market are increasingly expressing interest in permanent positions. The prospect of paid holiday and sick pay - as well as a guaranteed salary, a convenient location and paid training - is perceived to be a good choice by contractors in a highly competitive market. In March, Computer Weekly reported the findings from a survey of around 500 IT professionals which showed that the demand for permanent IT staff has outstripped demand for contract IT workers.
A recent report co-authored by KPMG and employment organisation Giant, shows that the percentage of contractors wanting stability over earnings has risen to almost two-thirds, implying job security is now a bigger worry for IT contractors than it was at the end of the dotcom boom in 2003.
While some organisations have put non-critical development work and projects on hold, reducing their need for contract staff, there are still attractive permanent opportunities out there for specialists with the right skills, experience and commitment.
B & M has responded to the current economic conditions and the associated demands of our customers by sourcing permanent IT technical staff in addition to the supply of contract staff and technical services. Our in-depth skills and experience in the IT technical market place mean that we are a logical choice to fill our customers’ resource gaps whether they are for permanent or temporary staff.
For more information on permanent and contract opportunities, contact sales@bmeurope.com.
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It's all gone Hyper, Jim!
B & M Technical Manager, Paul Smith, explains how hyperconnectivity could cause addressing problems sooner than we think
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Hyperconnectivity. It means that everyone is connected everywhere - or looked at another way, that there are more network devices per person than people using any given network.
The numbers are almost incomprehensible; the total number of mobile phones purchased worldwide has just passed 4 billion [source: Reuters Feb 2009], and the rate of growth is estimated at 67,000 new phones per hour, 10% of which are now Internet connected.
In Europe, the number of mobiles ostensibly 'in-use' actually outnumbers the available population. Nortel estimates that by 2025 there will be around 1 trillion mobile devices, at least 75% of them with wireless Internet connections. Don’t forget this is not just phones; devices include PDAs, SatNavs, iPods, cameras, sensors, radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, cars, appliances, medical equipment, industrial machinery - and amazingly even irrigation equipment which now has built-in connectivity!
Using the existing IPV4 addressing system this means there will be 1012 units chasing 109 available addresses within the next few years. Even by using Network Address Translation (and depending on which set of figures you believe) we are set to run out of IPV4 addresses anywhere from 2010 to 2023.
The solution to this exists: IPV6, which would extend the number of addresses up to an exceedingly comfortable 3.4×1038. Unfortunately, despite having been about since 1998, less than 1% of the worldwide net is IPV6 compliant. No one has yet published estimates of the bandwidth that this burgeoning demand will need, but with the potential for 1 trillion devices all needing to get online, it’s not going to be trivial.
In the USA, Nortel is testing equipment that provides 40GBps and 100GBps over existing optical fibre, aiming to use the country's surplus supply of dark (unused) fibre. However, in Europe, we have far less spare capacity.
With the growth in Unified Communications and with the current economic climate, now is a very good time to consider your future networking requirements before it’s too late.
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10 benefits of strategic technical consultancy
Jerry Smart highlights some of the key benefits of using strategic technical consultancy
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- Agreed objectives and outputs from the outset
- Independent insight from an IT authority in the area
- Improvement in IT processes
- Improved resilience and productivity
- Injection of external specialist knowledge
- Strategic advice and guidance
- Workforce performance improvement through clear vision
- Standardisation, integration and virtualisation of IT platforms
- Optimisation of high-value IT investments to maximise return
- Predictable, project-based fee structures
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Real People, Real Skills - Ed Hopper
This month we profile Sales Manager Ed Hopper
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Ed Hopper joined B & M after graduating from Durham University in 1997, since when he has developed wide-ranging expertise in the provision of technical support services and consultancy. His particular specialisation is in providing specialists for projects within the banking and insurance markets, where his knowledge has been instrumental in providing highly experienced specialists for a variety of projects with customers such as the Royal Bank of Scotland Group, Abbey and Norwich Union.
Ed is also responsible for helping to develop new business markets for B & M, growing the business to ensure that the company builds on its seventeen years' experience and continues to provide services that are relevant to customers in the UK and Europe. Ed has led the development of B & M's business in France, Luxembourg and the Republic of Ireland.
Having taken up the role of Sales Manager is 2005, Ed now leads B & M's team of Account Managers, training and mentoring new sales staff and providing strategic advice to more experienced Account Managers. In addition to his responsibilities as Sales Manager, Ed is the B & M Account Manager for three of the UK's 'big five' high street banks and some of the UK's largest insurance and retail organisations.
In his leisure time Ed enjoys recreational kayaking, although family commitments now take up more of his time since his competitive peak in 2003 when he represented Great Britain at the 2003 Freestyle World Championships in Graz, Austria.
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B & M TechConsult
authoritative technical consultancy
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B & M TechConsult is a specialist technical consultancy service for large enterprise systems, delivering strategic advice and recommendations to enable projects to be implemented in a timely and cost-effective manner.
We offer authoritative technical consultancy services for z/OS, AIX, HP-UX, Solaris and Linux environments and network connectivity, with consultancy projects typically including:
- Strategic Reviews
- Feasibility Studies
- Audits
- ICT Health Checks
- Process development
- Technical assurance services
B & M TechConsult delivers tailored services that enable customers to make the most of their large platform IT investments. Our consultants use their in-depth knowledge to make recommendations that can deliver dramatic improvements in an organisation’s IT infrastructure - typically delivering results in a short timescale. Consultancy is undertaken using best practice standards and objectives and deliverables are always agreed in advance.
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