The Otago-Southland job market is buoyant, although a survey out yesterday, suggesting more than three-quarters of New Zealanders are on the hunt for a new job, may be misleading.
The latest Hudson Report H2 2016 suggested 75% of Kiwis were looking for new jobs and the number seeking new roles was up by more than 20% on the first half of the year.
However, Otago-Southland Employers Association chief executive Virginia Nicholls told the Otago Daily Times the survey figures were "very high'' and must be a combination of all candidates actively looking and those considering a role change.
There were two types of candidates, who were different: the active candidate and the passive candidate.
Active candidates were actively seeking employment and would be registered with recruiters and have alerts set up with job boards. They would also be utilising their own personal and professional networks to secure employment, she said.
Passive candidates would occasionally check out a job board and might have "open to opportunities'' as a tab on their Linkedin profile.
"The reality is probably only 50% or less are genuinely interested in a move and some are just testing the waters, to see if their current salary is at the market rate.''
The Dunedin job market was different from those in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland, Mrs Nicholls said.
Only 40% and 50% of live jobs available in Dunedin were advertised on job boards or in the Otago Daily Times, mainly due to the close networks at play within the city and the power of referrals.
The job market was very active in Queenstown and Wanaka, and there was steady growth in Dunedin and Invercargill.
The winter tourist season was well under way in Central Otago, with an unprecedented demand for those who wanted to work in the tourist season, she said.
The construction industry continued to actively seek trades people. The IT sector was now looking overseas to fill roles.
"The greatest issue in these areas is accessing accommodation for those who want to move to Queenstown and Wanaka. Families are starting to move out of Queenstown and are now living in Cromwell and Kingston and are travelling to work in Queenstown.''
In the South, employers had to be more innovative and they had always looked for employees who were adaptable and who had good problem-solving capabilities, Mrs Nicholls said.
There were new sectors starting, including gaming studios based in Dunedin successfully supplying the international marketplace.
Wanaka was also a hub for some "very creative'' individuals and teams, including IT services, website developers and market researchers. They based themselves in Wanaka and travelled to their clients as required, she said.
More employers were investing in their staff professional development and health and safety training by attending employer association workshops.
Hudson New Zealand regional general manager Roman Rogers said the Hudson report figures painted a picture of an increasingly active job market. Employers were wanting to hire across all sectors and Christchurch was the clear regional leader.
Hiring intentions had remained steady, unchanged since the first half of the year at 29%.
"We're seeing consistent rhetoric from employers around the need for adaptability, problem-solving and resilience in new talent. Business leaders know that, in today's world, staying still means falling behind.''
Employees were echoing that sentiment and 98% said they believed it was important or extremely important their next employer encouraged innovation, he said.
But there was room for improvement in the way organisations encouraged innovation.
There was a real tension to have employers saying they wanted to be game-changers and employees flaunting innovative traits to increase their chances of being hired.
"In reality, a lot of people actually aren't wired to operate well amid constant and aggressive change.''
Taking a proactive approach to innovation would help businesses reduce the risk of alienating staff while ensuring they did not lose enthusiastic new recruits by over-promising and under-delivering.
