The top five professions this year

The top five professions in New Zealand for 2017 are sales and marketing, commercial finance, IT (cloud, mobile, digital, e-commerce, cyber security), risk and compliance finance specialists, and in-house legal staff.

Recruitment agency Robert Walters says as businesses reshape to become digitally-savvy, these emerging and relatively new professions are becoming a vital part of operations: digital designers, data scientists, information security specialists, and commercial managers.

Head of Robert Walters New Zealand, Shay Peters, says that due to the persisting pressure of a shortage of candidates, salaries will increase for many professionals, leaving some in a powerful position to negotiate with the employers.

“In most professions, salaries went up in 2016, and we expect to see moderate increases again in 2017. Those professionals with skills in particularly high demand will receive substantial increase,” he says.