As the capital of Australia, Canberra is an interesting place. While it may not have the entertainment options of Sydney, or the culture of Melbourne, what it does have is a lot of cutting edge companies and business practices that can really boost careers. A short bus trip from the Snowies, with all the mod cons and a chance to get to work without being stuck in peak hour, why aren’t more people looking at the ACT?
On a recent visit to Canberra, I learnt our specialist PR, Communications & Creative division is experiencing the highest demand in talent since 2008. The Canberra Business Council says the skills shortage in the ACT has reached a crisis point, with almost half of all job vacancies going unfilled. The key skills shortages in the market are:
- Internal Communications
- Web Creative / Producers’
- Senior Media Managers
One of the reasons for such an overwhelming shortage is the current inclination for Canberra workers to ‘sea change’. And while we all daydream about heading somewhere warmer, more interesting or just more lucrative, valuable Canberran candidates really are moving out of the ACT government-focused marketplace to Sydney and Melbourne to pursue more commercially focused careers and diversify their experience. The challenge is, the Canberra market has a small skills pool to start with, so where do the new candidates come from?
Nationally, 61 per cent of vacancies are being filled, with 1.6 applicants reported to be suitable for jobs – that means Canberra is at least a few steps behind the rest of the country. In addition to a challenge in filling roles, retaining employees is also difficult. The average time a candidate will stay in Canberra within the Communications industry, before moving interstate, is two years. Despite this lack of job longevity, it may surprise you to learn the average salary in Canberra is the highest in Australia.
State:
Tasmania
South Australia
Northern Territory
Victoria
Queensland
New South Wales
Western Australia
Australian Capital Territory |
Average Annual Wage:
$55,103
$59,223
$61,771
$62,748
$63,866
$65,707
$70,210
$75,348 |
So with the city offering job opportunities at all levels, clear careers paths and more than competitive pay, how can employers deal with the fact candidates simply aren’t flocking to them?
The Communications industry is a unique one, particularly in Canberra. It’s one of those, ‘everyone knows everyone’ sort of sectors, and if you’re not in those networks, or you are, and don’t reach out to new people to extend them, you can find yourself short of people and missing opportunities to expand your team with quality people. With most of the market now classed as ‘passive’ jobseekers, you will continue to experience more and more difficulty when it comes to sourcing those few suitable candidates through the likes of job boards, so networking is more important than ever.
In an interesting conversation with our team, it was pointed out just how crucial great relationships are in Canberra – both to clients and candidates, and also to recruiters.
While we always maintain an extensive network of communications professionals – in work and seeking work – this discussion really highlighted the importance, for everyone, of continuing to grow those networks. For our part, we know we play a key role in building the Canberra communications community, we make it a priority to welcome the odd ‘sea changer’ to Canberra, source interstate workers through our offices in other areas, and encourage Canberra uni graduates by placing them into local positions that will enable them to grow their career – most importantly, we introduce these people to all those we know through our existing connections. We have a broad network, and I think more than ever, with the skills shortage now rampant in the ACT, this will really be what drives the talent pool back up. If you’re in communications, get out there, meet some people, join some networks and get involved!