Abstract:

The world economy has enjoyed sustained expansion and growth since the 1990s, with Ireland a key recipient of this economic good fortune. This growth, coupled with the rising dominance of technology and global competition has put human capital at a premium as a factor of organizational success. The task of recruiting and retaining skilled workers has become a daunting exercise for most companies. This is especially so in the jobhopping world of information technology (IT). Proactive organisations are drawing together an armory of retention weapons from lucrative financial remuneration through to plausible paths of advancement. What scope however is there within the public sector for packaging attractive employment contracts? How can organizations with financial – and legal - constraints compete with the private sector? However the need for IT talent impacts on some firms more critically than others. Proposed wide scale changes to the information systems within the healthcare sector make the need for IT experience particularly crucial.