With the state’s unemployment rate nearing 9 percent and economists predicting the worst recession in a quarter century, it’s not an easy time to be in the job market. Even in the information-technology industry, in which local employment has stayed fairly strong this year, some workers are feeling anxious.

Despite the current gloom, James Wright, a partner at the West Greenwich IT-recruiting firm Bridge Technical Solutions, remains optimistic about Rhode Island’s burgeoning tech sector. He talked with Providence Business News recently about the current job climate, where growth is still strong, and what trends he sees for the years ahead.

PBN: At 8.8 percent, Rhode Island’s broad unemployment rate is the second-highest in the country. But what does the employment picture look like for workers in the tech sector?

WRIGHT: Bridge currently has more permanent positions open – that is, full-time, salaried jobs – than at any other time in the past seven years. This is good news and would seem like a great indicator for the employment picture. That said, our contract business has slowed growth a bit, and that’s an indicator that companies are not making the project-based investments at the rate they were a few years ago.

For example, a client decides to invest in a big-ticket enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. There are a number of contract positions associated with such a purchase, from someone to do a vendor assessment, to a project manager to oversee the installation, implementation specialists, back-filling incumbent employees while they learn the new product, [quaility-assurance] people to test the installation, etc. With caution pervading the market, many of the big-ticket investments are on the shelf, which softens the contract market and makes many serial contractors start looking for permanent jobs to hold them over. This increases the pool of available candidates for permanent jobs.

We aren’t anywhere near the kind of desperation and glut of skilled professionals in the market that we saw in 2002 – where many people left the industry altogether and where there was strong downward pressure on salaries – but the market has softened to the point that most open jobs see strong competition, with a variety of qualified candidates, and employers have the luxury of being picky.

PBN: How big an impact do you think a broad economic downturn will have on tech employment? How would it compare to the post-dotcom-bubble period?

WRIGHT: It would be hard to guess how much impact a broad economic downturn would have on tech employment without knowing how severe it might be. We are clearly in uncharted economic territory, and if the credit markets don’t start to thaw it’s anyone’s guess what will happen.

I was in Silicon Valley during the dotcom boom and bust, and out there the highs were much higher, but the lows were much lower. In that instance you had an intense geographical concentration of the technology industry and the result of the bust was a tremendous glut of candidates with similar skill sets and no one hiring. Rhode Island was hit hard, but not nearly on the scale that Silicon Valley felt it.

I have friends in finance in New York who are experiencing the same thing right now: when thousands of people in one industry are laid off, and they all live within, let’s say, a 70-mile radius, you find a job market that becomes overcrowded, with dire consequences.

The incredible reach of technology has become a blessing and a curse: Technology is such a key part of our everyday lives and an essential element of most business operations that it may take a step back in a downturn, but it’s going to bounce back quickly. The downside is that with technology permeating so many industries, tech jobs play a bigger role in most industries than they did before, so they feel more impact when traditionally non-tech industries get hit. For example, the real estate market goes down and takes the mortgage market with it. There are so many technology services related to both industries that the real estate slowdown puts significant numbers of technology people out of work.

PBN: What technology skills and specialties do you see the most demand for right now?

WRIGHT: Right now we’re getting requests from across the board: project managers, business analysts, developers, implementation managers, IT security specialists – a wide range of skills from a wide range of companies. From a development perspective we’ve seen Java and related development skills making significant inroads on .NET. Where we might have had 10 .NET jobs for each Java job 18 months ago, they are now running about even.

“Specialties” is the key word: employers are increasingly looking for candidates with specialized experience: background in a particular industry, or with a certain software package, or experience with particular banking regulations. You name it, clients are looking for specialization.

PBN: What recommendations would you make to people who are looking for a new job, or thinking about doing so?

WRIGHT: When I hear that question a number of clichés come to mind: “The devil you don’t know can be worse than the devil you know” or “Look for a safe port in a storm.” There is some significant wisdom in that thinking, particularly given the state of the economy. First, if you’re dissatisfied with your current position, see if there are things you can do to make it better before you decide to jump ship. Also, consider the big picture. Too often people get focused on salary: “I’m making $50K, but a friend told me I could make $55K elsewhere.” There are so many other factors to consider: Is a change a good career move? How will it impact where I’ll be in five years? What about the total package: healthcare, 401(k), parking, commute and vacation time? How will a job change impact my quality of life?

Let’s face it, the grass if often greener. But consider: your dream job today might be a nightmare in 10 years if your lifestyle changes – for example, think of the salesperson who travels all the time but then has kids and wants a job that keeps him or her closer to home. The trick is aligning your work life with your stage of life.

My core recommendations would be these:

• Consider what is really important to you beyond the often over-weighted benchmarks of title and salary.

• Consider options to make your current situation better, if that’s possible. You’d be surprised at the opportunities you might find internally if you perform well, show initiative, and - above all - ask.

• Consider how this choice will impact you in five years. Focus on risk and reward. How much risk can you afford to take at this stage in your life, and what is the potential reward of each opportunity. Sometimes taking a chance on a smaller, less mature company can pay off big in the long run; but not everyone has the luxury of taking that risk.

• Certainly be prepared to spend some time on a job search. It requires time, effort, and it can be emotionally draining.

• And finally – and I can’t say this strongly enough – don’t spend too much time online. The job boards are a great tool, but they’ll drive you crazy if you try to log four hours a day on them. Job boards can very quickly switch from “useful job search tool” to “time waster.” If you’re considering a new job, get out and meet people. Go out for lunch, go on informational interviews, go to a Providence Geeks event and meet some new people, use Facebook and other online tools to reconnect with old friends and colleagues … live your life.

PBN: Where do you see the biggest tech-sector job growth over the next 10 years?

WRIGHT: There are a few areas where we can be sure we’ll see growth – notwithstanding the degree and impact of the economic downturn.

The convergence of the technical and medical industries is a huge growth sector. Medical records are being digitized, medical procedures increasingly rely on technology, and support packages for billing, records, device monitoring and back-office management are developing at a rapid pace. A number of our clients are in the medical technology field and we will see continued growth there.

IT Security continues to be a growth sector. As information is gathered and disseminated in new ways every day, it becomes vital that companies safeguard that information.

Professional Services and Implementation are also consistent growth areas - there is always a need for people who can effectively marry technical expertise and product knowledge with project management and customer sensitivity. Our clients are always looking for people with strong project management and customer interaction skills who can go to a client site, get the job done, and anchor the relationship.

As the Web matures we’re going to see growth in the form of an explosion of Web-centered offerings, many of them tied to the ubiquity of portable digital devices. Rhode Island will benefit from this as startup companies develop new products, and as larger and more mature companies continue to be more comfortable taking traditional applications and converting them to Web-based solutions. As the generation that grew up with computers advances and takes an increasing role in charting the direction of companies, we’ll see even more investment in and faith in the power of technology.

This is an exciting time in the Rhode Island technology community. Technology networks are springing up and coalescing around ProvGeeks and RI Nexus – Bridge recently became an RI Nexus sponsor and we think they’re doing great things – bringing a vibrancy to the tech scene, primarily in Providence, that reminds me of the boom days in San Francisco. The [R.I. Economic Development Corporation] is actively working to court companies from out-of-state and improve business conditions for tech companies here in Rhode Island. [Slater Technology Fund] and other investors are putting money behind Rhode Island startups. Big and small companies alike are working in conjunction with the academic world to tap the great wealth of resources in the state. The Tech Collective is active in work force development and is highlighting women in technology and focusing on bio tech. My inbox is overwhelmed with tech announcements, events, and newsletters, and that’s a great thing.

The technology scene is by nature questioning of too much authority, too many rules, and innovation is stifled by conformity, so it’s great to see the variety of different entities diversifying, growing, trying new things. There can’t be just one entity championing technology; it takes a network. The conditions are ripe for growth as a lot of smart people make connections and the Rhode Island tech scene matures.

OK, so no one is going to give you a million bucks after you write an idea on a napkin, but not everything about the Silicon Valley boom was good. Critical mass is building and it’s an exhilarating time to be in the tech space in Rhode Island – the next 10 years should be very exciting.