"We are getting big responses for many roles, more than 100 in some cases."

Splitting the survey results regionally, in the Upper North Island, sentiment about hiring was down significantly, to a net positive 14.3 percent, while in the Lower North Island it was 30.4 percent, and in the South Island, the figure was relatively high at 46.2 percent.

The commentary on the report notes: "While this result is down 3.9 percentage points from last quarter, the industry remains one of the most confident in the region, with employers always ready to hire experienced professionals when they come to the region."

The above figures all relate to intentions to hire permanent staff; in the IT contracting/temporary staff space, hiring plans weren't so strong, with a 15.9 percentage point fall being recorded from the last survey, resulting in a net negative effect of 3 percent.