Growing optimism and challenging frontiers make exceptional talent a valuable commodity

There is a real sense of optimism, with renewed confidence around the world.

Surging demand for oil and natural gas means that commodity values continue to remain high, despite political tensions in key regions, increasingly demanding exploratory environments and the resultant impact of rising costs on operators. Regardless of these factors, the industry is nothing short of vibrant.

This buoyancy is reflected in the jobs market too, according to the latest joint report from OilCareers.com, the international jobs board for the oil and gas industry, and partner Air Energi, a global provider of manpower solutions to the energy sector.

The Global Oil & Gas Workforce Survey: Expectations for hires and pay rates in the oil and gas industry (H1) 2012, suggests that the real challenge this year will be in preparing for the future, ensuring the continued flow of adequately skilled professionals.

While the 'great crew change' remains high on the agenda, there are signs that the industry is beginning to take its role more seriously by making attempts to combat the issue. Solutions are innovative and wide-ranging; from internships and virtual mentorship, to supplementary offsite education programmes and more flexible government allowances towards working retirees.

Activity levels across Africa, the Americas, Asia Pacific, Australasia, Caspian, Europe and the Middle East will remain high, with the expectation for both contract and salaried pay rates to increase as a result across a number of these regions.

For the UK, 2012 was met with welcome news, as 46 new production licences were handed our during the country's most recent licensing round. This is evidence of a revival in domestic activity, and will ward off pressure from other countries, Australia in particular.

Permanent staff are increasingly being given preference over contractors. They come with less flight risk, slightly lower rates and can easily be mobilised within organisations, either in terms of succession planning or to other postings abroad. However, as project development activity ramps up over the next 12 months, favourability could return to contractor positions.

Fabrication, operations and production personnel are amongst the highest in demand, but given the increasingly technical nature of offshore exploration in the UKCS, professional sciences and engineering credentials are also highly valuable and proving difficult to find.

Scandinavia too, is enjoying renewed success, with the focus switching from maximising existing reserves to new discoveries. Three major finds by Statoil, as well as a historically large licensing round, have reaffirmed the region's position as a leader in the industry.

Mainland Europe paints a slightly different picture. A few cautious approaches to staffing have been observed, with a slight preference towards contractors. This will allow companies to be more flexible, enabling them to make rapid adjustments to headcount as required, in response to some continued uncertainty around the economy.

Mark Guest, managing director of OilCareers.com, said: 'Despite all the challenges, I believe our industry remains fundamentally attractive. Energy demand continues to grow and oil and gas look set to remain important parts of the energy mix for the foreseeable future, with many of the world's largest finds being discovered, creating new energy hubs.

'A number of companies are developing unparalleled project queues this year, with such investments impacting positively on the employment market. We're seeing examples of this through increased hiring globally and, with plenty of opportunities on the table it's an exciting time to be involved in the energy sector.'

Ian Langley, group executive chairman of Air Energi, added: 'The Air Energi-OilCareers.com survey provides an indication of the trends that the industry can expect to see across the remainder of the year.

'With increased exploration activity across all regions, a lack of suitably qualified labour will continue to remain a concern. Many companies, however, are now giving the long-standing skills gap their full attention, ensuring they have the capability to maximise the abundant opportunities on offer worldwide.'