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The addition of IT helpdesk staff is top of the list of priorities for companies which expect growth in the fourth-quarter, it has been revealed.

A report for ZDNet told of a survey taken out by Robert Half Technology, an IT support firm that specialises in technology staffing, which revealed that companies were just as keen to keep current customers as they were to acquiring new ones.

It added that helpdesk and end-user support claimed 18 per cent of the primary employment intentions of the 1,400 chief information officers in the survey.

Speaking about the poll, Larry Dignan of ZDNet said: "Overall, the Robert Half survey reveals that IT workers aren't facing a boom market, but things aren't unraveling - spelling either.

"Compared to other industries a little status quo is a win."

Last month, it was found that firing IT employees could cost businesses as IT support workers had access to a lot of sensitive data.

More than half of small businesses (53%) believe that the most important benefit of outsourcing is guaranteed response times for IT support, London based Connect conducted the research in 2007.