IT support professionals will be central to the UK's recovery from the recession, it has been suggested.

All industries will continue to require highly skilled technical support professionals, explains Karen Price, chief executive officer of e-skills UK.

"There is an arguably even greater need for business-focused technologists who can understand business needs, know how to apply IT to solve business problems, and can manage technology projects to deliver direct business value," she commented.

Figures from e-skills UK show that the number of IT and telecoms professionals working across all businesses in the UK was up four per cent at the end of the first quarter of 2009 compared to the same period the previous year, despite being down slightly on the last three months of 2008.

IT support technician numbers grew by 14 per cent, while software professional and operation technician positions also increased, the firm's IT & Telecoms and the Recession report reveals.

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