1st Call recruitment managing director Phill van Syp said changes at the port - particularly winning business such as the Maersk shipping line - were likely to have a positive impact on the job market, creating plenty of work in the Western Bay long term.
"It's definitely good for Tauranga, there's no doubt."
Logistics, distribution and storage look like big winners, while Mr van Syp expected to see a ripple effect throughout the Tauranga workforce, with workers needed in areas such as administration. Long-term, large companies would inevitably establish warehouses in Tauranga - with it creating jobs outside the port, he said.
"The benefit is big companies will start putting their distribution and warehouse right here in Tauranga. The potential is huge.
"It's going to be easier for companies to have a warehouse here and distribute to their customers.
"What's the point of shipping to it to Tauranga and moving to Auckland to distribute when you are already in the centre of the country?"
Mr van Syp said Tauranga had advantages over Auckland as a distribution hub - including land value, ease of access and distribution throughout the country.
The Port of Tauranga was one of the city's biggest employers, which already created significant benefits for the community, Mr van Syp said.
He said agencies that worked out of the port had already been looking at employing extra staff. "There's definitely going to be more work."
Tauranga MP Simon Bridges predicted there would be positive effects for the Tauranga employment market.
"This isn't just exciting for the port, there will also be benefits from this new work for the rest of Tauranga.
"In the longer term I think it's likely that we will see more and more transport, logistics and possibly even export-based businesses decide to base themselves here.
"Thinking really optimistically, Tauranga could become, even more than it is today, New Zealand's trading gateway.
"Given that New Zealand is entirely reliant on exports to make its way in the world, what's happening the port's successes makes these prospects really tantalising."
Port of Tauranga chief executive Mark Cairns told the Bay of Plenty Times earlier this week that the extra shipping line would definitely create more jobs at the port itself.
"With this, we will work with our own staff, contractors and we will certainly look at further employment opportunities."
Tauranga Chamber of Commerce chief executive Max Mason said developments at the port were great news for the wider community - meaning more jobs and more economic prospects for the region.
An economic impact report had shown the effect of the Port of Tauranga on the region was huge, he said.
And the new developments added up to "a much needed additional contribution to regional economic activity".
"No doubt some services will be covered by existing capacity, but in longer term the storage, distribution and logistics sectors will benefit as will the many other sectors that in turn supply them," Mr Mason said.
Another important benefit was the growing business confidence in the area.
"Local, national and international business decision makers will be watching carefully, and will be increasingly keen to invest in Tauranga and the port as their confidence builds."
Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby said positive developments at the port would provide an employment boost for the entire Western Bay job market.
"It was always inevitable that more business could come their way through Tauranga, which has flow-on effects across all business and industry.
"It's not just the port [benefiting], it's the infrastructure that supports the port like transport and logistics. It's also an incentive for more businesses to come here because it's so close to an efficient export port."
The good news comes after recruitment experts predicted a difficult 2012 for job seekers in the Western Bay.
Fallout from the Psa outbreak in kiwifruit is expected to spread to wider industries as kiwifruit workers seek other jobs in an already tight job market.
The first half of the year was expected to see a lower export market, with a flow-on effect to industries such as engineering and stevedoring.
