Hiring managers know that recruiting qualified tech talent these days isn’t as easy as it used to be. There’s a skills gap to contend with along with job parameters that attract candidates with more theoretical knowledge than practical skills. And then there is the question of demand. Is tech job demand slowing down? While news of big tech layoffs may be off putting, the truth is that tech employment continues to grow in depth and breadth, according to the CompTIA State of the Tech Workforce 2023 report.
“In a year of even more uncertainty than usual, the tech labor market routinely defied expectation,” said Tim Herbert, chief research officer for CompTIA. “The data continues to confirm the degree to which technology underpins so many facets of business activity across the economy and the breadth of employers reliant on technical and digital skills.”
The CompTIA State of the Tech Workforce 2023 report is the definitive guide to national, state and metropolitan area tech workforce analytics. CompTIA aggregates mountains of data and transforms it into easy-to-understand visuals and actionable insights for hiring managers, employers and workforce development professionals as they strategize how to attract and retain tech talent to meet business objectives in 2023 and beyond.
Related Blog: 3 Big Workforce Trends To Watch
Net Tech Employment Increases
The Trend: Net tech employment in the United States reached an estimated 9,156,390 workers in 2022, an increase of 3.2% year-over-year – or approximately 286,400 additional workers employed in technology. CompTIA forecasts a 3% increase – more than 272,000 new jobs – in tech employment for 2023.
The Reason: Statistics can be interpreted in many ways. The CompTIA State of the Tech Workforce 2023 looks at net tech employment. The tech workforce consists of two groups of people:
- Those working in technical positions: IT support, networking engineering, software development, data science and related roles across all industries.
- Those employed by technology companies: Includes sales, marketing, finance, HR, operations and management along with individuals in technical positions.
These two groups work together to create, maintain and deploy the technology that businesses rely on every single day – and that need is growing.
What This Means for Organizations: As companies across the United States continue to rely on technology, existing jobs will change, and new jobs will be created to support the systems that keep things running. Organizations need to anticipate this shift and strategize accordingly to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to attracting and retaining tech talent.
Read CompTIA Workforce and Learning Trends 2023.
Tech Occupation Growth Is Imminent
The Trend: According to projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and Lightcast, in the next 10 years the tech workforce will grow twice as fast as the overall U.S. workforce.
The Reason: As emerging technologies gain ground, demand for tech talent across the full spectrum of tech job roles will continue to grow as organizations add headcount to support these technologies. These variables affect future workforce projections.
What This Means for Organizations: Quite simply put, it means we need more candidates to apply for tech roles. While companies hedge their bets on hiring, the gap between available jobs in tech and people who want them gets larger. While trying to find new talent, you don’t want to unconsciously discourage applicants from a variety of backgrounds because your job descriptions may have some biased language. Unconscious bias around race, age, ability status and gender can limit your applicant pool.
Read the Guide to Hiring in Information Technology.
Tech Turnover Rate Remains Low
The Trend: The turnover rate for tech occupations during the 2023-2033 period is expected to average about 7% annually – or approximately 400,000 workers each year, totaling several million through 2033.
The Reason: People working in technology often transition to new roles or are promoted to more advanced positions. For the sake of comparison, high turnover occupations have annual rates typically in the 100% to 200% range.
What This Means for Organizations: Don’t underestimate the power of professional development and apprenticeships to help bridge skills gaps. When you have good employees who want to learn more and be promoted, upskill and reskill them! Provide them with the training and education they need to be promoted to a more advanced role. This not only helps retain good tech talent, but it also frees up entry-level positions, which are prime roles for apprenticeships.
Learn about CompTIA Apprenticeships for Tech.
Emerging Tech Job Postings Ramp Up
The Trend: Since 2017, emerging tech job postings grew by 186%.
The Reason: Technology continues to evolve, and as more emerging tech is adopted into organizations, new roles are required to support and maintain these processes and tools. Think about how much has changed just in the last few years with the increase of remote working.
What This Means for Organizations: Job roles related to new technologies often require on-the-job experience and more advanced knowledge. Technology moves at a breakneck pace, and even formal degree programs have a hard time keeping up. Placing a focus on professional skills and non-traditional education pathways like certifications can help fill newly created roles. Organizations can do this by de-emphasizing the need for a four-year degree and incorporating relevant skills and certifications into job descriptions to avoid over-spec’ing.
Read Why a Skills-Based IT Hiring Approach Can Benefit Your Organization.
What Will Your Organization Do With This Data?
The CompTIA State of the Tech Workforce 2023 report is designed for hiring managers, employers and workforce development professionals. Explore the data and decide how you can leverage it to make smart and strategic hiring decisions.
Interested in learning more? Check out the full report.
