Tech salaries on the rise as firms struggle to fill skills gap

New research has revealed that employers are finding it increasingly difficult to fill tech jobs due to a shrinking talent pool.

According to research by job marketplace Hired and its 2022 State of Tech Salaries report, tech workers are demanding more, with the report finding that, if denied a pay rise, 89.9 per cent of candidates would start looking for another job, or negotiate other benefits.

Josh Brenner, CEO of Hired, said: “Hired’s survey data tells us that while there is some sentiment of a power shift to employers in the next six months, the majority of candidates are considering leaving their current role."

“They’re driven by the potential for more lucrative opportunities and an overall better fit. Expectations on salary, pay raises and work flexibility remain sky high, placing the onus on employers to execute the right strategies to attract, hire and retain top talent.”

The IT Leaders Pulse Report 2022 also found that 98 per cent of organisations have skill gaps within their IT departments, with senior leaders saying that hiring talented IT workers has never been harder.

Hired also found that the time taken to hire someone for a new role in the UK has increased and now takes an average of 68 days from advertising the job to hiring someone, up from 50 days in 2021. Globally, however, the time it takes to fill a role has stayed at around 40 days for the past three years.

In response, 62 per cent of respondents in the UK said that they are exploring automation, AI and algorithms to address the skills gap and improve the customer experience.

Matt McLarty, global field CTO, MuleSoft said: “As IT leaders struggle to fill roles to support this additional demand, the traditional playbook is in question. Today's IT leaders must look instead to broader, company-wide process improvements, through automation, that foster innovation, enhance user experiences, and drive efficient growth."