7 trends in the IT labor market with statistics (which you will surely object)

It is a thankless duty to formulate trends, as one risks to play Captain Obvious or to receive “Don’t make something out of nothing, in fact, the opposite is true” as feedback, supported by examples and data. However, we at Indigo recruitment agency think that it is important to take stock and analyze the general tendencies in the labor market to understand where we are heading. So we want to highlight the following top-7 trends at the Ukrainian labor market so far.

1. There are more and more IT professionals…

According to a survey by DOU, the number of IT workers has increased more than by a quarter during 2018, and as of the end of the year, it was almost 160 thousand. In two years, the industry has grown by 60%. As stated by the fresh overview by the IT company N-iX, the number of Ukrainian developers in 2019 will grow to 200 thousand, and by 20 thousand more during the next year.

2. But the demand still outweighs the supply

According to DOU, the number of job openings has increased by 1, 5 times in 2018, and the number of employers offering vacancies for IT professionals has grown almost by 40%. Moreover, last year Ukrainian companies had been opening new offices in Ukrainian cities twice more actively, and it affected the demand for professionals, as stated by the N-iX’s review. Overall, our branch in Ukraine is growing by 20% per year, according to the expert data. In comparison, the global growth rate is approximately 2, 6%, as specified by BRDO and the IT Ukraine Association.

3. Outsourcing employs the majority of experts

The mentioned review by N-iX reveals that 60% of IT professionals work at outsourcing companies. At the same time, the number of other IT-employers is increasing: there are more than 2000 startups and over 100 international R&D offices in Ukraine.

4. IT specialists are returning home

The already strong tendency for brain drain of IT talents rose 5 years ago. To date, experts claim the opposite trend: the IT talents are returning due to different reasons, specially the financial reason. Salaries are higher abroad, but the cost of living, as well as taxes and other financial expenses, are “eating up” most of this difference. It is hard to say exactly how many of them have returned, as the experts mention different numbers up to a half of the IT experts who moved abroad in 2014-2016. Here, we’d like to refer to the article by NV with expert feedback and some data to support the above statement.

There are some optimistic data concerning their plans. According to the research by DOU “The portrait of an IT-expert”, 45% of respondents stated that they “are thinking about emigrating, but they are not doing anything for it”, and 35% indicated that they “don’t have such plans”. Only 8% of respondents are actively preparing to move.

5. Gender gap is changing to gender balance

However, ve-e-e-ry slowly. As can be seen from “The portrait of an IT-expert” by DOU, the number of female professionals in 2019 has increased by 1% and equals the average of 24%. At the same time, there are 28% of women in outsourcing companies, while 23% and 22% in product companies and startups respectively.

6. Generation Z is running away from offices

Young people, who are now becoming active on the labor market (and their share will increase with each year), are valuing not only flexibility and freedom. Employers will have to compete with the spirit of entrepreneurship which is specially developed among the Zs. According to the research by Randstad Employer Brand Research, compared to others, most Z-respondents (18-24 years) indicated that they would prefer their own business (40%).

7. Higher education is losing ground

And this trend is relevant to all industries. Lifelong learning, peer-to-peer and online education are taking over the slow an inflexible to constant changes traditional education. According to a survey by DOU 2019 on higher education among IT professionals, currently, only 6% of the respondents don’t recommend to apply for universities at all. Besides, the respondents highlight that school doesn’t give all the necessary knowledge and one needs self-education. There’s also a point in looking for an internship or work already from the first years at school to stay updated to the current requirements of the profession.

And what changes in the IT branch are you, its actual players, observing? Share your thoughts in comments 🙂