Experton Group Weekly IT News

IT Jobs at New Highs

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) at the end of last quarter the size of the IT workforce topped four million for the first time while the unemployment rate for computer-related jobs hovered near historic lows. In other news, the Janco Associates Inc.'s mid-year 2008 IT salary survey showed little change in salaries from the same period in 2007.

Focal Points:

• The IT economy showed no sign of slowing down in the last quarter. The IT workforce exceeded four million for the first time last quarter while the number of employed IT pros reached 3,956,000, also a record high. A year earlier, 3,599,000 workers were employed in IT and 77,000 jobless and looking for positions in the field, for an IT workforce size of 3,675,000.
• The IT unemployment rate inched up one-tenth of a percentage point to 2.3 percent in the second quarter of 2008; however, it still hovers near historic lows. In contrast, the overall U.S. unemployment rate stood at 4.7 percent for the same quarter. The June overall unemployment rate stood at 5.5 percent for the second consecutive month, after shedding 62,000 jobs that month. The comparable IT unemployment numbers are not available. For the same period last year, the IT unemployment rate stood at 2.1 percent.
• With 4,050,000 managers, professionals and other staffers holding or seeking computer-related positions last quarter, the IT workforce expanded by 10.2 percent in the past four quarters. Furthermore, the number of workers employed by IT services firms rose by 56,100 this past year to 1,414,400, a 4.1 percent increase, according to last month's BLS establishment survey of some 160,000 businesses and government agencies covering about 400,000 worksites. However, even with the expansion, the Janco Associates IT salary survey showed most salaries were virtually unchanged from mid-year 2007. The two executive spots that did show significant salary shifts were VP positions – consulting services and technical service – that lost more than 10 percent in pay.

Experton Group believes the U.S.'s and most developed nations' economies are highly reliant upon their IT systems for revenue generation and productivity gains, thereby increasing the demand for IT skills. The misperception that IT jobs were moving offshore has shrunk the availability of skilled IT entrants in the U.S., while the baby boomers are retiring or moving onto other non-IT positions.

Experton Group expects this supply and demand squeeze to remain constrained over the next three years. IT executives need to address the resource management life cycle holistically and systemically, and approach it both strategically and tactically. Executives must view this as a prime initiative now through 2011.