Member Article

Survey results "a wake-up call" for tech industry careers

Almost half of those working in tech say they don’t have a clear picture on how they’re going to build a progressive career in the sector, according to shock results from a new survey.

The poll, carried out by Career Progression Programme, surveyed 6,400 career technologists, and discovered that only 6.3% of respondents feel “very confident” about the security of their jobs with 39% feeling “concerned” or “deeply concerned”. The remaining 40% are feeling only “fairly confident”.

In order to reach the next level towards their ultimate career respondents identified four main areas.

• People skills including leadership and influencing – 31%
• Technical skills including coding and tooling – 23%
• Personal organisational and growth – 27%
• SDLC process knowledge – 18%

When asked what questions/concerns come to mind when continuing to build a career in the tech sector, the respondents answered:

• How to future proof my skills and develop as technology evolves increasingly quickly – 43%
• The future of the tech career market in the UK – 21%
• IR35 – 15%
• Lack of job opportunities in the UK – 11%
• How to adjust to home working – 5%
• Not being appreciated – 5%

Career Progression Programme’s Jennifer Wheeler, said: “Our survey results are both illuminating and shocking. The fact that half of the respondents have no idea how to progress their career to the next level is worrying.

“Now more than ever, the decisions you make are going to seriously impact not just your career, but your family and your way of life.

“What’s needed in the sector is someone to answer your questions, help you develop skills, sense-check your approach and help you make sure you’re doing the right things to build a successful and fulfilling career.

“This should be a wake-up call for the industry to take the concerns of their staff seriously, and also for those individuals working on a freelance of contract basis to seek out the help that tailored, bespoke training programmes afford.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Mac Watson .