"Confidence is still stronger among IT workers than last year, and more in line with the general workforce," says Hudson regional VP Paul Taylor. Contributing to the drop in IT pros' optimism from July to August were economic factors, including the softening housing market and gas prices, he says.
Only 14% of IT pros in August rated their personal finances as "excellent," compared to the record-high of 21% who said they felt that way in July, according to Hudson. There was also a five-point drop to 44% in the number of workers who said their financial situation was improving.
Still, Hudson's Taylor says it's not surprising that many tech pros are feeling anxious about a job change. "It's very easy to be left on the shelf in IT," he says. "IT pros very often have their eye on what the most cutting edge projects are" and wonder if they should be pursuing them—as well as higher pay, he says.
Tech pros that have been at the same company for some time "often get paid less than the market rates," says Taylor. And while Taylor says some tech pros often have over-expectations about pay—i.e. they think they should be getting paid more than what the market is actually offering—there are "buy-back scenarios" taking place in some corners of the IT job market right now, he says.
Specifically, employers in some industries, especially the financial services sector, are becoming more willing to make counter-offers to keep valued tech talent who have new job offers from other employers, Taylor says.
By combining resources and expertise, the AI-Enabled ICT Workforce Consortium will offer a blueprint for how industries can adapt to an AI-dominated future.
IT leaders should heed the guidance of cybersecurity insurance providers who think businesses should prioritize security education, incident preparedness, regular internal audits, and ongoing vulnerability scanning and patching.
There are many network courses that can address your present job's priorities and help you gain the needed skills to keep pace with industry changes and new technologies.
