IT Talent Gap Still Growing: Ways to Solve This Problem in 2023

Updated – March 7, 2023

The IT sector is changing rapidly and demonstrating great results in digital transformation. However, the world is facing a vast IT talent shortage. Why? How to prevent a negative influence on your business? 

The biggest challenge faced by the tech industry and one reason for the IT worker shortage is the lack of skilled talents needed to meet consumer demand. According to one Gartner study, 64% of IT executives say the tech talent shortage is the barrier keeping them from adopting emerging technologies.

According to a report by IMF, the tech talent shortage will swell to more than 85 million tech workers by 2030, which in turn can potentially translate to lost revenue of over $8 trillion annually.

 So let’s look at more numbers that cause IT talent gap.

• More than 41% of tech workers face limited career progression, followed by flexibility in hours. 
• Around 58% of IT workers say they are suffering from job burnout.
• 91% of tech employees expect more learning and training opportunities from their employers.
• Over 80% of tech professionals expect a higher payment for their work. 

Now, let us show you even more numbers related to the tech talent shortage 2023 in the world.

The IT Talent Gap Still Growing: Numbers and Statistics 

According to the Korn Ferry Insitute, the United States can expect to lose out on $162.25 billion by 2030 due to sector skills shortages. Likewise, China could fail to generate $44.45 billion in revenue by 2030 due to the same problem.

The tech market in the UK is facing a similar situation. By 2030, Great Britain will fail to realize almost 9% of the technology, media, and telecommunications sector’s potential revenue due to the IT talent gap.

While Scandinavian countries became one of the leaders in the market because of the growing number of successful tech startups in recent years, they are also facing a severe tech talent shortage. 

Sweden is expected to have a 70,000 IT talent shortage in the tech sector by 2024, according to the report produced by Swedish IT & Telecom Industries.

Finland’s 66% of open positions in IT seek software development professionals; a study published earlier last year reported that at least 95% of IT companies have at least planned to recruit from outside Finland.

Here you can see a global tech talent shortage revenue by 2030 and how much it could cost each country according to The Global Talent Crunch.

The statistics of the IT talent gap look disappointing, so for each company that craves new talent is crucial to know where to hire one.

 IT Talent Shortage 2023: Russian and Belarus Factor 

For a long time, Russian and Belarus tech markets were one of the biggest for outsourced IT specialists. Many foreign companies from the USA and Western Europe were hiring Russian specialists worldwide due to the huge number of software specialists and affordable rates. 

But, due to Russia and Belarus aggression towards Ukraine, the world has imposed many sanctions. As a result, the SWIFT payment system is canceled in this area, making it impossible to pay salaries to developers and fees to outsourcing/outstaffing agencies. Of course, there are some illegal ways to go around the sanctions. But, by doing this, you financially support the war in Ukraine and are responsible for the death of innocents. 

This factor has caused a massive tech talent shortage in those countries, as shown in the statistic below: 

Russia has had a vast decrease in IT vacancies from January 2022 to September 2022.

Moreover, most Russian and Belarus software engineers are leaving the countries due to the impossibility of working. Based on Habr Career, according to data for March 2022 – over 45% of Russian coders have moved to Europe.

More than 10% have moved to Georgia, 9% to Turkey, 6% have moved to Armenia, and more than 22% have left for other countries. 

It is clear that the IT talent gap is still growing and worries tech companies about the impossibility of getting diligent and affordable tech specialists. 

As a result, two giant IT hubs are no more available for the tech world, so most companies have to find other options. Qubit Labs will provide alternative countries with even better rates and work proficiency.

IT Talent Shortage 2023: Where to Find Specialists?

However, the IT talent gap growing, and there are plenty of places where you can find efficient and diligent tech professionals to fill the IT talent gap in your company. Looking at Eastern European and Central Asian countries like Ukraine, Poland, Romania, Armenia, Moldova, Bulgaria, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan – you will be surprised by the number of skilled IT professionals. Let us prove it by showing you the significant growth of IT specialists in each country from 2017 and 2023.

All destinations we mentioned are fast-growing IT hubs with tech experts with excellent skills, experience, English proficiency, and affordable rates. People there crave new projects and business opportunities and will be a good fit for your current team due to cultural proximity. Hiring software engineers there will help to avoid the harm of tech talent shortage in the world, and support the local job market.

Final Thoughts

Global tech talent shortage could negatively affect your business and productivity. But, there is still a way to deal with the crisis. If you are looking for diligent IT professionals with high-tech skills and attractive rates – Qubit Labs will be your provider. We hire software engineers in outstanding tech destinations with convenient time zones and attractive rates. Qubit Labs along with other Ukrainian companies work hard to provide our foreign clients with new opportunities and to close the IT talent gap.