What Matters Most to Tech Professionals Today
2023 Tech Sentiment Report
Note from Art: An Overview of 2023 Tech Sentiment
Hello, and welcome to Dice’s 2023 Tech Sentiment Report! With so much changing in the tech industry so quickly, understanding how tech professionals feel about their work, careers and the landscape — and what they want and expect from employers — has never been more important.
For recruiters and HR professionals like you, it’s about so much more than just finding good candidates; you’re judged on the success of the hire. One of the ways to make truly great tech hires is to get as close as possible to an ideal match between company and candidate, not in everything, but in the things that are most important, both for the employee and the employer. Factors like the pandemic, social justice movements and a new generation entering the workforce have forever changed how many of us view work, and understanding how tech professionals have changed their perspectives can make or break your ability to land that truly great tech hire.
As I write this note, the tech industry is in the midst of a complicated recovery. Tech giants that laid off thousands of employees throughout late 2022 and early 2023 are hiring again (for example, Salesforce, which cut 10% of its workforce in January, recently announced it would hire for 3,300 roles, including cloud and engineering). And yet, tech professionals remain upbeat about both the economy and their job prospects, with even more of them planning to change employers within the next year. Many, and especially those with popular skills and experience, now understand that demand for their services has continued to be largely unchanged by the turbulence in the market over the past few years.
That said, it’s not all great news for tech as a profession. The pulling back of the curtain on Big Tech has left many tech professionals wondering where to go from here in terms of attractive places to work. In addition, the emergence of generative AI and similar technologies has others — especially those early in their careers — concerned about whether junior and entry-level development roles will disappear altogether in the years ahead. In many ways, we are at a crossroads in terms of tech careers, with all eyes on how the world will change over the coming years.
Our goal with this report is to give you a comprehensive grasp of how tech professionals are responding to these and other factors, so you can best meet their needs while simultaneously attracting, hiring and retaining the best possible technology talent. We’ve included data and analysis on flexibility and remote work satisfaction, salary transparency expectations, and the importance of employer brand and reputation. You’ll also find average attrition rates, times-to-hire and much more, straight from your recruiter and HR professional peers.
While there’s so much more in the full report, here are a few of this year’s most important tech sentiment data points and employer trends:
Remote work remains very important to tech professionals. What do workers want from their jobs? Seventy-three percent of the tech professionals we surveyed said it is “extremely” or “very” important to have the opportunity to work remotely at least three days a week with their next role or organization. Many companies have abruptly pushed tech workers, along with everyone else, to return to the office, throwing expectations (and schedules) into chaos. Tech professionals, knowing the specialized role they play in organizations, want a more collaborative approach to scheduling remote and hybrid work, and they expect continued flexibility from their employers. Keep that in mind when recruiting tech talent.
of tech professionals said it is “extremely” or “very” important to have the opportunity to work remotely at least three days a week with their next role or organization.
Far more tech professionals are likely to change employers. The biggest surprise in the data was the number of tech professionals who said they’re likely to change employers within the next year. Given the lingering fears over the economy and other factors, we expected the number to be flat or to drop year over year. Instead, 60% of tech professionals said they will likely change employers next year, up from 52% last year. While excellent news for companies wondering how to recruit top tech talent, provided they can offer the compensation and benefits that tech professionals want, this number should be extremely worrisome for organizations attempting to keep their best talent.
of tech professionals said they will likely change employers next year, up from 52% last year.
There’s a sizable gap between tech professionals and employers on salary transparency. Pay transparency is becoming increasingly important to tech professionals. The majority of respondents agreed that a lack of salary transparency negatively impacts their perception of a company and discourages them from applying. Despite this, only 44% of HR professionals we surveyed said all of their job posts disclose pay information. That’s an issue when it comes to attracting tech talent.
The majority of respondents agreed that a lack of salary transparency negatively impacts their perception of a company and discourages them from applying.
of HR professionals said all of their job posts disclose pay information.
Employer brand and company culture continue to impact tech professionals’ decision to join a new employer. Continuing last year’s trends, nearly nine in 10 tech professionals feel that an employer's brand is important when considering a new role, and a majority said they would not apply for a higher-paying role at a company with a bad reputation. Employer brand today risks getting lost in the shuffle of other buzz terms in our world; failing to pay attention to just how important it is to tech professionals could be a very costly mistake.
Nearly nine in 10 tech professionals feel that an employer's brand is important when considering a new role, and a majority said they would not apply for a higher-paying role at a company with a bad reputation.
We hope you find the information and advice in this report useful, and that it can add both inspiration and substance to your retention and hiring strategies in the months and year ahead.
I’ll end by saying that I know it’s been an incredibly hard few years in the world of recruiting. I want you to know that you’re not alone and that everyone here at Dice is behind you, and here for you. We’d like nothing better than to help, so please reach out when you need us.
Art Zeile
CEO, Dice
Table of Contents
Click a topic to explore the data.
Compensation, Work Lives and the Economy
Methodology
Dice conducted two separate surveys to produce the data and insights in the 2023 Tech Sentiment Report.
The Q2 2023 Technology Professionals Sentiment Survey was conducted online via email June 20–July 2, 2023. The survey generated 709 qualified responses from fully employed technology professionals residing in the U.S.
The Q3 2023 Employer Sentiment Survey was conducted July 19–27, 2023, and generated 224 qualified responses from human resources professionals from direct hire organizations that recruit and employ tech talent.
The 2023 Tech Sentiment Report includes historical trend analyses (when available) from the following Dice surveys:
Q4 2022 Salary Survey: Conducted August 16–October 17, 2022. Generated 7,098 responses.
Q3 2022 Technology Professional Sentiment Survey: Conducted July 8–29, 2022. Generated 950 responses.