Report Concludes Demand For Tech Talent Far Exceeds Supply In Washington State
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
A report generated by the Washington Technology Industry Association has demonstrated that there is a far greater demand for technology talent in Washington than the state can meet.
The “Information and Communication Technology Economic and Fiscal Impact Study” found that for every “code ninja” (application software developers, computer systems programmers, computer engineers, network architects, or computer science researchers) hired in Washington state, an additional seven jobs are created associated with that information and communication technology (ICT) worker. (When one of those roles is added to a company, it creates another 1.7 jobs within their own company and another 2.7 jobs across the wider economy for a multiplier effect of 7 jobs.)
The report also broke the ICT marketplace into three major “buckets”: tech services, tech manufacturing, and software. The largest bucket, tech services, comprises more than 50 percent of the companies in the WTIA database. In total, the study determined that there were 238,900 ICT in the state, including 162,900 who were working directly for technology-oriented companies.
Washington State also exports a great deal of technology. The WTIA website asserts, “Washington ICT companies export $16.4 billion making it the third highest exporting state (after California and Texas) and growing at more than 10 percent — much faster than its larger rivals. No other state matches Washington’s combination of ICT export growth and absolute ICT export value.”
The tech sector as defined in the study paid out $22 billion in wages in 2013, with median wages in the core technical fields of $100,000 to $140,000. And while that is great news for some, the study also found that many of these jobs are not being filled by Washington residents.
CEO Michael Schutzler told the Bellevue Reporter, “In ballpark terms, 90 percent of jobs we create are filled by people from someplace else," he said. "Our ability to create the jobs has dramatically outstripped our ability to produce the talent."
The shortage of tech talent isn’t limited to Washington State late last year the Technology Councils of North America (TECNA) reported the results of a survey that show technology companies across the country intend to hire new staff this year, but may have to delay plans due to a shortage of skilled applicants. Concerns over this shortage also made the survey respondents’ list over factors that could inhibit growth.