Tech hiring at 10-year high
Author: EIS Release Date: Jun 23, 2022
UK tech job opportunities hit a 10-year high with around 870,000 tech and digital job vacancies between January to May 2022, according to data from the job search engine Adzuna analysed by Tech Nation for the UK’s Digital Economy Council.
Tech roles now make up 14% of all job opportunities in the UK, up from 11% in 2019, while hiring continues to remain 42% higher than in 2021.
UK tech companies raised £12.4 billion in VC funding this year to date, more than the whole of 2020 (£12bn).
Cities including London, Bristol and Oxford ranked in the top 20 European tech hubs for funding this year, reflecting the increased role of tech in our everyday lives.
Roles for software developers continue to remain the most in-demand by companies, while there has also been a strong uptick in hiring for security roles.
The key to success is upskilling. For every “no experience” tech and digital role advertised, there are approximately eight senior roles available, despite the fact there are more STEM graduates in the UK than there are entry-level roles in the industry.
This demonstrates that on-the-job training and upskilling are essential to ensure businesses have the digital skills they need to succeed.
According to a survey carried out by Tech Nation and YouGov, 64% of people who work in UK tech said that having tech skills was essential for job security.
As well, 26% believe that upskilling themselves in new digital or tech skills will allow them to earn more in the future.
Of the 16% of respondents who picked up a new tech skill since the pandemic, people have chosen to learn coding or cloud technologies, whilst others have learned data visualisation skills.
Employees choosing to upskill themselves is only one part of the equation. Companies that focus on on-the-job training for future developers and tech leaders such as London-based Multiverse and Manchester-founded Academy are continuing to grow to help increase the talent pipeline.
Tech companies including Amazon and Google have also launched digital skills programmes to train employees across the UK.
There are nearly 5 million people working in UK tech startups and scaleups, with regions across the UK enjoying strong hiring growth for tech and digital positions.
The North West has more tech opportunities than any other region in the UK outside of London and the South East, with over 40,000 available jobs this year – an increase of 50% on last year’s figures.
The devolved nations have been enjoying increased interest in their respective tech industries recently. Northern Ireland has seen its tech job opportunities increase to nearly 20% of all available vacancies, to 5,079 in Q1 2022, whilst Scotland has seen its tech vacancies rise to 13% of all available vacancies so far in 2022.