This report is for managers, human resourcing and owners of technology companies, or those responsible for a technology department. The purpose of the report is to highlight ways of retaining technical talent.

1. RETAININGTECH
TALENT
Improving employee retention is a critical business priority in the
technology sector where demand outweighs supply, particularly
since this industry has one of the lowest average tenures when
compared to other industries.

2. RetainingTechTalent
The problem with the technology industry is the sheer lack of available skilled
talent across the board. Industry giants have snatched up a large majority of
the available human capital. This is especially true in the case of emerging
fields like machine learning. Competition for skilled tech talent is high in
today’s employment market. Improving employee retention is a critical
business priority in the technology sector where demand outweighs supply,
particularly since companies in this sector have one of the lowest average
tenures.
According to a recent report by Payscale’s on employee turnover, even tech
giants like Amazon and Google have average employee tenure of only one
year and 1.1 years, respectively.1
This high turnover is often attributed to the
competitive nature of tech talent, where other companies are competing for
the same talent. In order to overcome this problem, it is paramount that
companies focus on trying to retain their current talent.
In a study conducted by the Harris Allied Tech Hiring and Retention Survey,
20% of those in management say their biggest concern is retaining
technology talent. Over a quarter of the respondents (26%) said they lost
employees who sought more exciting opportunities elsewhere.2
1
https://www.payscale.com/data-packages/employee-loyalty/least-loyal-employees
2
http://www.harrisallied.com/Harris_2017_Tech_Hiring_Survey.pdf
of technology professionals are
expecting to change employers in the
next year
75%

3. Herb Gosewisch (partner at US Alliance Partners, a consultancy which
focuses on employee engagement and sustainability practices) says, “All the
recent studies suggest that new employees determine within the first few
months of employment whether or not they have made a good decision.”3
In a
2017 survey conducted by UK Tech News, 42% of tech professionals say they
are actively seeking a new job and 75% are expecting to change employers
in the next year. This shows a real need for more effort from employers to
retain their talent.
3
https://www.nextgenges.com/employee-retention-dice-interview/
59%of technology professionals
believe they are underpaid

4. IT Budgets
A recent study released by Spiceworks (a social network for IT professionals),
suggests that companies reluctant to increase IT budgets and keep pace with
technological change are likely to face inevitable personnel losses. Of the 476
participants, 37% said they plan to begin searching for a new employer
this year, while 26% are currently ready to accept a new position. Many IT
professionals believe that the prospects for career advancement at their
current place of employment are slim with only 12% anticipating a
promotion this year. Of those surveyed, 59% believe that they're
underpaid, and fewer than a quarter expect a salary increase greater than
5%.4
Whilst many organisations are anticipating revenue growth, IT budgets,
are likely to remain the same for the most part and this is likely to negatively
affect staff retention.
PersonalDevelopment
Gosewisch states, “Developers have more loyalty to their career and personal
development than the company that employs them”2
. In a 2016 Survey
conducted by Stack Overflow, 70% of developers stated that learning new
skills was a priority5
. However, a survey from Barclays found that the
average business spends just £109 per employee per year on digital skills
training.6
By implementing an effective learning program you can empower employees
to progress in both their skills and their career. Doing so can also allow you to
build yourself the ideal technical team. Creating a ‘promote-from-within’
culture supports career opportunities for your team which can lead to better
retention and higher engagement. Developing and promoting from within will
also save you both the time and money associated with hiring whilst creating a
happier and more loyal team.
4
https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/9717-high-it-turnover-how-to-retain-your-tech-talent.html
5
https://insights.stackoverflow.com/survey/2016
6
http://www.businesscloud.co.uk/news/brits-feel-lack-of-digital-skills-hold-firms-back

5. Creating competitive candidates who are eligible for promotion makes it much
easier to fill the technology and engineering positions that are notoriously
difficult to fill. Ashish Gupta, president, global services UK corporate and
former CIO of BT notes “Hiring and retaining talent is an industry-wide
problem. Colleagues and CIOs I speak to try to hire people with the right
logical and technical aptitude, and then run a series of training programmes to
develop those skills further”7
. Focus on how you can make your employees
feel like the work they do each day is valued by investing in them and their
potential. Seek out opportunities for your developers that allow them to stay
up-to-date on emerging technologies and coding languages through mediums
such as online courses or webinars. Give your technical team a separate
development budget which will enable them to pursue enrichment
opportunities like these.
Employees who do not believe that they can achieve their career goals
with their current employer are 12 times more likely to consider leaving,
this number jumps to around 30 times more likely for new employees8
.
Regularly discuss career goals with employees and create a clear career
development path in order to improve retention. Give clear and constructive
feedback during meetings and have one-to-one conversations often. When
planning work, it is important to ask employees to identify how they can
contribute as well as what they would like to learn. Tom Silver, senior vice
president of North America for Dice Holdings suggests, “Make sure that the
projects [employees] are working on allow them to continue to develop their
skill set.”
7
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connect/better-business/hiring-the-best-tech-talent/
8
https://business.linkedin.com/content/dam/me/learning/en-us/pdfs/lil-guide-attract-retain-top-tech-
talent.pdf
70%
of developers listed learning
new technologies as a priority

6. Purpose
Employees will be more committed to
their employer if they can understand
their purpose and contribution. By
regularly assessing your employees’
motivation for their work you will gain
valuable insight into their level of
engagement. This in turn will allow
you to make strategic adjustments
and can also serve as an early
warning system. Gosewisch notes, “Regular assessment gives you the
opportunity to identify the people who are thinking about leaving or who are
dissatisfied”9
. Technology professionals tend to stay longer and find more
satisfaction when they feel they can ‘own’ and influence their work. According
to State of the American Workplace, an annual report from Gallup, only 30%
of workers in the USA are engaged in their work. Passionate work
provides happiness and drive. If they believe that their work is meaningful,
they’ll be more likely to stick with it. Articulate clear purposes for you team,
inspire employees with a vision and set challenging goals. When surveyed, 6
in 10 millennials have cited a “sense of purpose” as the reason they
chose to work for their current employer.
9
https://insights.dice.com/report/smart-retention-strategies/

7. Management
Good managers are critical in the world of technology. Managers play a huge
role in the day-to-day morale and the career progression of an employee.
Proficient managers will be talent magnets. They will drive performance and
retention and will play a key role in achieving business goals. Contrarily, poor
management can cost businesses huge sums of money. As a result,
managers who are fully committed to employee development and care should
be rewarded for their efforts. To ensure that managers stay committed, their
performance should be measured on how they support the development of
employees. This should be an area of focus in reviews and should be tracked.
Career conversations should be taking place regularly. Employees could be
surveyed on their satisfaction with their managers in term of career
conversations.
When surveyed, 50% of employees who don’t feel valued by their boss
plan to look for another job within
the next year and 3 in 4 employees
say that dealing with their boss is
both the worst and most stressful
part of their job.10
A large
proportion of those entering the tech
industry are millennial and their
need for appreciation has less to do with their lack of self-confidence, but
rather their desire to have the value they bring to the table recognized by their
employer. This difference is often misunderstood, but once it is recognized
and appreciated, motivating the millennial generation by nourishing their self-
worth and contributions can be extremely powerful.
Acknowledge their contributions and recognize them for their work and overall
value they bring to the team and the organization. Every individual on your
team prefers to be recognized in different ways; some may appreciate a
personal thank-you note for the completion of a successful, long-term project,
while others may appreciate being nominated for an industry award etc. One
of the top reasons for leaving a position is often cited as having a poor
relationship with their direct manager so “making a profit at the expense of the
planet, the community or your people does not cut it anymore” 11
.
10
https://business.linkedin.com/content/dam/me/learning/en-us/pdfs/lil-guide-attract-retain-top-tech-
talent.pdf
11
https://insights.dice.com/report/smart-retention-strategies/

8. HR Department
Having a HR department that is effective and dependable creates a trust
between the employee and employer. They trust that any issues they have or
any assistance needed by either side will be addressed effectively. Creating a
safe space, with informed professionals, for your tech talent to go to with
problems or questions proves to your employees that you take their
satisfaction levels seriously and that you care about their workplace
experience. This safe space will empower employees and push them to
continue moving forward and progressing in their careers. It also shows that
you are committed to providing a place that enables them to do their best work
and feel empowered to be themselves while focusing on what matters most:
their work.
Culture
Developing an inclusive,
empathy-driven culture
is a great way to boost
employee retention
rates. Studies have
shown that employees
will stay longer at a
company where they
consider one or more
colleagues as a ‘friend’.
As they spend more and
more time at work, this
is a cultural must.
Engaging new
employees with the
company culture and business infrastructure from the beginning will
improve employees’ experiences and the likelihood of them staying.
Create a culture which values the advancement of employees. Build
a community for your employees, the culture should be supportive
but should value challenge and even a little competition. Fintech
companies are often successful because they offer a relaxed
company culture, the opportunity to innovate, on the job training and
learning, flexible work conditions and the opportunity for career
development. As well as career development and learning

9. opportunities, 96% of tech professionals thrive in the “right” work
environment.12
Millennials (who make up 53.5% of the workforce) tend to prefer an
innovative workplace. They like flexible schedules, the option to work
from home and a culture which reflects the fact that they have
outside lives. The survey conducted by Harris Allied also found that
being able to attract candidates with the unique culture their
organizations provide was a top consideration of the respondents.
They also found that it was important to provide employees with
interesting projects (52.6%), to be a leading innovative company
(54.8%) and to provide a creative environment (63.4%).13
12
https://uk.dice.com/technews/blogs/tech-office-future/
13
http://www.harrisallied.com/Harris_2017_Tech_Hiring_Survey.pdf

10. To Conclude
Retaining technology talent is about so much more than salary packages and
financial incentives. With people spending more and more time at work, the
day-to-day experience of your employees has a far greater impact on
employee retention.
If employees feel comfortable and happy in their work environment and enjoy
the company of those they work closely with, they are far more likely to stay
with their current employer. The happiness and compatibility of your team
should be high on a list of priorities when planning projects etc. In order to
retain your talent, you must regularly assess the morale of your team and
actively make changes to improve it. When team members feel valued and
appreciated they will be happier and more productive whilst also improving
rates of retention.
Making these small changes will have a huge impact on the way employees
feel about their employer and workplace and will improve the chances of them
staying in a business for longer.