Majority of Aussie technologists to leave their job within 1 year

Recent layoffs in global tech companies are set to have a knock-on effect on the Australian market, with more tech leaders planning to leave their organisations within one year.

According to Pluralsight’s 2023 State of Upskilling report, 74 per cent of Australian technologists are planning to leave their current organisation within one year, with almost half citing lack of professional growth and learning opportunities as the top reason.

Globally, the technology market is turbulent — particularly at the top end of town. Recently, we saw Microsoft let go of 10,000 employees, Google let go of 12,000 employees, and Amazon let go of 18,000 employees. Not long after, we saw Dell let go of 5 per cent of its global workforce in an attempt to reduce costs.

This is also being experienced in start-ups, with Linktree reportedly letting go of 17 per cent of its workers, Deliveroo leaving the Australian market, and YourGrocer shutting down completely.

The Pluralsight report found 36 per cent of Australian tech team leaders have been asked to cut costs and do more with less, proving the turbulence is not limited to companies with overseas headquarters.

Sixty-two per cent of Australian tech managers reported that workforce reductions in their organisation across software, IT, and data have resulted in their teams taking on more responsibility, while over half (51 per cent) of technologists agree they have had to perform additional responsibilities outside of their primary job function.

Despite this, however, 97 per cent of tech leaders in Australia said they still plan to increase their investment in tech skill development in 2023. A further 87 per cent of learning and development and HR directors said they are prioritising internal talent over hiring for open positions, demonstrating that upskilling existing talent is more cost-effective for the vast majority of businesses than hiring new employees.

“In times of economic uncertainty, upskilling is not just a luxury, but a necessity for operational, organisational, and financial stability,” said Ben Henderson, senior vice-president of tech domains at Pluralsight.

“The impact of rising inflation, talent scarcity, and skills gaps [have] affected every organisation, and the approach they take to upskilling will determine their level of success.”

The report also shed light on the technology skills gap facing organisations in 2023, which was broken up into three core categories:

1. Cyber security
2. Data science
3. The cloud

Sixteen per cent of Australian technologists are completely confident in their cyber security skills, while 14 per cent are not confident at all. Meanwhile, 22 per cent of technologists are completely confident in their data skills, while 2 per cent are not confident at all; and 16 per cent of technologists are completely confident in their cloud skills, while 18 per cent are not confident at all.

Lack of time and budget was cited as the biggest barriers to upskilling over the past two years. For those that do have the time and budget, 21 per cent said they are too busy to undergo upskilling, and 13 per cent said they don’t know where to focus their skills development.