Tech
workers
plan on
quitting
their
jobs at
a time
when
organizations
need
them
most.
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Tech
workers
warned
they
were
going to
quit.
Now, the
problem
is
spiraling
out of
control
By
Owen
Hughes
zdnet.com
Tech
and IT
workers'
resignations
risk
"spiraling
out of
control"
as
chronic
burnout,
limited
career
progression,
and
unrealistic
demands
from
employers
prompt
technology
industry
employees
to jump
ship.
New
research
by
training
platform
TalentLMS
and
Workable,
a
provider
of
recruiting
software,
suggests
that
tech and
IT
workers
are
likely
to be
planning
an exit
soon. In
a survey
of 1,200
tech and
IT
workers
in the
US,
nearly
three-quarters
(72%)
said
they
intended
to quit
within
the next
year.
Data
from the
Bureau
of Labor
Statistics
shows
that the
quit
rate in
the US
hit a
record
high of
4.3
million
in
August
2021,
while
data
from
Bankrate
the same
month
suggests
that
approximately
half of
the US
workforce
plans to
leave
their
job
within
the next
12
months.
Burnout,
stress,
and
feelings
amongst
tech
workers
that
their
efforts
have not
been
recognised
are
commonly
cited
reasons
for
employees
looking
to quit.
A survey
of 600
data
engineers
conducted
by
Wakefield
Research
found
that 97%
reported
feeling
burned
out,
with
many
citing
relentless
demands
from
employers,
repeated
interruptions
and
disruptions
to their
work-life
balance,
ill-defined
projects,
and "a
steady
stream
of
half-baked
requests
from
stakeholders."
So
pervasive
were the
feelings
of
burnout
amongst
data
engineers
that 78%
said
they
wished
their
job came
with a
therapist
to help
them
manage
stress,
while
79% of
those
surveyed
said
they
were
thinking
about
leaving
the
data-engineering
field
altogether.
The
survey
was
commissioned
by data
catalogue
platform
provider
data.world
and
DataOps
company
DataKitchen.
The
researchers
warned
that the
issue of
burnout
amongst
data
professionals
had
become
so
severe
that it
needed
to be
considered
"every
organization's
top
priority"
to keep
them in
the
workforce.
"Data
engineers
work
overtime
to
compensate
for the
gap
between
performance
and
expectations,"
the
researchers
said.
"When a
deliverable
is met,
data
engineers
are
considered
heroes.
However,
'heroism'
is a
trap.
Heroes
give up
work-life
balance.
Yesterday's
heroes
are
quickly
forgotten
when
there is
a new
deliverable
to meet.
The long
hours
eventually
lead to
burnout,
anxiety
and even
depression.
"These
data
engineers
feel
that the
profession
of data
engineering
is
broken.
Can it
be
fixed?"
TalentLMS
and
Workable
also
identified
high
levels
of
burnout
amongst
tech
workers,
reported
by 58%
of
respondents
to the
companies'
survey.
Those
who
suffer
from
burnout
are
twice as
likely
to quit
their
jobs
than
those
who
don't,
the
survey
found,
with 30%
of
respondents
citing
burnout
as their
main
reason
for
considering
a job
change.
However,
limited
career
progression
(41%), a
lack of
flexibility
in
working
hours
(40%),
toxic
work
environments
(39%),
and not
being
valued
or
appreciated
(37%)
were
identified
as the
biggest
push
factors
for tech
and IT
workers
in the
survey
by
TalentLMS
and
Workable.
Employee
development
is an
afterthought
Respondents
also
reported
feeling
like an
afterthought
when it
came to
their
development:
75% said
their
company
was
focusing
more on
attracting
new
employees
than
investing
in
existing
staff.
Keith
MacKenzie,
content
strategy
manager
at
Workable,
said
businesses
needed
to focus
not just
on
improving
their
ability
to
attract
talent,
but
continuing
to
invest
in tech
workers'
development
once
they
were
onboard.
"There's
a huge
path to
get
there:
find and
hire
those
top
prospects,
and
develop
them
when
they're
with
you,"
said
MacKenzie.
"There
is a lot
of
nascent
talent
out
there --
it's
about
finding
them and
working
with
them to
realize
their
fullest
potential
with
you.
That's a
powerful
attractor
-- and
retainer
-- for
your
employee
base in
these
new
times."
Keeping
tech
workers
motivated
and
engaged
presents
another
challenge,
particularly
after
months
of
pandemic
lockdown
restrictions
and
limited
opportunities
for
progression
thanks
to pay
freezes
and
cost-saving
exercises.
Yet
organizations
that do
invest
in
employees'
professional
development
are
likely
to be
far more
successful
at
retaining
staff:
62% of
respondents
to
TalentLMS
and
Workable's
survey
said
additional
training
and
learning
made
them
more
motivated
to work,
as did
flexibility
in
working
hours
and
location
(50%)
and
upskilling/reskilling
opportunities
(45%).
Readily
addressable
issues
A
separate
TalentLMS
survey
of 1,000
remote
workers
in
January
2021
also
found
that
learning
and
development
were "a
driving
force
both for
employee
confidence
and
productivity."
Anthony
Klotz,
associate
professor
at Texas
A&M
University's
Mays
Business
School,
said
while
the
number
of tech
workers
thinking
about
quitting
was
high,
most of
the
reasons
for them
wanting
to leave
were
"readily
addressable."
"Providing
workers
with
more
opportunities
for
development
and
career
advancement,
giving
them
more
flexibility
in how
they
structure
their
workdays,
increasing
salaries,
and
providing
benefits
that
employees
want are
all
quickly
actionable,"
Klotz
said.
"There
is an
opportunity
here for
companies
to talk
to their
employees
about
these
issues
in the
wake of
the
pandemic,
and then
trial or
implement
potential
solutions."
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