2022 Employment Trends: Information Technology

Recovery from the pandemic continues to significantly impact the job market. We’ve asked our Information Technology employment expert to weigh in on the changes they’re currently seeing in the hiring landscape, to help you understand the trends going into the second half of this year. 

Brian Glass, one of our Palmer Group directors, oversees our Information Technology division. He shares some valuable thoughts with us on what he is seeing so far. 

What trends or changes have you seen in your industry so far this year? 

Hiring has remained active for the first half of 2022 and companies are continuing to hire both permanent employees and contract staff to help move their projects forward.  

What types of candidates should hiring managers be looking for?  

Hiring managers should be looking for candidates that are continuous learners. Companies and technology are changing constantly, and candidates who can adapt and learn are key to continued growth. 

What type of certifications/experience is important for job seekers? 

Industry and years of experience in the candidate’s field of expertise are important. It’s not uncommon depending on the job functions, certifications may be required to perform some duties.  

For example, working on manufacturing equipment like CISCO or a Cloud Security Engineer may need certifications in Azure or AWS. 

How can your department help companies with their hiring needs? 

We can help companies by being involved early in the hiring process. Understanding the goals and the strategic projects of the company and understanding the culture of the team will help us put together the ideal candidate profile, so we can screen potential applicants appropriately. 

What types of changes in requests/expectations are you seeing from job seekers? 

Candidates are asking questions about work schedules; Meaning, what are the company policies around hybrid or remote work options. 

Candidates are also asking about the kind of new benefits companies are now offering. These are benefits outside the traditional medical, vacation, and retirement. They want to know about tuition reimbursement (if any), continuous education, and volunteer opportunities. 

Retention is a current issue in the current job market. What are some key strategies you have effectively seen implemented to retain employees? 

My advice is to continue to listen to the needs of the employees and understand that companies cannot satisfy every request or desire. The nature of how people want to do their work has changed.  

Companies and managers need to be mindful of these changes and manage accordingly. Both managers and employees need to be open to feedback and ultimately do what’s best for the company’s overall goals, and that may include more face-to-face time. 

Most valuable advice you can give to companies right now? 

Spend quality time thinking about what skill sets will be critical to your company’s success. What are they today and what will they be in the future? Engage the leaders that will need to execute the top initiatives and make sure the skills and projects align with the company’s vision.  

Finally, once you make a hire companies need to identify the ‘continuous learners’ and invest in them with more training and opportunities to learn other aspects of their jobs. That could be mentoring with other departments, learning new skill sets, or attending industry-specific conferences. 

At Palmer Group, we are committed to making lives better. Whether you’re a job seeker or a hiring manager, we would love the opportunity to speak with you further about any of your employment questions or needs.