Trends of Job Satisfaction in the Tech Industry

People working in the tech industry have seen many changes in the last few years. As artificial intelligence (AI) usage increases, tasks such as data analysis become more intuitive and require less time. Although roles are shifting, there is still a need for tech experts — the industry is poised for growth in the next decade.

With such rapid growth, workers can choose where to devote their time and resources. Companies may have to compete more heavily than ever before to retain top talent. What are some ways to improve job satisfaction so they’re motivated to stay?

1. Offer Career Development

An analysis of employees found moods deteriorated by 10% since the pandemic hit. Some of the reasons for the negativity include the sector’s volatility and threat of possible layoffs. 

Tech workers worry they’ll lose their jobs to AI, or ventures will fail to thrive and thrust them back into the job market. Pouring endless hours into creating products for their employer only to be let go when things get a little hard makes for dissatisfied staff.

One thing brands can do is offer career development. Tech workers with more skills benefit a business with what they bring to the table. Also, the employee will feel they have marketable knowledge should they need to seek another position due to layoffs.

2. Know Market Rates

One reason workers grow dissatisfied is lack of raises to keep up with cost of living. As they grow their knowledge and experience, they expect pay increases to match. Enterprises can keep talent by knowing the going market rate based on years of experience and offering more money frequently. If the employee makes the same as they can by going to a new firm, they’re much more likely to stay if everything else is kosher.

Utilize sites such as Salary.com to see what competitors pay for similar positions in the area. Wages vary from city to city, but leadership also must now compete with possible remote positions that pay more.

3. Reward and Recognize

Tech workers frequently do things behind the scenes without accolades. For example, the IT expert gets the new worker’s computer up and running, ensures they understand security measures, and creates accounts and passwords. They also watch for outside attacks and internal inconsistencies.

Make it a point to reward the people who make the company tick. Employee of the Month programs or other physical representations of achievement have been shown to make employees feel recognized. Utilize daily scrum meetings to shout out those who are putting in extra effort, achieving goals or consistently doing their jobs excellently.

4. Empower Their Decisions

People tend to be more satisfied in their jobs when they have creative freedom to tackle problems, but some leadership insists on micromanaging every aspect of the worker’s day. They might put tracking software on their computers, stand over their shoulder to see what they’re doing or install cameras.

A lack of trust from the higher-ups leads to teams who feel nervous about their every move. Create a company culture where employees feel they can make most decisions on their own because they know how to do their job best. The business hired them for a reason, so let them take charge of anything up their alley.

5. Improve Company Loyalty

PwC’s 2023 Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey found 64% of tech workers felt fulfilled with their work. However, they were also more likely than other workers to ask for a raise this year or take a position with another company to achieve a promotion.

Researchers felt workers in the tech sector were tied to the work they did rather than the organization paying for the work. The problem may come from the 150,000 tech workers laid off in 2023. Skilled people know their knowledge is in demand and can find another position if a business isn’t also loyal to them.

This may lead to lack of loyalty to any single employer, so create an environment with a sense of belonging. Offer regular team-building retreats, take people to lunch and get to know them one-on-one, and provide solutions when they face a personal hurdle that interferes with work. When employers do life with their employees, everyone benefits and the brand becomes more like a big extended family. 

6. Implement Flexibility

Since the pandemic, more companies are offering work-from-home options. Remote work is attractive to many and may help them feel more satisfied in their role. Imagine juggling a day like this:

• Wake everyone up and feed them breakfast.
• Get the kids on the bus to school.
• Get ready for the day.
• Commute for 45 minutes to work in rush hour traffic.
• Arrive at work and realize they forgot to eat breakfast and are starving until lunch.
• Put out 15 fires and emergencies with tech issues.
• Study for the new certification test coming up.
• Stay late to deal with an emergency hacking situation.
• No one talked to you today unless they wanted something.
• Rush to the school to grab the kids from aftercare, again in rush-hour traffic.
• Collapse.

It’s easy to see why workers want to have the option to work remotely at least some of the time. Cutting out 45 minutes of commute time takes a bit of the stress off.

While not all work has a home-based component, many things do. Enterprises would be wise to at least offer a hybrid approach, where tech employees can work from home a few days a week and in the office the other days.

Will the Changes Help Companies Keep Tech Workers?

Changing the way a company conducts business and treats its staff can increase job satisfaction in all industries. A happy worker has no reason to look for a different position — they’ll be more likely to give the work their all, leading to higher productivity and innovations. If leadership does one thing to turn around employee attitudes, it should be to create a culture where everyone feels heard and valued. It takes only a little effort but leads to lower churn and big returns.