Protocol and Pluralsight: Key Takeaways in Recruiting and Retaining Talent

• Attrition in the industry is over 13% in the tech industry 

• Attracting and retaining top talent is now the number one priority for organizations everywhere

• 72% of IT workers are planning on quitting their jobs this year

• The number of developers applying for open positions has decreased by 18%

• 95% cite career development as the primary reason for shifting jobs

Organizations everywhere are in an unprecedented bidding war for top tech talent. 

In this new normal, organizations are offering new perks, bonuses, flexible working, and even four-day workweeks---All part of a bid to attract and retain talent. 

But are these offerings enough? 

Last week, Pluralsight CEO, Aaron Skonnard, sat down with the president of Protocol, Bennett Richardson, to discuss the challenges of recruiting and retaining top tech talent in "The New Normal." 

Bennett Richardson: What have you observed as the most powerful factors driving tech employees to stay with or to join an organization?

Aaron Skonnard: First, I would say this is the craziest labor market I’ve ever seen in the last 30 years of my career and the last 20 years running Pluralsight. "The Great Resignation," or whatever you want to call it, is a massive, massive challenge, and we talk to customers about it every day.

Attrition in the IT industry is at 13%--- highest of all industries. And it’s not uncommon for me to talk to companies who have seen as much as 20-30% attrition levels in the last year. And when we survey those customers to try and understand what’s behind it, the thing we are now seeing with our customers is that attracting and retaining qualified talent is now job number one in their organizations. 

The board room and CEO priority are just as important now as revenue and cyber security threats, and you have to take it seriously. And the trends aren’t really changing. 

It’s not over. 

The tech skills gaps are only getting bigger. Recent IEEE Report shows that as much as 72% of today’s IT workers plan to quit their jobs this year. The number of developers applying for open positions has decreased by 18% over the last few years. 

And, Why are they leaving? 

Well, 95% cite career development as the primary reason for shifting jobs. Compensation is tied to career development, but it isn’t enough.

So how do we tackle it?

The Post pandemic phase is not ending---This is the new normal. We’re already in it. Companies have to embrace it and adapt. They have to evolve their talent strategies. One way they can do this is to shift from being consumers of talent to becoming creators of talent. 

It’s a shift in philosophy and organizational culture; This means you focus on developing talent and not just hiring talent. And one practical way companies can do this is by creating internal developer academies, cloud academies, or cybersecurity academies, for example, to reskill team members who want to be a part of the tech future. When you do this, team members become much more engaged. It drives morale boosts across the company, and if your team members are engaged and have opportunities to learn and grow, it will address this issue head-on.

Want to learn more? Check out the interview in its entirety here