Recent Big Tech Layoffs Present a Recruitment Opportunity for IT Departments, Says Info-Tech Research Group

After three years of record-low IT unemployment, IT leaders would do well to take advantage of these layoffs to fill their talent gaps, the firm advises.

TORONTO, April 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - While Big Tech layoffs have been making the news, many of these have been a correction to over-hiring, with most employees laid off finding work shortly after. In the current climate, IT leaders need to determine whether they will wait and see the impact of the recession on budgets and candidate expectations or dive in sooner and secure highly sought-after and suddenly available talent to execute on strategic needs. To aid IT leaders in developing the simple tactics needed to recruit the right talent in times of economic uncertainty, global IT research and advisory firm Info-Tech Research Group has published its new resource, Take Advantage of Big Tech Layoffs.

The newly available research explains that while IT unemployment remains low today, it's common to see overall unemployment numbers drop right before a recession. If that is the case, then there will be more talent entering the market, possibly at more competitive salaries. Organizations that wait to hire will risk not having the staff they need to execute on their strategy and may find themselves in a hiring freeze. 

"With tens of thousands of layoffs from Big Tech employers, the window for organizations to hire talent is opening after three years of record low unemployment rates with IT," says Carlene McCubbin, Research Practice Lead at Info-Tech Research Group. "While some recent layoffs have been openly connected to the economic slowdown, others may be a correction for over-hiring during the pandemic. It is worth noting that the workforce reductions were not limited to IT employees, as other business areas, such as sales, marketing, and operations, also experienced cuts."

The Info-Tech resource explains the three key drivers for Big Tech layoffs. The first is economic uncertainty. Globally, there have been increases in interest rates and inflation, as well as reduced investment budgets, and economists are predicting an economic slowdown, though no consistent prediction of the impact exists.

High growth and demand for digital technologies and services during the early pandemic led to the second driver: over-hiring in the tech industry. Many organizations overestimated the future demand and have had to rebalance staffing as a result.

New automation investments are the third driver. Many tech organizations that have conducted layoffs are still in a growth mindset, which has been demonstrated through new tech investments in products like chatbots and robotic process automation to semi-automate processes to reduce the need for certain roles.

"The big gamble many CIOs face is whether to strike now to secure talent or to wait to better understand the impact of the recession," explains McCubbin. "While the majority of IT professionals are still expecting their budgets to increase in 2023, CIOs must account for the impact of inflation and the recession on their IT budgets and staffing decisions."

Info-Tech recommends that organizations focus their layoff recruitment strategy on critical and strategic roles rather than operational backfills. Positions related to security, cloud migration, data and analytics, and digital transformation are more likely to be shielded from budget cuts and are logical areas to focus on.

Additionally, the talent scarcity in the IT market is focused on areas with specialized skill sets, such as security and architecture, which are dynamic and evolving faster than others. To attract and recruit talent in these areas, the firm advises that it is critical to have a focused and targeted recruitment strategy. This is why the recent tech layoffs present a unique opportunity to secure highly skilled talent in these areas.

The new resource outlines the following four quick tactics for organizations to take advantage of Big Tech layoffs:

1. Requisition – Prepare organizations and job ads for recruitment.
2. Source – Actively track and scan for layoff activity.
3. Screen – Prioritize and screen candidates using salary benchmarks and keywords. Then interview and assess.
4. Offer – Eliminate all unnecessary hiring process steps or background checks, and only conduct if needed.

Info-Tech's resource further explains that an employee value proposition (EVP) is a crucial tool for attracting and retaining talent. Any updates to an EVP must genuinely reflect the employee experience at the organization and should resonate internally and externally.

To learn more about the IT talent market and the tactics to strategically fill hiring needs, download the complete Take Advantage of Big Tech Layoffs resource.

For more information about Info-Tech Research Group or to access the latest research, visit infotech.com and connect via LinkedIn and Twitter.

Info-Tech Research Group is one of the world's leading information technology research and advisory firms, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals. The company produces unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. For 25 years, Info-Tech has partnered closely with IT teams to provide them with everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

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SOURCE Info-Tech Research Group