According to Venture Monitor, the amount of money being pumped into startups skyrocketed in 2021. Money was easy to get in the previous years. Nowadays companies have to prolong the funding they have from, for example, 6 months to 3 years. Having a business plan and a strategy is of utmost importance for businesses.
In spite of the news we’re seeing about the economy, and the post-Covid effects, the demand for tech and knowledge workers is still present, and there’s still a shortage of talent. Money speaks here too. The average tech salary in 2022 hit the six figure mark for the first time in 17 years, as per a study Tech Salary Report by Dice. However, the companies scaling up will most likely not go on a hiring frenzy.
According to Datapeople’s 2022 tech hiring report, the available labor pool in the tech industry has reduced for 25%. We already see the most demanded programming languages topping the job lists, and AI talent shortage is already a real problem. As more and more global businesses start to embrace emerging technologies in areas such as Web3, the metaverse, the talent shortage is a leading obstacle to digital transformation.
Chasing good and quality human capital might help you to prepare better for what is to come next. It’s about attracting high-quality and niche positions, ones that are not about the short term game. There’s already greater enthusiasm coming out of the pandemic to adopt those next-generation technologies and that will be present after the recession. It’s time to build around that.
What awaits us moving forward is the ability to adapt to new circumstances. The tech sector, like others, is retrenching in the face of an economic downturn. The current slowdown has the tech sector regrouping to identify a clear path forward.
Franklin D. Roosevelt famously said that a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor. As our founder Moritz Drerup would paraphrase it comparing the current economic situation, when the sea is smooth and there is a nice breeze, everyone is steaming along. “At smooth winds, everyone can move at ease. Everyone will go forward, no matter if you are an expert or simply ok. That’s like the tech market in the past years – steady growth, easy money, good mood. Or as sailors say “Champagne Sailing”. But at very low (and very strong winds, too), things are different. You will have to adjust your sails carefully, check your weight trim and constantly look out for the next gust.”