Despite 2024 being a challenging year for many tech professionals, marked by layoffs and fewer job opportunities, a new report from Dice indicates that the situation could be worse.

In a survey of 520 fully employed U.S. tech professionals, 80% maintain a positive outlook for the tech sector in the next five years. The more immediate picture acknowledged that “layoffs have been particularly severe this year,” with 60% more tech professionals losing jobs in 2024 than in 2023.

Additionally, the report found “a notable decrease in the proportion of full-time employees within the tech sector.” In last year’s survey, nearly half of respondents (48%) were employed full-time. This year, that figure has dropped to 38%, which points to a troubling trend of reduced job stability, according to the report.

The proportion of respondents who are unemployed but actively seeking work has risen sharply, from 34% in 2023 to 40% in 2024.

Despite the turbulent times, the survey’s more surprising findings are that “compared to last year, a significantly larger number of tech professionals currently employed full-time are actively seeking new roles and are more likely to change employers in the coming year,’’ Dice CEO Art Zeile told TechRepublic. “This is happening despite their decreased confidence in finding a favorable position within the tech industry.”

Views on tech growth in the current economy

The report noted mixed sentiments on the future of tech growth.

Nearly one-third of tech professionals (31%) remain cautiously optimistic about economic conditions over the next year, unchanged year-over-year. However, an almost equal percentage of tech professionals harbor pessimistic views, indicating a split in economic sentiment across the industry. Just 20% of younger professionals between the ages of 18 and 34 have an optimistic view of the economy, the lowest among those surveyed.

Tech professionals who hold a more optimistic view attributed their positive outlook to:

• A strong belief in technological progress.
• Confidence in their capabilities.
• The presence of favorable economic indicators.

“In an election year, it is not surprising to see that this optimism is often tempered by an awareness of potential challenges, including economic and political shifts that could influence what the next year brings,’’ the Dice report stated.

The more pessimistic tech professionals expressed concerns about economic policy, job market volatility, inflation, and political instability.

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Areas of focus: AI surging, cloud technology declining

The survey also found an emphasis on AI and machine learning skills, which “aligns with tech professionals’ expectations that AI/ML will be the most rapidly growing field over the next five years.” Already, 76% of HR professionals reported that their firms already offer the opportunity to be trained or upskill in AI or ML skills.

Despite the heavy focus on generative AI, “fewer tech professionals seem to have adopted the technology into their workflow than expected, with just 30% using GenAI at least once a week,’’ Zeile noted.

The focus on cloud technologies has “declined significantly this year,’’ to 46%, according to the report. This may be due to the maturity of cloud technologies in recent years, driving the skillset to be more generalized and leading fewer professionals to invest in upskilling in this area.

Other areas that tech professionals said they were training/upskilling in anticipation of future growth are cybersecurity (46%), big data (43%), Internet of Things (22%), and robotics (15%).

What tech professionals want in their next role

Nearly all job seeker respondents (94%) are targeting full-time positions. Motivations for considering a job move include:

• Higher compensation (65%).
• Greater responsibility (42%).
• Improved benefits (36%).

“These factors highlight a workforce that is not only financially motivated but also seeking career growth and stability,’’ the Dice report said.

Dissatisfaction with their overall career, job, and management are the factors propelling tech professionals to switch jobs. This dissatisfaction is also compounded by a higher rate of burnout, which is 3.3 times more common among those planning to switch employers, according to the report.

The leading cause of burnout cited by these professionals is a “toxic work environment,” reported by 28% of those likely to switch — followed by unfair pay, which was mentioned by 21% of the tech professionals in this group.

Most tech professionals can find roles in industries outside of tech that still leverage their specialized tech skills. However, working within tech is the clear preference among surveyed participants. Nearly seven in 10 tech professionals would most like to work for a tech company, and 21% prefer to work for big tech companies specifically.

While tech layoffs and a decline in certain roles have defined much of 2024, Zeile pointed out that “certain tech subindustries such as cybersecurity are … facing an acute shortage of workers with very specific abilities.” He cited the 2024 ISC2 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, which found there are 4.8 million tech professionals needed worldwide to fill open cybersecurity roles.

Zeile remains optimistic about the future for tech professionals, saying “new technologies, such as AI, are already changing the landscape — bringing more new types of jobs and certainly more needed skills to the market than they are taking them away.”

He added, “While today’s hiring landscape may seem tumultuous, if there’s one thing history and data consistently show, it’s that hiring trends are cyclical. Signs are pointing to tech hiring picking up compared to last year. Tech professionals and applications must stay optimistic and continue their focus on building their career for the long-term.”