Study: Romania 2nd in Europe by number of IT specialists, employees expect 2024 to bring changes to the industry

The number of IT specialists employed in Romania has been growing constantly in recent years, being one of the sectors with the highest salaries but also with a high degree of labor force mobility. The recent "What it's like to work in IT in 2024" study by bestjobs and Orion Innovation outlines the profile of the local IT employee and the professional challenges of this sector.

According to the study, 3 out of 5 IT&C employees expect 2024 to bring significant changes to the IT industry. However, 47% of the survey respondents believe it is more difficult to make a professional change during this period.

Salary (30%), development and growth opportunities (20%), work flexibility (15%), and benefits package (13%) are the most important criteria that IT professionals take into account when accepting a job offer.

According to Eurostat data, there were 240,800 IT&C employees in Romania in August 2023, 82% of them under 34 years old. Thus, Romania ranks 2nd in Europe by the number of IT specialists and 5th place among EU countries in terms of the percentage of women with IT&C education who work as IT specialists (29.9%).

IT employees prefer to work remotely (89%) at least a few days a week, but currently, the way of working is divided between remote (38%), hybrid (28%), and from the office (36%).

"IT employees have been familiar with remote working long before the entire market adopted it, due to the specificity of the activity in this field. This has led teams to develop communication tools and methods that transcend physical distance to create cohesive teams where there is diversity and inclusion. So, in 2024, we have a mature, dynamic IT market, which leads at the European level both in terms of talent and representativeness among women," said Ana Vișian, Marketing Manager at bestjobs.

According to the same study, IT employees consider both the salary and fringe benefits when deciding whether or not to stay in their current job, with 55% of respondents expecting a minimum 10% salary increase this year.

The average net salary for a junior IT specialist (0-2 years of experience) starts from EUR 800 net and can top EUR 3,000 net for a senior IT specialist. In addition, benefits include flexible working hours, meal vouchers, access to private medical services, medical insurance, specialization courses, and personal development.

In addition to these, IT employees want to receive a 13th salary, performance bonuses, support in professional certifications, private pensions, or company shares.

The survey was conducted in November and December 2023 on a sample of 840 IT employees in Romania.

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