Orlando is No. 1 in Florida for tech talent.
Orlando is the 29th-best North American metro for tech talent and the highest-ranked market in the Sunshine State, according to CBRE Group Inc.’s 2022 Scoring Tech Talent Report released this month.
Orlando climbed three spots from its 32nd-place rank in last year’s report; only four metros moved up more from last year’s rankings.
The new data from commercial real estate company CBRE (NYSE: CBRE) shows the quality and size of metro Orlando’s tech workforce got a boost in the past year.
That’s important because it means Central Florida is growing its high-tech workforce, which means more high-wage jobs and associated economic output. It also bodes well for Orlando’s ability to attract more businesses and talent to the area.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the report.
Job growth
There are 42,860 people who work in metro Orlando tech occupations, the report found. That number has grown 17% since 2016, and Orlando’s growth rate ranks No. 7 among the report’s 19 “small” markets with a tech workforce smaller than 50,000 people.
‘Brain drain’ continues
Although the local workforce has grown, Orlando still deals with the effects of “brain drain” — the loss of educated workers from one region to another. Similar to last year, the report found metro Orlando in the last five years produced 7,269 more tech graduates than new tech jobs. Only 13 of the 50 metros in the report boasted more new tech jobs than tech graduates, and Jacksonville was the only one in Florida.
Paycheck bump
After years of a competitive labor market, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Central Florida tech workers are seeing bigger paychecks. CBRE found the average annual wage for tech occupations is $90,378, up 11.4% in the last five years. That’s much more than the average annual wage among non-tech occupations: $49,859.
Here’s a closer look at average compensation among specific types of tech occupations:
- Software developers and programmers: $97,114, up 7.9% from 2016
- Computer support, database and systems: $92,096, up 30.6% from 2016
- Computer and information systems managers: $149,880, up 6.2% from 2016
- Technology engineering: $74,945, up 2% from 2016
First place in the Sunshine State
Orlando ranked higher than the other three Florida metros in the report: Miami/South Florida (No. 33), Tampa (No. 34) and Jacksonville (No. 46).
Here’s how all metros stack up:
An inexpensive place to do business
Despite the improvements in Orlando’s tech talent rankings, it’s in the middle of the pack, leaning toward one of the less-expensive markets where a tech company can operate.
Based on average office rents and typical wages for tech workers, managers and non-tech support staff, CBRE ranked Orlando 27th out of 50 metros, costing $42.9 million to run a 500-employee business for one year.
That’s cheaper than the costs of top tech markets like San Francisco ($69.2 million), New York ($60.5 million), Boston ($54.2 million) and Austin ($48 million).
South Florida is the most expensive in the state with an annual cost of $43.2 million. Tampa is roughly the same as Orlando at $42.9 million, and Jacksonville is the cheapest at $41.2 million.
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