Metro Orlando tech job postings declined for the second straight month in July.
There were 3,507 open tech jobs in the metro last month, down from 4,484 in June, according to a Computing Technology Industry Association analysis of data from Burning Glass Technologies.
Open tech jobs declined in Orlando and across the U.S., though demand in the sector remains high compared to the available talent.
"We're already starting with such a huge deficit of talent, even if you reduce some of those openings, there’s still a healthy number out there," Charlie Lewis, founder and CEO of Orlando-based recruiting firm BlueWave Resource Partners LLC, told Orlando Inno.
Disney, Lockheed seek the most workers
Last month, software developers and engineers were the most-sought tech workers in metro Orlando, as has been the case each month this year. Local companies sought to fill 993 software developer/engineer roles last month, according to the analysis by Computing Technology Industry Association, also known as CompTIA.
That category was followed by computer support specialist (272 postings), cyber/information security engineer or analyst (225) and IT project manager (217).
Despite the drop-off in open jobs, many employers have dozens of open tech positions in metro Orlando.
Here are the companies with the most local tech job postings in July, according to CompTIA:
- Lockheed Martin Corp: 110
- The Walt Disney Co.: 95
- Deloitte: 74
- KPMG: 70
- Universal Orlando Resort: 43
- The Bank of New York Mellon Corp.: 43
Mass layoffs this year rocked big Silicon Valley tech employers like Tesla Inc. and Coinbase Global Inc., but the same large-scale reductions have not been seen in Central Florida's tech sector so far this year. Lewis said the clients of his tech-focused recruiting company are not cutting jobs right now, but enterprise clients are slashing their future budgets. "In calendar year Q4 and going into Q1, the purse strings have tightened up a lot."
Meanwhile, CompTIA Chief Research Officer Tim Herbert said in a prepared statement that tech layoffs are offset by hiring elsewhere. “The data confirms that for every layoff announcement there are other employers stepping in to take advantage of tech talent hiring opportunities.”
Tech companies shift strategies
CompTIA’s analysis of the U.S. of Bureau of Labor Statistics found national postings for tech jobs surpassed 484,000 in July and 3.1 million year-to-date. That’s an increase of 40% over the same period last year.
The 484,000 technology positions posted nationally in the month of July was slightly down from the previous month, but remains at a near-record level, according to CompTIA.
In fact, the industry as a whole gained 12,700 workers for the month, and with an unemployment rate of 1.7% in July, the tech industry continues to grow as others struggle in the face of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
One trend seen in this month’s report was that companies showed more flexibility in who they hire, as there continues to be a wide gap between the number of jobs out there and the people available to fill them.
“More tech companies are starting to look for people other than the traditional candidate or the unicorn candidate, the person who checks every box on their LinkedIn or has a resume that meets all the criteria, because those people are so hard to find,” CompTIA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Steven Ostrowksi told sister publication Chicago Inno. “What companies are doing is easing their requirements, perhaps not requiring a four-year degree and looking at other job experience.”
Ostrowski added that he’s seen a lot of poaching from within the industry as the number of layoffs reported across the tech world have created a funnel for some companies to hire more experienced and qualified candidates.
Chicago Inno Staff Reporter Alex Horn contributed to this report.
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