A new report shows the local information technology industry tripled in size since 2000 — and seen soaring wages, creating a nearly $11 billion economic impact.
Commissioned by local nonprofit Tech Bloc in partnership with Port San Antonio, the report's findings highlight the $10.8 billion economic impact of the IT industry in the city, a 27% increase since 2010. That number has more than tripled in size since 2000.
Tech Bloc CEO, David Heard, said the report examines economic impact across both private and public IT sectors, including the federal and military industries. He added that — though IT workers make up only about 2% of the total workforce — its high average salaries could be an opportunity to raise per capita income levels across Bexar County as tech jobs grow.
"Jobs in our industry have high wages, and the future economy will continue to be driven by tech,” he said.
The report also found the number of local companies in the industry has grown by more than 36% — from just under 1,100 in 2015 to 1,491 in 2020. Private sector companies in the industry pay an average annual salary of $88,017 to IT employees — 60% higher than the average wage of other local industries. In total, these companies have paid $1.8 billion in wages in 2020.
The report notes that the Alamo City's IT industry jobs exist in clusters at five main locales: Port San Antonio; the Westover Hills and Highway 151 area; the Highway 281 North Corridor; near Interstate 10, the Medical Center and USAA; and Windcrest area where Rackspace Technologies is based. Small tech startups were predominantly in Port San Antonio, downtown and midtown, it found.
IT professionals represent more than one-third of San Antonio's tech workforce, with 16,417 IT workers employed by defense, security and other federal entities, according to the report. The top tech sectors identified were cybersecurity, cloud computing, digital retail and commerce, financial technology and services and software as a service.
Although the economic impact has soared, employment has grown at a slower rate. The report's findings indicate this is due to a gradual pivot in the local industry as it shifted from producing products to providing services.
The report's findings are based on workforce and economic data through late 2021 from the Texas Workforce Commission and other entities. The bulk of its underlying research was done by Trinity University Professors Emeriti Richard Butler and Mary Stefl.
