| April 2006 |
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| Dice job postings in Boston are up 23% |
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Although software and IT firms throughout New England enjoyed a solid first quarter of growth in 2006, it was Massachusetts’ state-wide focus on developing its tech sector that led the way.
In fact, the Boson-area technology companies did so well in the first quarter they outpaced traditionally stronger biotech firms in the region.
And that’s good news for IT job seekers looking to bounce into Boston’s already strong labor market.
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According to a survey by the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council, technology services are an increasingly important part of businesses in the Bay State, with growing numbers of companies “wrapping services around their technology products.”
Nearly 50 percent of the 2,655 respondents said they now offer both a product and a service, up from 40 percent reported in last year’s survey.
“The state’s software industry has grown threefold since the first Mass Software Council survey in 1989, and the trends identified this year are evidence of some of the changes that have driven this growth,” Mass Technology Leadership Council President Joyce L. Plotkin, said.
A solid state economy and highly educated workforce, combined with the allure of one of the nation’s great cultural centers, has made Boston one of the most sought- after job destinations in the country.
Now, like many other metro regions in the United States, the problem is no longer a scarcity of jobs but rather a shortage of qualified candidates available to fill growing staffing needs.
U.S. employers added an unexpectedly strong 211,000 jobs in March 2006, while the unemployment rate in Boston dipped below 5%, according to a report from the Federal Reserve.
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| The average tech salary in the Boston area ranked second among major metro markets |
| - Dice.com 2005 Salary Survey |
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“We’ve seen an increased demand for IT employment all over the country but in the Boston area it seems especially acute,” said Scot Melland, CEO of Dice, the leading technology career site. “Many of the hiring companies and recruiting agencies who use Dice observe a tightening labor market, and salaries are starting to trend higher as a result.”
As big tech players in the area, such as the Marlboro-based 3Com Corp., continue to ride the growing economy the job market will likely continue to flourish.
In fact, technology job listings on Dice for the Boston area increased 23 percent during a recent three-month period, from 2,379 in December to 2,922 in March.
This year alone should see the creation of 217,000 new tech jobs in the United States, according to Virendra Singh, a senior economist at Moody’s Economy.com. That would make 2006 the best year the industry has seen since it flattened toward the end of 2000.
Singh also expects the job-growth trend to remain steady through at least 2010, with an additional 126,000 tech jobs created in 2007 and 123,000 more in 2008.
And it is not just jobs on the rise, wages are also trending upward.
The average tech salary in the Boston area ranked second among major metro markets, behind only San Francisco/Silicon Valley, in a salary survey by Dice. Boston IT professionals reported earning an average yearly income of $78,700, 12 percent more the U.S average tech salary of $70,300.
Nationwide, the average high tech salary grew 5.1 percent in 2005, a telling leap compared to a year earlier, when it grew at 4.3 percent, according to a study conducted by Economy.com.
“The software industry continues to be a major employer and a key economic engine for the state, and the increased focus on software services and on business outside the U.S. are two important trends that highlight the industry’s vision for success in the future,” Plotkin said.
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| Software industry has grown threefold |
| - Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council Survey |
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