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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., July 23, 2008 — The IT Employee Confidence Index, a measure of overall confidence among U.S. information technology workers, dropped 1.5 points to 45.9 in the second quarter of 2008, reaching its lowest level since measurement began in 2005, according to a recent survey commissioned by Technisource®, the technology placement division of Spherion Corporation (NYSE:SFN). The survey, conducted by Harris Interactive®, indicates that overall confidence levels among IT workers surveyed declined slightly in the second quarter as a result of workers’ increased uncertainty in the job market and in their personal employment situation. Despite workers’ doubts, 42 percent of technology workers say they are likely to look for a new job in the next year.
Results from the IT Employment Report:
- More than two-thirds (70 percent) of technology workers believe the economy is getting weaker, up one percentage point from the first quarter of 2008.
- Forty-two percent of technology workers are likely to look for a new job in the next year, compared to 39 percent from the previous quarter.
- More than half of technology workers (59 percent) believe that fewer jobs are available, an increase of four percentage points from the first quarter of 2008.
“Given the current state of the economy and the consistent barrage of negative news as it relates to oil prices, job numbers and the housing market, it is not surprising to see confidence levels continue to decline. However, things are not as bad as it seems as it relates to the technology job market,” said Michael Winwood, President of Technisource. “In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. IT employment is up 10 percent compared to a year ago. At Technisource, we continue to see a demand for skilled IT talent needed to fill business intelligence and security-related positions such as data architects, operations analysts, network security and database encryption specialists. We are also seeing a continued requirement for service-oriented architecture and custom coding projects that involve advanced knowledge of .Net and Java. The sector as a whole remains competitive, especially for those workers with highly sought-after skill sets and experience.”
| 2Q 2008 Employment Report Results: Information Technology | IT Workers | U.S. Workers | |||||
| 1Q 2008 | 2Q 2008 | % Point Change | 1Q 2008 | 2Q 2008 | % Point Change | ||
| Economy | Getting Stronger | 8% | 8% | 0 | 7% | 6% | -1 |
| Staying Same | 23% | 22% | -1 | 24% | 21% | -3 | |
| Getting Weaker | 69% | 70% | +1 | 69% | 72% | +3 | |
| Job Availability | More Jobs | 14% | 12% | -2 | 14% | 12% | -2 |
| Same Amount | 31% | 29% | -2 | 32% | 30% | -2 | |
| Fewer Jobs | 55% | 59% | +4 | 54% | 59% | +5 | |
| Ability to Find New Job | Confident | 48% | 53% | +5 | 53% | 51% | -2 |
| Neutral | 37% | 27% | -10 | 30% | 31% | +1 | |
| Not Confident | 16% | 20% | +4 | 17% | 18% | +1 | |
| Future of Current Employer | Confident | 62% | 61% | -1 | 64% | 64% | 0 |
| Neutral | 24% | 22% | -2 | 23% | 23% | 0 | |
| Not Confident | 14% | 17% | +3 | 14% | 13% | -1 | |
| Likelihood to Lose Job | Likely | 16% | 17% | +1 | 12% | 13% | +1 |
| Neutral | 12% | 12% | 0 | 11% | 11% | 0 | |
| Not Likely | 72% | 70% | -2 | 77% | 76% | -1 | |
| Likelihood to Look for New Job | Likely | 39% | 42% | +3 | 36% | 35% | -1 |
| Neutral | 13% | 10% | -3 | 10% | 11% | +1 | |
| Not Likely | 48% | 49% | +1 | 53% | 54% | +1 | |
About the Spherion Employment Report
As part of the Spherion® Emerging Workforce® Series of employment surveys, this quarterly Information Technology Employment Report provides a snapshot of the latest workforce trends among information technology professionals across the country. Three key indices are measured: the Spherion Job Security Index, which captures how likely respondents think it is that they will lose their job or that their job will be eliminated in the next 12 months; the Spherion Job Transition Index, which captures how likely respondents are to look for a new job in the next 12 months and the Employee Confidence Index that measures employees’ overall confidence in the economy, their employer and their ability to find other employment. The Employee Confidence Index is calculated from the results of four components that reflect these aspects of employee confidence. For each component item a ‘score’ is calculated by taking the difference of the percentage of positive responses and the percentage of negative responses. These four scores are then averaged to indicate an overall level of employee confidence and is scaled from 0 (no confidence) to 100 (complete confidence). A reading above 50 indicates a positive confidence level.
Methodology
The 2008 Technisource® IT Employment Report was conducted online within the United
States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Technisource between April 7-9, April 15-17, May 7-9, May 12-14, June 2-4 and June 10-12, 2008. Surveys were conducted among a U.S. sample of 8,029 employed adults, aged 18 years and older, of whom 456 work in information technology positions. Results were weighted as needed for age, sex, race/ethnicity, income, education and region. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online.
All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.
Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the U.S. adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to be invited to participate in the Harris Interactive online research panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
About Technisource
Technisource, one of the largest technology services providers in North America, delivers a wide range of staffing, management services and technology solutions. With nearly 40 years of experience, Technisource provides services to a broad range of clients to maximize their technology investments. Focused on quality, flexibility and value, the company’s service offerings range from IT staffing, deployment and support services to software quality management, strategic projects and outsourcing.
Through its network of more than 55 offices across the U.S., Technisource maintains a group of 8,000 experienced consultants and employees that deliver its portfolio of service offerings to Fortune 500 corporations, mid-sized companies and small organizations. Technisource is a subsidiary of Spherion Corporation (NYSE:SFN). For more information, please visit www.technisource.com.
Harris Interactive® is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of independent market research firms. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.
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