IT Research 6.0 is the most comprehensive survey carried out by Lviv IT Cluster in the last six years. This research for the first time focused on analyzing the socio-demographic profile, the education, training, the number of tech professionals, and the inflow of human capital to the IT industry in the cities of Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk. In addition, the report contains further data analysis of the high-tech industry in terms of both economic impact and the turnover of businesses in Lviv.
The report IT Research 6.0. also looks at the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the IT industry: new ways of working; the right workplace model, attitudes towards vaccination, and vaccination rates. The survey was conducted September – November, 2021 and gathered responses from 800 tech companies of different sizes in Lviv and 400 in Ivano-Frankivsk.
“This close collaboration between the two IT clusters of Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk was essential to getting the most benefit from analyzing the data and comparing common trends between the two cities. All insights and results gained from this research are invaluable for tech companies, both from Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk IT Clusters as well as for all potential investors and companies willing to grow and develop within the tech sectors of Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk,” reports Stepan Veselovsky, CEO of Lviv IT Cluster.
Lviv: economic effect of the IT sector amounted to a billion hryvnias, 90 new companies, and 67% of IT specialists are vaccinated
According to IT Research 6.0, companies with 251 or more employees make up almost half of the current IT market. This year 90 new businesses opened up in the city of Lviv and 74 have closed. That’s the first time Lviv’s tech companies crossed the half thousand mark of 511 in 2021, compared to 492 in 2020. The number of tech professionals grew to 30-31 thousand in 2021, up from 26-26.5 thousand last year.
The average age of developers is 29. About 80% of respondents say their income level is higher than in 2020.
Among the respondents, 92% live in Lviv, including 48% of those who moved from other regions or countries. Tech professionals in Lviv earned a median salary of $2102 this year, compared with $1723 in 2020.
Lviv’s tech industry had a total economic impact of $1.4 billion in 2020, compared to $1.2 billion in 2019. The estimated direct economic effect was estimated to be $865 million, the indirect effect $557 million.
The share of the IT industry in Lviv’s gross domestic product (GRP) was 21% last year with companies confirming positive market dynamics. In 2021, 63% of surveyed companies were in the position to engage more employees and to expand their customer base.
IT Research explores the havoc caused by the Covid-19 pandemic for the second year in a row. Businesses enhanced vaccination adoption among their employees: 67% of respondents have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
Ivano-Frankivsk: 70 companies, over 2 thousand IT specialists, 65% are vaccinated against Covid-19
The survey has expanded into Ivano-Frankivsk’s IT sphere for the first time. According to the IT Research 6.0 survey, there are 70 companies in the city with 2.6 thousand employees. 50% of IT specialists work in companies with an office in Lviv.
The average age of a tech professional in Ivano-Frankivsk is 29, similar to Lviv. Young people dominate the Ivano-Frankivsk IT labor pool with 28% who have worked about 1 year, over a quarter of respondents have been working in the IT sphere for 1-3 years, and another quarter for 3-6 years. IT specialists in Ivano-Frankivsk earned a median salary of $1339, which is $763 lower than the salary in Lviv, about $2,102.
According to IT Research 6.0 survey, almost every tenth tech professional in Ivano-Frankovsk (13%) considers relocation within Ukraine, and 16% want to move abroad. Among the most popular relocation destinations are Poland, Scandinavia, Canada and the USA.
52% of surveyed IT specialists in Ivano-Frankivsk say they’ve had Covid-19. Around 73% looked at vaccination positively and 65% have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19. About half of IT professionals were vaccinated with Pfizer (61%), AstraZeneca/Covisheld 21%, Moderna (14%), and 6% received at least one dose of CoronaVac.
“The IT market survey is an important step today, because the pandemic has opened up opportunities and created new challenges for the IT sector. Research results will be a launching pad for Ivano-Frankivsk to attract new investments into the industry, to strengthen cooperation with tangible businesses, and to develop and expand the IT market in the region,” says Irina Darvai, Executive Director of Ivano-Frankivsk IT Cluster.
The sixth issue of IT Research by Lviv IT Cluster, including IT Research 6.0., was conducted in partnership with Fama research agency. The research looks at the most important tech trends in Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv, the efficiency of working remotely for tech professionals, the impact of lockdowns on working conditions, education, migration moods of IT specialists in Lviv, reasons for dismissal, and the attitudes towards Action City — IT Research 6.0 can be downloaded from this link.