Lviv IT Cluster, which has been studying and analyzing Lviv’s tech industry since 2015, launches an initiative aiming to help Ukraine’s tech sector to adapt to new realities of Russia’s full-scale offensive. The purpose of this research project is to understand the impact of Russia’s invasion on Ukraine’s tech industry, study the tech developments in Ukraine after February 24, and analyze the future transformation of the IT sector after the victory of Ukraine.
The study revealed that about 70-80% of Ukraine’s IT industry has moved from unsafe areas to the western regions due to Russia’s invasion. Called IT Research Resilience, the project will survey at least 6,000 IT professionals — and analyze data according to a six years old verified method adapted to the war — to create what the company hopes will be the fullest picture of the state of the IT industry after February 24.
The poll results are now available. However, they may not fully provide a systematic or strictly scientific approach. Lviv IT Cluster has six years of experience in conducting industry research. In 2021, as part of the IT Research project, the Cluster researched the tech sphere of Ivano-Frankivsk for the first time. Now, the project is aimed at analyzing the IT industry during the war.
The research covers essential topics such as:
- how the war is changing the landscape of the IT market and where new tech hubs could potentially appear in Ukraine;
- representative data on migration attitudes and plans of IT workers, taking into account several possible scenarios for the end of the war: whether they will stay in Ukraine, whether they are ready to return to their cities or are preparing to go abroad;
- socio-demographic profile of professionals, which, among other things, will allow us to trace how the war affected income levels;
- how the structure of companies in terms of human capital was transformed during the war;
- changes that have taken place in the labor market since February 24 and what awaits it in the future;
- temporary economic effect in the regions where IT specialists moved during the war.
IT Research Resilience involves futurists and a team of analysts, economists and industry experts. Based on the results of the study, they will prepare an analytical forecast for the IT industry of Ukraine, taking into account different scenarios. After all, it is necessary to think about what will happen after the victory. Understanding what the IT market might look like, what the plans are for companies and employees, will definitely facilitate the adaptation of the field to new realities. But it will allow, in particular, the authorities to build a strategy for work during and after the war.
“The war shook our industry like any other. Nevertheless, the IT industry is now one of the mainstays of the country’s economy. We see that companies are actively resuming pre-war activity. Therefore, it is important to have a holistic picture of what is happening in the industry now, where we should move, to understand the mood of IT professionals. It is important that people stay and work in Ukraine. This requires a strategy. The results of IT Research Resilience will be the roadmap for such a strategy for the development of the IT industry in Ukraine after the victory,” said Stepan Veselovsky, CEO of Lviv IT Cluster.
The IT Research Resilience project is supported by the USAID Competitive Economy of Ukraine Program and the Western NIS Enterprise Fund.
IT Research Resilience is a project of the Lviv IT Cluster. It was transformed from the IT Research Ukraine project which the Cluster announced in early 2022. Research has adapted to new realities due to Russia’s full-scale offensive. IT Cluster partnered with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, USAID’s Competitive Economy of Ukraine and Western NIS Enterprise Fund. All partnerships are valid during the implementation of the IT Research Resilience project.