Jobs requiring technically skilled professionals have more stability than other roles due to their high demand for skills, according to research from LiveCareer.
Looking at more than 300,000 CVs made with its CV builder across the first six months of 2024, LiveCareer found that employees in the UK change jobs on average every 2.6 years.
This varies from sector to sector, with LiveCareer labelling certain technology careers as “highly stable”, citing that “skilled trades” and “technical roles” such as robotics engineers and Java programmers have a low turnover rate, whereby individuals stay in their roles for longer than average.
But tech is also a career path that lends itself well to job hopping, according to Patrycja Mazurczak, writer for the Professional Association of Resume Writers and Career Coaches.
“In the tech world, job hopping is becoming more of a smart career move than a red flag. Many people, especially younger workers, are changing jobs every few years, which is becoming standard. For tech professionals, switching jobs can often mean better pay, a chance to tackle new challenges and projects, as well as working with the latest technologies,” she said.
“Of course, jumping around too much can have its downsides, like making it seem like you’re not committed or missing out on diving deep into one area. Still, for many in tech, changing roles is a great way to grow their skills and stay ahead of the game. It’s all about finding the right balance that works with your career goals and how the tech industry continues to evolve,” added Mazurczak.
There are many reasons why people in the UK are changing jobs so often, with LiveCareer highlighting relatively low unemployment and the perception of short tenures among them.
In tech, the hiring landscape has been varied over the past five years. During the pandemic, demand for IT professionals rose as the world turned to technology to complete everyday tasks from home due to global lockdowns. This was followed by the “great resignation”, when swathes of tech workers left their jobs looking for new opportunities both in and outside the sector.
Due to skills shortages in the tech sector, hiring has remained competitive as companies fish for talent in the same narrow pool of workers. As a result, Live Career found that it has become more acceptable to employers to see employees seek new jobs more frequently – something that would previously have been frowned on in a CV in industries such as technology, where having a specific skillset is necessary to be a competitive candidate.
High demand for people with tech skills, as well as people viewing these roles as longer-term commitments due to the need for certifications and training to pursue these types of careers, were the reasons given for these types of roles having a low turnover compared to others.
Programmers – seen as a highly stable profession – change jobs every three years on average. From its CV data, LiveCareer found that with an average of six years’ experience, programmers have two jobs in that time.
Other technical roles were labelled “moderately stable”, meaning people in these roles tend to stay in roles longer, but will hop to other roles depending on where the demand is, or to seek promotions.
Management roles are more likely to fall into this category, as are roles in operations. LiveCareer highlighted technical operations manager as one of the roles this applies to, due to people at this level often aiming to switch roles to advance their careers even further.
While there is potential for long-tenured and stable roles in technology, LiveCareer summarised it as a sector that lends itself to job hopping due to its innovative nature, where moving roles often can help candidates keep on top of the industry’s required skills.
