Most IT Pros Want A New Job And A New Employer, Survey SaysMost IT Pros Want A New Job And A New Employer, Survey Says

Six in 10 IT professionals are anxious to bolt from their current jobs and the vast majority of those workers want to change employers, according to a new study released on Wednesday by trade organization Computing Technology Industry Association.

Of the 462 IT pros who participated in the CompTIA survey, 60% said they're looking for new jobs and 81% of those people described their job search as active. A whopping 80% of those looking for new work say they hope to land jobs with a new employer. Only 20% of those hunting for new work are hoping to find new positions with their current employers.

Nine out of 10 of those surveyed are currently employed. The average survey respondent had more than 9 years of IT work experience. This was the first time CompTIA conducted the survey, so the organization did not have comparison figures for whether the number of tech workers looking to change jobs is growing or shrinking.

Other findings of the survey indicate that some of the job-itchiness may be due to a deficiency of career-development support that employers provide to tech workers. "Most employers don't seem to have a good understanding of what's involved with IT work or advancing an IT career," says CompTIA VP of skills development Neill Hopkins. Employers would do a better job of retaining tech workers if they did a better job in helping those professional develop and advance their skills and career opportunities, he says.

The survey found that tech workers overall say they get little career guidance or support from employers. Eight-five percent said it's up to the individual to decide what IT training and education they need, and only 8% make those choices based on their employer's suggestions or requirements.

The majority of tech workers surveyed also said their employers don't make it easy or cheap for them to get additional training. Only 20.5% of the respondents said their employers provide paid time away from work for training and education, and 88% of IT workers say they are responsible for picking the full tab or at least part of their career training costs.

IT workers surveyed spent on average about $2,200 on training and education in the past year and expect those costs to increase to about $2,300 in the next 12 months. On average, IT pros say they spend about 11 hours a week to learn new skills, new technologies, or to study IT-related topics.

With the overall job market for IT workers improving for some skill sets, and IT job satisfaction being iffy at best for many workers, its' conceivable that some employers could face worsening turnover issues in months ahead.