Why Are Tech Companies Struggling to Find Developers? Global Trends Explained

According to foreign reports, the number of IT job vacancies posted by UK software and technology companies in 2021 exceeded the total vacancies of all UK enterprises in 2020. In the same year, tech venture capital invested £29.4 billion (US$39.4 billion).

Recruitment consultancy Robert Walters and analytics firm Vacancysoft recorded over 12,800 new tech professional positions in 2021, a 105% increase over 2020. In TMT‑related industries, postings rose 119%. The companies with the most tech vacancies were JPMorgan, Sky Version, and Amazon, collectively posting 10,611 positions. Most of the 2021 tech vacancies were in software development and computer engineering, up 88.2% year‑on‑year, reflecting sustained demand for digital products, services, and stronger technical infrastructure.

The fastest‑growing roles were in IT support, driven by the pandemic‑induced shift to remote work and digital‑first business models, prompting employers to prioritize technical expertise.

Tom Chambers, Deputy Director at Robert Walters, noted that while programming has long been a prized skill, the pandemic has accelerated the need for companies to normalize digital project initiatives.

In 2021, investors poured £89.5 billion into European tech firms, with one‑third (£29.4 billion) directed to UK companies—double the amount invested in Germany and three times that in France—underscoring strong consumer demand for technology and enterprise needs for digital infrastructure.

Since 2000, the valuation of UK software and tech companies has reached £5400 billion, still far below Apple’s $3 trillion market cap.

China's Telecom Market Grows 8% to ¥1.47 trillion Under Cloud Computing Push

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology reports that 2021 telecom revenue reached ¥1.47 trillion, an 8.0% year‑on‑year increase, marking the highest growth level since 2014. Revenue from emerging enterprise‑focused digital services such as cloud computing, big data, and data centers grew 27.8%, contributing 44.5% to overall telecom revenue growth.

Fixed, mobile data, and internet services continued to act as a stabilizer, accounting for 61.5% of revenue and contributing 39.4% to growth.

Chinese local enterprises generated RMB 1320 billion (US$20.87 billion) in profit, a 13.3% increase year‑on‑year. Their R&D spending rose 5% to RMB 754.2 billion (US$11.92 billion). The Ministry of Commerce noted that organizations earning at least RMB 5 million from internet services also grew, with over 40,000 companies in the software and IT sector.

The IT services market grew 20% year‑on‑year, reaching RMB 6 trillion (US$948.6 billion). Software suppliers’ total profit increased 7.6% to nearly RMB 1.19 trillion (US$188.14 billion), and software exports reached US$52.1 billion, up 8.8%.

Microsoft announced that Internet Explorer mode in Microsoft Edge will be supported at least until 2029, giving web developers an eight‑year buffer to modernize legacy applications and eventually retire IE mode.

Developers can now test sites in IE mode using Edge together with the Internet Explorer Driver maintained by the Selenium project. Selenium recommends that after June 15, developers should test IE sites in Edge rather than IE 11, as IE 11 will cease receiving fixes and support.

Developers are urged to leverage Selenium for browser compatibility testing, and are wished a happy New Year.