4 minute read
SHIFTING GEARS
Even as companies decelerate from hyper-growth hiring, tech talent demand persists in B.C.
TYLER ORTON
The B.C. tech sector has been licking its wounds as of late after experiencing its most explosive period of growth in a generation.
After delivering more than a dozen unicorns – privately held firms valued at US$1 billion or more – in the span of about a year since December 2020, the West Coast tech ecosystem has seen a change of pace since January 2022, and a number of firms have let go of employees.
In a sector where it seems impossible to satiate the demand for talent, how is it that companies are willing to part with these highly coveted workers? “These companies are obviously no longer in hypergrowth,” says Nicole Davidson, CEO of Vancouver-based Beacon HR, which provides human resources and recruitment services to tech companies. “Many of them are, in fact, still hiring, but more strategically and with a lot more caution, which actually isn’t a bad thing.”
Davidson says tech workers laid off in 2022 have highly desirable skill sets and will land on their feet. “It is going to take them longer to find their next ideal role and they won’t have multiple offers as they have maybe enjoyed in the previous couple of years,” she says, adding some might migrate to tech roles in other sectors. “The more traditional industries are actually really going to benefit from having greater access to some of these tech workers and their skill sets.”
Those highest in demand within the tech sector include full-stack senior software engineers, those with expertise in data analytics, cybersecurity experts, software development and IT operations (better known as DevOps) workers and those with an abundance of experience with product and domain knowledge, according to Davidson.
But B.C. is still not meeting the demand for such workers within the tech industry, she adds.
Metro Vancouver experienced the highest surge of tech
Nicole Davidson is CEO of Vancouver-based Beacon HR, which provides human resources and recruitment services to tech
THESE COMPANIES ARE OBVIOUSLY NO LONGER IN HYPER-GROWTH.… MANY OF THEM ARE, IN FACT, STILL HIRING, BUT MORE STRATEGICALLY AND WITH A LOT MORE CAUTION, WHICH ACTUALLY ISN’T A BAD THING Nicole Davidson CEO Beacon HR
employment (66%) across all North American tech hubs between 2016 and 2021, according to CBRE Research’s 2022 Scoring Tech Talent report.
The real estate services firm determined the region added a total of 44,600 jobs during that five-year period as more multinationals set up shop in the area and as homegrown companies expanded.
The report ranks Vancouver as the No. 8 tech hub in North America, owing in part to an exchange rate that makes it cheaper to hire workers and lease space.
Average wages for tech jobs in Vancouver stand at US$91,686 compared with US$122,341 in Seattle and US$139,907 in San Francisco.
Though the rise of remote working might lead one to believe there would be less demand to scoop up physical office space in B.C., big U.S. tech companies appear to be growing more comfortable securing space and hiring workers in the province to exploit lower operating costs.
Amazon, Microsoft, fintech company Tipalti and medical devices firm Masimo are among the American tech companies that have been expanding significantly in downtown Vancouver in recent years.
Local tech firms that recently reached unicorn status, including Trulioo, GeoComply and Galvanize, have also been increasing their footprint in the city’s downtown core.
Although none of those aforementioned B.C. companies announced layoffs this summer, the industry was hit with a high-profile round of dismissals in August.
Tech marketing firm Unbounce laid off nearly 50 workers
Hootsuite headquarters in Vancouver’s Mount Pleasant neighbourhood: The social media management company cut 30% of its workforce – at least 350 workers – in August • CHUNG CHOW
– 20% of its workforce – in early August. E-commerce company Article, best known for selling furniture, laid off more than 200 workers – 17% of its staff – that same week.
Hootsuite revealed the following week that it, too, would be letting workers go.
The social media marketing company, which has commanded the attention of the B.C. tech sector for more than a decade, announced it was cutting its workforce by 30% – a figure amounting to at least 350 workers.
Talent cutbacks within the industry began months earlier, when B.C. biotech Zymeworks cut 25% of its staff in January following founder Ali Tehrani’s departure as CEO. Losses there had grown to US$212 million by the end of fiscal 2021 – up US$41 million from a loss of US$171 million a year earlier.
Online course creation firm Thinkific Labs followed suit in March, cutting 20% of its team (100 workers) after posting a $26 million loss in its last fiscal year.
“More and more companies will cut staff in the months ahead,” says Ilya Brotzky, CEO of the VanHack Technologies recruitment firm.
He said the rate at which recently laid-off workers get hired at other companies will depend on their role.
