IT talent in high demand in Pittsburgh

Firms going out of their way to draw recruits

An influx of open IT jobs in the Pittsburgh region is forcing firms to ramp up recruiting and highlight benefits to draw top talent to their offices.

“We have more positions than we can really deal with. We just can’t find the actual talent. It’s harder on the recruiters than it is on the people going out there going to get the jobs,” said Jason Lis, Pittsburgh director of Hanover, Md.-based information technology staffing firm TEKsystems.

The intense combat for recruits has seen organizations dangling options like spa services, flexible hours and allowing man’s best friend in the office before

prospective employees over the course of the year, according to Mr. Lis.

Using an analysis of figures provided by Chicago online job board CareerBuilder, TEKsystems found job seekers with IT backgrounds in the Pittsburgh metropolitan statistical area had their shot at 20,451 positions between March 2014 and this March. That was a 34 percent increase over the previous year.

The climb continued through April, job postings up 40 percent compared to the previous 12 months. The Pittsburgh MSA includes Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties.

The local surge is no anomaly. Job postings in San Jose, Calif., were up 42.7 percent the past 12 months, and postings rose 34.6 percent in Seattle and 27.3 percent in Washington, D.C. .

And while Mr. Lis said mobile Internet strategies, frequent reports of cybercrime, and servers packed with customer data fresh for mining were all contributors to the clamor for more computer professionals, the biggest factor was that businesses of all sizes and sectors are making moves to grow their digital presence.

“IT today is looked at as a moneymaker, whereas five to 10 years ago it was more of an expense across all industries,” said Mr. Lis.

Payroll expenses in Pittsburgh are likely to be much less than it is for West Coast counterparts, a challenging factor in recruiting.

An IT project manager position in San Jose pays an average of $137.257, which is 22 percent above the national average of $112,786, according to CareerBuilder’s database. The same position in Pittsburgh gets an average of $91,237.

For user experience designers, a position Mr. Lis said is in high demand in the region, average pay is $92,020. That is 16 percent below the national average of $106,952. In San Jose, the title earns an average of $126,069.

Cost of living is a factor in the widely varying payscales — housing alone is 742 percent higher in San Jose than in Pittsburgh, according to data analysis firm Sperling’s Best Places.

Well aware of the challenge, Pittsburgh-area firms are going out of their way to find job seekers where they are and then to sell those people on the merits of their organizations beyond cash.

Justin Driscoll, senior director for people and cultural initiatives for South Oakland-based Pittsburgh Technology Council, said the council’s last three “Hire UP Recruiting” events sold out within weeks of being announced. One scheduled for April 29 sold out “weeks ago” and might be moved to a larger venue to accommodate a waiting list full of recruiters hoping to get in on the action.

Mr. Driscoll stopped short of saying luxurious benefits were a “trend” but noted that North Shore investment data management automation company Confluence has an in-house massage therapist on staff for stressed out employees.

With or without fringe benefits, the most important weapon that a Pittsburgh firm can have in the recruitment wars is a culture that makes a coveted employee want to be part of the team, said Mr. Driscoll.

“Pay is one aspect, but what is more important is what companies are saying is the culture of their organization. What do they value? Do they trust employees? Do they give them space to be an expert in their field?” he said.

“It’s one thing to make New York wages in Pittsburgh. It’s another thing to make Pittsburgh wages and enjoy what you do.”