The 2023 Tech Market, as Seen by Hiring Managers

Hiring managers and experienced engineers at more than 50 companies share how they observe the hiring market changing. Insights from the US, EU, UK and other regions.

Hiring managers and senior engineers at more than 50 companies share how they observe the hiring market changing. Insights from the US, EU, UK and other regions.

Last month, I analyzed the state of the tech industry in 2023, and focused on the forces moving the job market. In that issue, I also invited input from readers who are hiring managers, about what they’re seeing. More than 50 of you responded, and this issue summarizes what hiring managers are observing in today’s job market. Thank you to everyone who contributed!

What makes this survey unique is the qualitative insights of hiring managers, which often go well beyond what numbers can capture. We go through these insights, and the raw data set is available to browse via a link at the foot of this article.

We cover:

1. High-level overview

2. The US market

3. Canada

4. The EU

5. UK

6. Other regions

The bottom of this article might be cut off in email clients. Read it online, uninterrupted.

1. High-level overview

The roles of the 56 respondents and the regions they’re based in:

Role split across respondents: 29 engineering managers, 15 tech-related managers and 11 individual contributors. Region split: 23 in the EU; 16 in the US; 11 in the UK; 2 in Canada; 4 in other regions

On job cuts and how hiring volume has changed:

In the past 12 months, about half of companies experienced job cuts. About two thirds of respondents have a hiring freeze, or are hiring less than in 2022

On how offers have changed, and whether companies negotiate more in 2023 — that is, if companies are more flexible in moving up with compensation packages:

How packages offered changed in 2023 vs 2022, and how negotiations changed

An interesting observation from hiring managers is that companies don’t tend to negotiate less to close candidates. Indeed, a couple of companies are negotiating more in 2023, which suggests it’s harder to close some – usually senior – candidates.

Now, let’s dive into hiring managers’ and candidates’ observations by region.

2. United States

At a glance:

Survey responses from the US

Two things stand out in these numbers: