What IT jobs will remain stateside despite the offshoring of many?
What IT specialties will be the fastest growing in coming years?
Where in the US might an IT job search by a job seeker or a recruitment effort by an employer or recruiter be most fruitful?
Some answers are available from the mind-bogglingly massive website maintained by the US Dept. of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). (Dig all the links on that homepage! Crazy, man . . .).
The Occupational Outlook Handbook on the BLS site is in itself a tremendous source. Based on its projections, summarized below, the IT job outlook is mixed, but fairly encouraging, in my view.
Some excerpts from this Handbook concerning information technology jobs, based on projections through 2014 (”sliced and diced” several ways, of course):
Generally
Employment in the “information supersector” is expected to increase by 11.6%.
This “supersector” contains some of the fast-growing computer-related industries such as: software publishers; Internet publishing and broadcasting; and Internet service providers, Web search portals, and data processing services.
Employment in these industries is expected to grow by 67.6 %, 43.5 %, and 27.8 %, respectively.
Then there’s the “professional and business services supersector,” which will grow by 27.8 %.
Within it, employment in computer systems design and related services will grow by 39.5 %.
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services will grow very rapidly, by 60.5 %, spurred by increased use of new technology and computer software and growing complexity of business.
Computer Software Engineers
Employment of computer software engineers is expected to increase much faster than the average for all occupations, as businesses and other organizations adopt and integrate new technologies and seek to maximize the efficiency of their computer systems.
Competition among businesses will continue to create an incentive for increasingly sophisticated technological innovations, which will require more software engineers to implement.
Demand for computer software engineers will increase as computer networking continues to grow.
As with other information technology jobs, employment growth of computer software engineers may be tempered somewhat as more software development is contracted out abroad. But jobs in software engineering are less prone to being sent abroad compared with jobs in other computer specialties, because they require innovation and intense R & D.
Programmers
Employment of programmers is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all occupations.
Software now can write basic code, eliminating the need for many programmers.
Consolidation and centralization of systems and applications, developments in packaged software, advances in programming languages and tools, and the growing ability of users to design, write, and implement more of their own programs mean that more programming functions can be transferred to other types of information workers, such as software engineers.
Another factor limiting growth in employment is outsourcing to other countries.
Nevertheless, employers will continue to need programmers with strong technical skills who understand their business and programming requirements.
Organizations will look for programmers who can support data communications and help implement e-commerce and intranet strategies.
Demand for programmers with strong object-oriented programming capabilities and technical specialization in areas such as client/server programming, wireless applications, multimedia technology, and graphic user interface likely will stem from the expansion of intranets, extranets, and Internet applications.
Programmers also will be needed to create and maintain expert systems and embed them in more products.
Growing emphasis on cybersecurity will lead to increased demand for programmers familiar with digital security issues and skilled in using appropriate security technology.
Computer Scientists and Database Administrators
Computer scientists and database administrators are expected to be among the fastest growing occupations.
Job increases will be driven by very rapid growth in computer systems design and related services, projected to be one of the fastest growing industries in the U.S. economy.
Job growth will not be as rapid as during the previous decade, however, as the information technology sector begins to mature and routine work is increasingly outsourced overseas.
The demand for networking, expansion of client–server environments, and need for computer specialists to use their knowledge and skills in a problem-solving capacity will be major factors in the rising demand for computer scientists and database administrators.
Falling prices of computer hardware and software should continue to induce more businesses to expand their computerized operations and integrate new technologies into them. To maintain a competitive edge and operate more efficiently, firms will keep demanding computer specialists knowledgeable about the latest technologies and able to apply them to meet their business needs.
Systems Analysts
Employment of systems analysts is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations as organizations continue to adopt and integrate increasingly sophisticated technologies.
Workers in the occupation should enjoy favorable job prospects, for the same reasons as mentioned above in connection with computer scientists and database administrators.
Additionally, more sophisticated and complex technology is being implemented across all organizations, which should fuel the demand for these computer occupations.
There is a growing demand for system analysts to help firms maximize their efficiency with available technology.
Expansion of e-commerce, and the continuing need to build and maintain databases that store critical information on customers, inventory, and projects, are fueling demand for database administrators familiar with the latest technology. Also, the increasing importance being placed on “cybersecurity”—the protection of electronic information—will result in a need for workers skilled in information security.
Systems Administrators
Employment of systems administrators is expected to increase much faster than the average for all occupations as firms continue to invest heavily in securing computer networks.
Companies are looking for workers knowledgeable about the function and administration of networks. Such employees have become increasingly hard to find as systems administration has moved from being a separate function within corporations to one that forms a crucial element of business in an increasingly high-technology economy.
Demand for computer security specialists will grow as businesses and government continue to invest heavily in protecting vital networks and electronic infrastructures from attack. The information security field is expected to generate many opportunities over the next decade as firms across all industries place a high priority on safeguarding data and systems.”
Computer Support Specialists
Employment of computer support specialists is expected to increase faster than the average for all occupations, as organizations continue to adopt increasingly sophisticated technology and integrate it into their systems.
Job growth will continue to be driven by the ongoing expansion of the computer system design and related services industry, which is projected to remain one of the fastest-growing industries in the U.S. economy.
Growth will not be as explosive as during the previous decade, however, as the information technology industry matures and some of these jobs are increasingly outsourced overseas.
Where the Jobs Are
The BLS site also has an area called “Occupational Employment Statistics.” It has data on employment and wage estimates for over 800 occupations, including geographical information. It has a great “Create Customized Tables” option — “a form-based query application which allows you to obtain Occupational Employment Statistics data based on choices you make.”
I used it to generate a geographical (metro. area) report for “Computer and Mathematical Occupations,” the broadest category including IT jobs. Some more specific occupational subcategories are available, as well.
What did I find?
The usual suspects are in the lead in terms of sheer numbers of jobs in this broad category:
NYC-NJ-Long Island (229,580)
D.C.-Arlington-Alexandria (203,020)
LA-Long Beach-Santa Ana (126,420)
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet (114,580)
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy (106,610)
Dallas-Ft. Worth-Arlington (95,880)
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont (80,280)
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue (77,370)
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta (73,240)
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (70,740)
There are other strong areas near these, as the BLS slices the geography various ways. But I thought it would be interesting to look at some strong “also-rans,” especially those located in between-the-coasts states (my favorite parts of the U.S.). Among the findings, some “Rust Belt” cities are hanging in there, competing well with up-and-coming fast-growth areas.
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI (62,720)
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI (60,040)
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX (55,680)
Denver-Aurora, CO (47,500)
Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL (42,290)
Baltimore-Towson, MD (41,550)
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ (39,830)
St. Louis, MO-IL (38,240)
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI (36,300)
Austin-Round Rock, TX (35,440)
Kansas City, MO-KS (31,980)
Tampa-St. Pete-Clearwater, FL (30,880)
Cincinnati-Middletown, OH, KY, IN (24,990)
Pittsburgh, PA (23,730)
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC (22,180)
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH (21,870)
Columbus, OH (21,870)
Raleigh-Cary, NC (21,250)
Indianapolis-Carmel, IN (18,800)
This is a big menu for the job seeker willing to relocate and thus cast a broader net looking for the ideal job. Personally, I wouldn’t reject any of these areas out of hand, having lived happily in one, St. Louis, for years.
(The books in the Amazon slideshow below that look identical are actually applicable to different geographical areas of the U.S.)
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