IT pros fear offshoring threatens their jobs

It's the rank-and-file IT pros, not management, who believe most strongly they could lose a job because of offshoring.

According to silicon.com's 2005 Skills Survey, IT pros, IT consultants and software developers were the respondents who voted in the largest percentages that offshoring - or sending jobs overseas - was a threat to their jobs.

Around a third of IT consultants and software developers agreed this was a threat compared to about 20 per cent of IT pros, with about half of each group saying they 'strongly agreed' offshoring put their jobs at risk.

On the other hand, less than 10 per cent of CIOs and IT directors - and about 12 per cent of board directors, CEOs, COOs and CFOs - believe they'll lose a job due to offshoring.

The fear of offshoring appears to have lessened from last year for most positions, though.

In the 2004 Skills Survey, just over half of IT consultants believed offshoring would diminish their professional prospects compared to 32 per cent this year. But whether this is because the most fearful have indeed lost their jobs or simply mellowed is a matter for speculation.

Management also follow this trend however. The percentage of CIOs and IT directors who do not think offshoring will threaten their jobs grew from eight per cent to 14 per cent this year while that same figure for board directors and other C-level positions jumped from 15 per cent to 20 per cent.

The one notable exception was IT managers; around seven per cent more IT managers see offshoring as a threat compared to last year's survey.

The findings are based on silicon.com's 2005 Skills Survey, which was conducted in March and April 2005 and polled 1,386 silicon.com readers, most of whom work in the UK.