While the need for digital transformation countries and companies’ investments in technologies led to an explosion in demand for IT executives, Greece does not employ enough workers in this sector. It even registers a negative lead compared to other European countries.

The inability of the education system to respond to the needs of the market, brain drain during the difficult years of the crisis, the small size of the Greek IT market compared to other countries, as well as the “outdated” production model of the country in previous decades, which led to the “underutilization” of such specialized personnel, may to some extent explain the shortage of specialists in this areas. However, this complicates her work. Greek IT marketwhich is looking for around 300,000 executives to win the hard bid for digital transformation by 2030.

According to Eurostat, in 2022 in Greece the share of workers in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector in relation to the total number of employees (ICT) will reach 2.5%, which is the lowest in the EU. Romania comes in second with 2.8%, followed by Poland, which employs only 3.6% of the country’s workers in this sector. Conversely, the highest percentage of CIOs are registered in Sweden (8.6%), Luxembourg (7.7%) and Finland (7.6%).

In general, after the pandemic crisis, IT specialists have increased in the EU. In 2022, the ICT sector employed 9.4 million people, representing a total of 4.6% of the workforce. For the decade 2012-2022 the number of IT professionals increased by 57.8%, which is 6.6 times the growth rate of employment in the EU. (+8.8%).

The technology sector employs just 2.5% of all employees, the second lowest in the EU.

“We are looking for leaders and it is difficult for us to find them, especially in sectors with very high demand”, Spyros Pulidas reports to K., who since March assumed the role of vice president of IBM in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa). What are these areas? “Anyone involved with data, artificial intelligence, software designed to automate processes, or people in those industries involved in sales and business development.” “Companies are now investing heavily in these products, and demand is growing as a result,” he said. In addition, the improvement in economic activity in the country is accompanied by investments in the technology sector, which shows that the number of jobs needed by the market to support these investments is increasing.”

Recent research Deloitte on his account Hellenic Association of IT and Communication Companies (SEPE), shows that by 2030 the Greek market will need 300,000 industry graduates to contribute to the digital transformation of the country. Thus, until then, an additional 15–16,000 industry specialists are required annually, and the supply is 8–8,500. Thus, there is a gap between supply and demand between 7000 and 7500. The inability of the education system to respond to the needs of the economy and the market partly explains the low employment rate of ICT workers in Greece.

As stated in the same study, insufficient specialization in specific subjects, incomplete professional orientation in secondary education, limited opportunities for professional training in ICT subjects, as well as a small number of admissions to specialized faculties of Greek universities explain the reasons for the absence of leaders from the Greek market. This also includes the migration of scientists abroad.

“We no longer have that brain drain that was observed during the crisis years. On the other hand, profits are not enough to cover the demand,” says Mr. Pulidas. “Today there is a significant number of people in our country who are digital nomads working from Greece but on projects abroad. They are not swallowed up by the Greek market.”

OUR Babis Bakolias, general manager of Ansys Hellas, advocates for the small size of the Greek market, among other things. “Despite the development of the technology ecosystem, the Greek IT market in Greece is small compared to other countries, resulting in not many job options for scientists. In addition, if the percentage of IT graduates from Greek universities is small, how will the market develop?” he asks.