European Tech Attracts Global Talent

• Despite difficult macroeconomic conditions, the European tech workforce has continued to grow in 2023, reaching more than 2.3 million employees.

• Non-tech employees are flocking to the industry, and early-stage startups are leading the charge.

• This year Europe drew in more talent from the US tech scene than it saw departing to it, underscoring the attractiveness of its tech ecosystem.

• Talent is flowing to companies focusing on sustainability and health, underscoring a focus on impactful and purposeful innovation.

A business-unfriendly environment and a lack of innovation and funding are just a few reasons for why the European tech sector gets a bad reputation. These prejudices, however, ignore what workforce data is telling us: Europe has indeed a vibrant tech sector that is attracting world-class talent. Granted, difficult macroeconomic conditions and slowing investments have not spared the European tech ecosystem. Despite this, Atomico’s State of European Tech 2023 Report shows that European tech is resilient and is bouncing back towards recovery. How is this shaping talent dynamics within the industry? In today's newsletter, Revelio Labs is shining a spotlight on Atomico's work - powered by our very own talent insights and workforce data.

Despite challenges in the capital markets, European tech maintains its strong appeal, experiencing no talent exodus and a constant creation of new positions. Even with a recent slowdown in the rate of new entrants and a minor overall decline in Q3 2023 headcount, the European tech workforce has soared from slightly over 750,000 to over 2.3 million in just five years.

Notably, despite the recent global slowdown in tech and startup financing, talent from non-tech sectors continues to enter the industry, looking past perceived risks. To date, more than 200,000 new non-tech joiners have flowed to European tech jobs in each quarter of 2023. This trend is largely driven by early-stage startups, which account for almost double the number of new joiners relative to late-stage companies in each period.

In tandem with the surge in European tech's workforce and its magnetic appeal to non-tech talent, the continent stands out as a net beneficiary in global talent flows, actively drawing in new starters from around the world and gaining more international talent than it loses. In 2023, more than 10,000 net new people joined the European tech scene, making the continent a net talent winner. Notably, this year Europe drew in more talent from the US tech scene than it saw departing to it, underscoring the attractiveness of its tech ecosystem.

Finally, is the European tech industry aligning talent attraction with purpose-led initiatives? An analysis of talent flows within and into the tech industry shows that talent is indeed flowing to mission-driven companies. Notably, sustainability and health claim the top spots, with more than 200,000 and 150,000 new joiners, respectively. The prioritization of these themes highlights the importance of impactful and purposeful innovation within the European tech landscape. Revelio Labs considers this focus on addressing societal and environmental concerns to be one of the most promising and uplifting revelations from the Europe State of Tech report - check out the report in full for further invaluable talent insights!