More than three-quarters of tech workers are looking for new jobs in the latest indication that the industry has fundamentally changed.

The What Do Tech Talent Want in 2023 report, by hackajob, gives insight into the tech industry and the new relationship between companies and workers. According to the report, more than three-quarters of tech workers are unhappy with their jobs, prompting a job search in the last six months.

Even more alarming, some 20% of workers are so unhappy with their jobs that they plan on leaving as soon as possible. Only 11% of workers are happy with their current role.

Not surprisingly, remote work now ranks as one of the most important factors in job happiness, outranking benefits, location, and tech stack. In fact, remote work has become so important to so many workers that it is no longer a differentiating “perk” that companies can use to set themselves apart:

Some perks, such as flexible working, have now become commonplace and no longer differentiate a good company from another to employees, whilst some unexpected benefits have emerged as essential to tech talent, such as company culture.

“Company culture” now plays a huge role in attracting and keeping top talent:

After compensation, candidates are most attracted to a role and organisation by the overall culture (15.1%) and mission (13.1%)

When asked what they loved most about their current company / what makes them stay, almost half of all surveyed (44%) said company culture followed by flexible/remote working (13.1%)

While a generous salary is certainly a factor, it’s not nearly the deal-clincher some companies think it is:

But money alone won’t keep even the best of tech talent. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the reputation of a company and big benefits were some of the aspects that least attracted technical talent. In fact, long gone are the days when having a big brand name was enough to draw in talent. When almost all companies offer the same sort of benefits, organisations must think outside the box to discover and nurture talent.

“A world of hybrid working, or remote working has enabled a generation of developers to work on their own terms and in conditions that are more suitable for their working lives,” reads the report. “As more companies race to embrace regional tech talent, we will see an increase in more decentralised hires, possibly solving other issues facing tech such as the cost of living crisis and lack of diversity.”