Do job families play a role in candidate drivers? Our 2022 Candidate Motivators Report indicates that’s the case. 

Candidates and employees expect more benefits than ever before, but to nail your offer? You’ll want to check which things matter most to candidates based on job profiles. 

You might not think it, but a software engineer likely won’t value the same thing from their workplace as Martha from Accounts. Ignoring these nuanced preferences could lead you further into talent-shortage strife. Heck, our stats show that candidate motivators are different within the same tech industry. 

Let’s explore what different job families expect from your total compensation package. 

In this guide: 

• What software developers want from their workplace 
• What data and reporting candidates want from their workplace 
• What project managers want from their workplace 
• What business analysts want from their workplace 

Top benefits software developers want from their workplace 

If your efforts to attract quality developers feels more like shooting job ads into the wind, it may be that you’re not offering a juicy enough package. Fifty-two percent of developers said that they had changed jobs in the last 12 months because the benefits offered were better than they could get elsewhere. 

Additionally, 83% said that non-monetary benefits were important to them, proving that your relentless cash splashing isn’t everything – a well-rounded total compensation package is. 

The top 3 drivers for software developers 

• #1 – supports good work life balance 
• #2 – provides an attractive salary 
• #3 – offers flexible working 

See? Salary isn’t everything – for this job family, good work life balance is the most important thing! 

Top benefits data and reporting want from their workplace 

Sticking with a similar theme here, 57% of respondents said that they had changed jobs in the last 12 months because they were offered better benefits elsewhere. Similar to developers, 89% of people in the data and reporting job family said that non-monetary benefits are important to them when considering a new role.  

The top 3 drivers for data and reporting candidates 

• #1 – provides an attractive salary 
• #2 – offers flexible working 
• #3 – provides career progression 

Salary takes top spot for this cohort, but career progression pops up as third most important for this job family alone. 

Top benefits project managers want from their workplace 

Moving into the non-technical families here, 36% of project managers said they had changed jobs because the additional benefits were better than what they could get elsewhere. While benefits weren’t as much of a reason for this cohort to switch employers compared to developers, 82% still said that non-monetary benefits are important to them. 

The top 3 drivers for project managers 

• #1 – offers flexible working  
• #2 – supports a good work life balance 
• #3 – provides an attractive salary 

Top benefits business analysts want from their workplace 

Playing samesies here with the project managers, 35% of business analysts said that they had changed jobs because the additional benefits were better than what they could get elsewhere. And 

82% of people in this job family said that non-monetary benefits are important to them.  

The top 3 drivers for business analysts 

• #1 – supports good work life balance  
• #2 – offers flexible working  
• #3 – provides an attractive salary 

It’s clear for these non-technical job families that salary is not the deal maker (although, it’s obviously very nice!). 

So, techs aren’t just in it for the money?  

While candidates from both technical and non-technical job families say non-monetary benefits are important to them, more than half of candidates in technical roles say better benefits is the reason they changed jobs. Additionally, developers, project managers and business analysts prioritise good work-life balance over an attractive salary when considering an employer. 

Reading into things, we could assume it might have something to do with the high levels of burnout reported amongst tech workers, with 68% of Silicon Valley’s workforce saying they felt more burned out during Covid than when they worked at an office. The pandemic certainly forced almost all organisations into remote working ahead of schedule, forcing almost all tech workers to pull all-nighters to ensure a smooth (and secure) transition. 

But how are you taking care of your people in tech, now? 

Burnout is still a common problem 

To figure out if it’s an issue in your workplace, you’ll need to look at your internal systems and processes. Some of the leading factors of burnout in tech roles include: 

• Excessive work hours (are you scheduling downtime for overworked tech teams?) 
• Insufficient rewards for effort (if tech workers value good work-life balance and flexibility, are you actually providing it?) 
• Lack of control over their work and schedules (are you deciding what’s (un)achievable on their behalf?) 
• Lack of support from managers (have you supported and trained your managers in their transition to managing remote teams?) 

The moral of this story – customise benefits for varying candidate needs 

The tech industry is but one example of how candidate motivators can change across different job families, and is something to keep in mind when designing your total compensation package.  Ensuring that it’s inclusive and flexible allows for different uptake across teams. 

Given that wellbeing stands out as a key priority, consider adapting your benefits for tech teams to demonstrate understanding and empathy for their needs. 

Download the Talenza 2022 Candidate Motivators Report