Ukrainian IT companies’ race in Poland: How our folks are doing in the 'heated' market
The struggle for specialists, salary growth, shortage of specialists and their level, as well as other differences between our markets
According to the IT Ukraine Association, over 50% of Ukrainian IT companies now have offices in one or multiple cities in Poland. Just in the past year, thousands of IT specialists relocated to this country. Poland is gradually becoming a major IT hub in Eastern Europe and is already the second most competitive IT services market in Europe, according to the researchers of the Future of IT Report 2022.
Currently, despite cutbacks in Big Tech, the Polish IT market is experiencing a significant shortage of specialists and salary increases. In such conditions, how do our IT companies compete, including for talent? What are the key differences between the Ukrainian and Polish IT markets? Mind asked the top executives of five major companies – SoftServe, GlobalLogic, Ciklum, Intellias, and Sigma Software, which oversee their advancement in Poland, to tell about this.
Competitive environment. Last year, the size of the Polish IT market increased by 19%, reaching almost $21 billion. Despite the ongoing war, Ukrainian companies have increased their IT exports by 5.8% to $7.35 billion (the import of services constitutes approximately 90% of the entire market).
Poland also has a larger pool of professionals. "Competition there is very high. It has over 430,000 IT specialists and 60,000 companies, including giants like Google, Amazon, and Facebook. For comparison, according to the latest research by IT Ukraine, there are over 285,000 IT specialists and approximately 5,000 IT companies in Ukraine," explains Volodymyr Semenyshyn, President of EMEA SoftServe.
According to Oleg Piskozub, Country Head of Intellias in Poland, the advantages of the local IT market include proximity to Western clients, especially from the DACH region, and unwavering support from Ukraine at all levels. This allowed specialists relocated from Ukraine after February 24, 2022, to adapt quickly and resume work on projects.
"Unlike the Ukrainian market, which is currently associated with security risks for many clients, the Polish IT market has not lost its attractiveness. On the contrary, it has become a key Eastern European hub for Ukrainian companies that are starting or expanding their teams there, as well as for clients seeking to continue collaboration with Eastern European talents," explains Olga Kuraksa, General Manager of Ciklum in Poland, Ukraine, and Bulgaria.
The struggle for talents. According to the Polish Economic Institute and the specialised association SoDA, Poland is facing a shortage of approximately 150,000 IT professionals, and these are just the most pressing positions that need to be filled. "The Polish market is quite 'heated', with a high competition for talents, although there have been talks of cuts in the teams of technological giants, and several large companies have halted salary reviews in anticipation of a recession," says Olga Kuraksa.
Oleg Piskozub adds, "The situation in the Polish talent market has indeed become more challenging since 2021. That's when client companies started implementing the demand for digitization that was postponed during the years of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to increased competition. This factor intensified even further after a full-scale invasion, when dozens of Ukrainian IT companies entered the Polish market and actively started hiring professionals here."
According to him, another factor intensifying the competition is the global economic recession, which forces companies from Western Europe and North America to cut their costs. "While the services of developers in Poland are more expensive than in Hungary or Czechia, they are cheaper than in the US or Germany. It makes the Polish talent market even more attractive. Development centres of global tech giants are opening in major Polish cities even more frequently today than last year," shares the observations of the Country Head of Intellias in Poland.
However, the recession is starting to 'favour' companies rather than candidates. "The world is expecting a global economic recession, and Poland is no exception. There are fewer career opportunities for IT specialists, while the number of candidates seeking jobs is increasing," says Volodymyr Semenyshyn.
Olga Sulik, the Head of the Recruitment Department at Sigma Software, specifies, "When it comes to professional and experienced specialists at the Senior and Middle levels, there has been a stable demand for them for many years. I don't see any significant changes here."
Although the market trends have somewhat shifted, says the CEO of Ciklum in Poland, Ukraine, and Bulgaria, "Due to the economic situation, interest in startups has started to decline. Developers are more interested in working for global companies that guarantee stability, access to a variety of projects, and the ability to change them if needed. Additionally, experts often collaborate directly with foreign companies by signing B2B contracts."
How do salaries grow? According to the Mood Barometer conducted by SoDA, salary growth is among the biggest challenges that IT companies in Poland face. "76% of organisations consider salary pressure as one of the key challenges for the IT industry in 2023. Almost 80% of respondents say that this situation can negatively impact companies' revenues in the next 12 months," the research states. Oleg Piskozub from Intellias explains that, unlike Ukraine, salaries in Poland continue to rise. While the wage gap between engineers in our countries was around 10% during the full-scale war, it is now approximately 25%, taking into account the current exchange rate and additional social benefits.
"Specialists in Poland are generally more expensive due to higher tax rates and legislation requirements regarding contracts, benefits, and working conditions. For example, the dismissal process here takes at least a month and is generally more complex if initiated by the company," adds Volodymyr Semenyshyn from SoftServe.
Promptness of recruitment. The Polish market is slower, according to the speakers. "The response speed and time of Polish candidates can be several times lower than that of Ukrainian candidates. There are still many of our compatriots in Poland, and despite hiring local specialists, many companies gladly cooperate with Ukrainians because they are more proactive, result-oriented, and willing to work," says Olga Sulik.
Oleg Piskozub adds that long notice periods are an important factor in hiring in Poland – the time it takes for a candidate to accept an offer from the company, complete work in the previous job, and start working in the new one. "While in Ukraine, we can reach an agreement with a candidate in a few weeks, or sometimes even a few days, and they can start working on the project, in Poland, it takes two to three months. Another peculiarity of the Polish market is the regulation of data protection under GDPR, which also affects the recruitment process," explains the Country Head of Intellias in Poland.
Level of expertise. "The level of specialist training is more or less on the same level. Although, Polish education is considered to provide more relevant knowledge. Due to our people's willingness to develop, they quickly acquire all the necessary skills in practice. Therefore, differences in education do not impact the quality of work," says Olga Sulik.
According to Volodymyr Semenyshyn, both countries are on par in terms of technical qualifications of employees and English proficiency: "The Polish market is similar to ours in many ways since a large part of it consists of outsourcing companies. There is a good pool of specialists in Big Data, DevOps, and other popular technologies. However, in Poland, experts are less inclined to work overtime and go beyond working hours, unlike Ukrainians."
Legislative details. "After the start of the full-scale war, a special law was passed in Poland, granting Ukrainian citizens the status of a protected person. It provides that individuals who meet certain criteria have the right to work on its territory for 18 months. It also allows registering individual entrepreneurship (similar to Ukrainian ones), which provides us with another familiar format of cooperation. Recently, the validity of this special law was extended until March 4, 2024," explains Oleg Piskozub from Intellias.
So how do our people advance and compete for talents in Poland in such conditions? "Competition in any market primarily takes place at the level of corporate culture, values, relevant and appealing EVP (Employee Value Proposition) for candidates, practices, and company approaches. It's something that cannot be copied. And it gives candidates a sense of belonging," explains Olga Sulik. She specifies that Sigma Software has been present in the Polish market for quite some time now. The first office in Warsaw was opened in 2014. Today, apart from Warsaw, the company has offices in Poznań and Kraków.
At SoftServe one tells that in order to remain an attractive employer in such a highly competitive environment, the team enhances HR practices, develops corporate programs and initiatives, and creates conditions in which specialists can grow and thrive. "One of SoftServe's advantages in the market is a solid portfolio of clients and technologies we work with. We continue to deepen our partnerships and expand technological expertise to provide employees with more opportunities and make it an exciting place to work. We have been collaborating with Google Cloud Platform, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft for years, and recently achieved the status of an elite NVIDIA partner," says Volodymyr Semenyshyn.
He adds that the possibility of professional and career growth is one of the priorities for professionals when choosing a workplace, so the company improves its training and development system. Over the past year, more than 1,700 employees have utilised the educational solutions of the corporate university. SoftServe also has a strong social component, with powerful projects such as the charitable fund Open Eyes and the crowdsourcing platform OpenTech. "As a participant in the UN Global Compact, we adhere to sustainable development principles in our activities. Modern professionals value working for companies whose values align with their own. The Great Place To Work certification, which we have once again received in Poland, confirms that the values we declare are put into practice," adds the President of EMEA SoftServe.
GlobalLogic has been present in Poland for a long time and currently has nine offices in the country. Some of them were opened in 2021-2022, including in Gdańsk, Wrocław, Łódź, and Katowice.
"The factors that attract new engineers to the company include the stability and resilience of GlobalLogic, our extensive presence of development centres, and the opportunity to create digital products for clients who are leaders in important industries such as automotive, healthcare, telecommunications, media, and more," believes Anna Shcherbakova, Vice President and COO of GlobalLogic Ukraine. She notes that among colleagues who relocated outside of Ukraine (which accounts for only 15% of the total), the majority moved to Poland. According to internal surveys, most of them plan to return to Ukraine after the war ends. All of the company's business processes are deeply integrated into the global culture of GlobalLogic, while Ukraine is an integral part of the European region.
Ciklum has been operating in Poland for over seven years and has offices in Wrocław and the Tricity area. "It is our competitive advantage among other companies that started entering the Polish market since the full-scale invasion because each country has its own specifics that are worth knowing for successful business operations. Considering market conditions, we offer competitive compensation as well as opportunities for professional development, such as involvement in the global environment and professional communities within the company, knowledge sharing, and international projects. Such a package of offerings often becomes an additional value for candidates. We also take into account the personal interests of our colleagues: we regularly organise internal events for them, participate in sports competitions, organise family-oriented events, and initiate charitable activities," says Olga Kuraksa.
Ciklum has also learned the peculiarities of interaction in the hiring process. Polish candidates are very attentive to details and typically thoroughly verify the provided information while asking additional questions. "Therefore, it is extremely important to provide as much information as possible from the start and be prepared to clarify and add to it. Communication takes place in a more traditional way, through email or phone," Olga Kuraksa explains.
Candidates in Poland do not appreciate haste and pressure – they value personal space and a moderate approach to deadlines. Transparent and timely communication fosters trust and, consequently, positive outcomes," the General Manager of Ciklum in Poland, Ukraine, and Bulgaria shares the nuances.
At Intellias, they say that Poland is a very important market for them. Currently, there are four company offices open there. Among them is the delivery centre in Kraków, which is the largest one outside of Ukraine. There are also offices in Warsaw, Wrocław, and Łódź. They hire both local specialists and those who are willing and able to relocate or have already relocated to Poland, seeking refuge from the war in Ukraine. Additionally, they are open to hiring from other countries worldwide. The Polish offices have developers from Brazil, India, Sri Lanka, Lithuania, the United States, and other countries. Overall, there are currently over 300 Intellias employees in Poland. Of them, approximately 65% are Ukrainians, 30% are Poles, and the remaining 5% represent other countries.
"We have been actively hiring in Poland for several years now since our delivery centre has been operating in Kraków since 2019. Today, there are about 50 vacancies available here. 65% of the Polish Intellias team consists of senior-level engineers or higher. Hiring such highly skilled specialists is always challenging because the demand for them typically exceeds the supply. We quickly adapt internal processes, develop new benefits packages, and pay great attention to corporate culture development. This allows us to remain competitive and respond promptly to market changes," says Oleg Piskozub.
Also, he talks about the details: every specialist in Poland, as well as in any other location, can manage their working hours and choose whether to work from the office, remotely, or combine these formats. It is an important advantage because after the end of the pandemic, Polish companies are urging their employees to return to the offices, and some companies are even implementing a fixed number of days per week when it is mandatory to work from the office.
"We also provide the opportunity to manage one's career independently through the corporate online portal called Career Hub. It has been repeatedly recognized with various awards in Ukraine and abroad as an innovative solution that facilitates and promotes professional development and career growth. Another value of the company is the Growth Mindset. To implement it, we have developed a corresponding corporate programme. We offer diverse opportunities for learning, acquiring new skills, and upgrading qualifications. This includes free access to educational courses on platforms such as Coursera, O'Reilly, Udemy, and upskilling opportunities, mentorship programs, and more," lists the Country Head of Intellias in Poland.
He also adds that when opening a development centre in a new country, the company studies its traditions, cultural and mental peculiarities, taking into account the preferences of both local colleagues and relocated Ukrainians. "Such a humane approach yields results. Recently, Intellias was recognized as a Top Tech Employer according to a survey conducted by the Polish portal Bulldogjob. IT professionals rated Intellias with the highest scores in six categories, including opportunities for professional growth, work processes and environment, overall job satisfaction, and compensation level. Specifically, the company's rating in the engineering and technology sphere is 4.7 out of 5 maximum points. It is one of the highest indicators among over 2,000 IT companies working with Bulldogjob," emphasises Oleg Piskozub.
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