One of the key players in software development is Poland, with 25% of all developers in Central and Eastern Europe. The five major IT hubs are in Warsaw, the capital, Krakow, Wroclaw, and Tri-city (the collective region of Gdynia, Gdansk, and Sopot), and Poznan. This article is going to cover the tech talent pool, varying salaries and the advantages of these IT hubs.
Poland has gained recognition as one of the largest tech talent pools in Eastern Europe and as a trustworthy region for outsourcing. Tholons Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations has Poland as 9th on the list. In addition, it was also placed 24th in A.T. Kearney Global Services Location Index for the most attractive outsourcing destination. It’s not just the level of expertise, it’s also noticed for the financial benefits. Poland is also rated 33rd for Ease of Doing Business.
There are a total of 529 software development countries in Poland. The last few years have seen huge growth in the industry. In 2010, IT service exports reached $1.09 billion. This increased to $4.62 billion in 2017. The end of 2020 predicts this to hit $15.5 billion.
Poland’s Tech Talent Pool
Poland is home to 279,800 IT experts as of 2018. More than 80% of those experts are employed in the five major IT hubs, particularly Warsaw and Krakow. Their level of skill and knowledge has reached global fame. Polish developers generally qualify within the top 5 countries for both knowledge and experience.
As well as technical knowledge, Polish developers have an advantage over many other European countries for their proficiency in English, coming 13th for English language skills. For this reason, clients from all over Europe and America turn to Poland because communication is far easier.
It outsourcing companies are moving forward towards enhanced process and services. Combined, they have a large share of the Polish tech talent pool.
International R&D Centres Based in Poland
Across Poland, there are over 500 R&D centers. Giant names such as Google, Samsung, and IBM have put Poland on the map. To add to the list of big names, we see Akamai, Cisco, and Capita. This has had a highly positive effect on the IT industry, as R&D is most frequently financed by the private sector, it also sparks interest from other global companies.
Samsung, Citibank, and Microsoft are based in Warsaw, HSBC and Cisco are in Krakow, and IBM and Nokia have centers in Wroclaw. While in Tri-City you can find Intel and Amazon, and in Poznan, Roche
The Cost of Living in Poland
Poland is no exception to the general rule; the capital city is more expensive than other cities because of the cost of rent and other expenses. When you compare the overall cost of living in Poland, there isn’t a great difference. There is a difference of 10-15% between Warsaw and the other IT hubs; Poznan has a cost of living just 10% lower than Poland’s capital city, Warsaw.
The Numbeo.com statistics compared various cities with the cost of living in New York. Zurich was more expensive than New York in all areas except rent, however, the Polish IT hubs were far cheaper. They were approximately half the cost of other European cities and more than 60% cheaper than New York.
Polish ICT Education
Polish ICT universities offer a high level of education with 74,000 students studying in the ICT field in 2018. The University of Warsaw has ranked 260th in the world and Warsaw University of Technology has ranked 3rd best in Poland. Warsaw saw 3000 graduating between 2017 and 2018.
Poland’s Advantageous Location
Each of the IT hubs mentioned has a minimum of one airport. The maximum flight time from European countries is 2.5 hours, whereas from the US it’s between 11 to 14 hours. You can choose from almost 40 airlines with regular flights to all of the principal US and European cities. If you wish to visit your software development team, there won’t be a shortage of flights.