People work at the office of a tech firm in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Photo by Reuters/Kham 

Vietnam’s growing information technology (IT) is seen driving recruitment demand and boost salaries for tech jobs, a recent survey found.

As many as 81 percent of IT companies said they planned an annual payroll rise of between 6 percent and 20 percent this year, professional recruitment firm VietnamWorks said in the survey conducted late last year with thousands of IT professionals, specialists and companies.

The industry’s job demand is higher than ever, and the trend will continue over the next years, the survey said.

The number of tech jobs has doubled over the last three years, VietnamWorks data showed, adding that Vietnam currently has around 250,000 engineers, but will need more than 400,000 by the end of 2018.

Experienced software developers and managers continue to be in high demand, said the survey.

Salaries have increased significantly in recent years and many companies have even offered generous bonuses to attract and retain employees.

Up to 80 percent of the jobs that requires IT professionals with at least two years experience would pay a maximum $1,160 per month, said the survey.

Vietnam first began offering software development services 15 years ago as global companies started to look outside India for a low-cost technology outsourcing opportunities.

NeoIT estimated Vietnam’s IT labor costs are 40 percent less expensive than in China and India. A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index and KPMG Advisory forecast Vietnam will be one of the next outsourcing hubs for software development.

Local technology companies, however, are increasingly diversifying into other services, said the survey, adding this will drive recruitment for specialists in other fields such as business intelligence and information security.

Currently, software engineers with at least two years of experience are still in highest demand, according to VietnamWorks.

In terms of high tech development, Ho Chi Minh City is to Hanoi what Silicon Valley is to Seattle. But Hanoi tech scene is growing amid more intense competition in the southern hub.

Ho Chi Minh City still remains the country’s IT hub with 53 percent of the country’s recruitment demand. Hanoi accounted for 43 percent and the central city of Da Nang took up 4 percent, according to the survey.

Experts forecast a growing demand for specialist in cloud computing, big data, business intelligence and information security.

The IT industry’s significant trends in 2017 will drive recruitments for professionals in big data, VietnamPlus cited Vinh Nguyen, an executive from PYCO Group, as saying.

The survey revealed that 44 percent of the respondents said they would consider changing jobs with a better salary and benefits on offer.