This is the fourth in an annual series of ground breaking Tech Nation reports that give deep insight into the UK tech ecosystem to further the understanding of the sector’s key challenges, opportunities and trends for the year ahead and beyond.
It highlights the unique strengths of clusters and considers how to support their growth in an evolving political climate. The Norwich Tech cluster features continued growth and highlights the growing number of digital/tech jobs, as well as the strengths and challenges faced by digital and tech companies in our region.
Overall the UK has cemented its position as a global tech leader.
Its digital tech sector is a shining light not only in Europe but also on a global scale. In London, 33% of tech company customers are based outside the UK, compared to 30% in Silicon Valley and 7% in Beijing. The report shows that the UK’s global connections are key to domestic success. With 25% of the world’s entrepreneurs reporting a significant relationship with two or more others based in London, a figure beaten only by Silicon Valley.
Jobs in digital tech are on the rise.
From 2014 to 2017 digital tech sector employment rose 13.2%. In Norwich the digital tech jobs rose to a total 13,411 in 2017. UK workers are more productive, on average, by £10,000 per worker. Jobs requiring digital tech skills command higher salaries, at £42,578 compared to £32,477 for those that do not. Only 19% of the digital tech workforce is female. Despite the stereotype that digital tech jobs are for millennials, 72% of workers are aged over 35.
In survey, the Norwich cluster identified the top strengths as:
1 Appealing area
2 A helpful tech community
3 Proximity to a university
Whilst the top three challenges were identified as:
1 Limited infrastructure
2 Access to talent
3 Bad transport links
