In its edition from 8 September, the daily Vecernji list reports on the business analysis of the IT sector conducted by Tajana Barancic, a partner at Astra Business Engineering, an accounting firm specializing in working with IT companies, according to which  2022 marked a record-breaking year for the domestic IT sector, as it remained unaffected by the turbulence faced by international technology companies. Nevertheless, Barancic cautions that there is a "very likely" chance that the ongoing issues in the international technology sector will impact the business results of domestic IT companies this year.As highlighted by Barancic in her analysis, the record results in 2022 were “expected,” but it is “very likely” that the continued issues in the technology sector will affect business results this year. “This is not a year that the IT industry will remember for good," says Barancic in her review of 2023.“I have conducted business analyses for the first five months of this year on my sample of companies, which is quite relevant (5% of the sector), and I have also had additional conversations with around 30 major IT companies about the situation, their forecasts, business plans for this year, workforce policies, and artificial intelligence,” says Barancic to the daily, noting that the analyses and responses she received indicate that 2023 will be a “much different year” compared to the previous one, evident as well in a trend of employment stagnation. The companies analyzed by Barancic had nearly a 30% increase in the number of employees last year, but in the first five months of this year, they only had a 2% increase compared to December 2022. Furthermore, 67% of these companies saw an increase in the number of employees last year, while this year (in the first five months), only 35% of the observed companies increased their workforce.Barancic also says it is “impossible to predict the sector's results for this year” since even the companies themselves do not know how it will end. “Many companies (IT service buyers) have decent IT budgets but are not letting go of employees or are slowly letting them go because they are waiting for semi-annual results to see what will happen. Also, this year there are more situations where some major clients fail or cancel services,” says Barancic, adding that 2023 is “such a year, and it is impossible to plan because circumstances change suddenly and frequently.”Barancic  also noted that only a few companies she spoke with expect revenue growth similar to last year, while others say that the growth will be much smaller, and some may even have a decline. On the other hand, most expect the upward trajectory to start in the fall, at the latest at the beginning of next year.The domestic IT sector has record business results in 2022. Almost 6,000 entrepreneurs included in the analysis generated more than EUR 2.9 billion in revenue, a 26% increase compared to 2021. According to the analysis, the IT sector accounts for 5% of Croatia's total exports.In 2022, the number of employees increased by 16%, or 4,000 new jobs, employing a total of 28,809 people. Average net salaries have increased by about 10% and on average, IT professionals in Croatia earn EUR 1,700 (EUR 1,564 plus EUR 150-200 in tax-free payments). For comparison, the average salary in Croatia is around EUR 1,100, with the median being less than EUR 1,000 or EUR 970 euros, according to the latest data from the State Bureau of Statistics (DZS).  (ICE ZAGABRIA)

Fonte notizia: VECERNJI LIST online edition 8/9/2023