Three in five information technology (IT) workers in large enterprises in the Republic say they are suffering from work-related stress due to long hours and project-delivery pressures.
The survey commissioned by Dublin-based consultancy Saros comes as companies embrace artificial intelligence (AI) and find themselves under pressure to roll out new products and systems.
It found that 60 per cent of IT personnel in large Irish enterprises were experiencing stress or mental health issues “due to intensifying delivery pressures”.
“Scope creep” – the continuous or uncontrolled growth in the extent of projects – was identified as a significant cause of stress for IT and technical teams in 61 per cent of cases.
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The same proportion (61 per cent) said their IT and technical teams work long hours because of talent shortages.
Saros said the findings stem from a survey of 200 IT decision-makers in large Irish organisations carried out in January and February this year.
Even before the advent of AI, tech workers had high rates of burnout due to intense workloads.
The survey found that as companies continue to embrace AI, “the pressure to roll out new products and systems is making for a fraught working environment for IT and technical teams”.
IT workers’ jobs are also being made more difficult by the running of legacy systems that slow down progress, it said.
Some 59 per cent of IT leaders admit they are running too many legacy systems, while 57 per cent say legacy systems are “holding back innovation in their company”.
Not much more than half (58 per cent) of IT leaders said their leadership team had realistic expectations of how artificial intelligence can benefit them.
Another issue identified in the report was the shortage of tech workers, which it said provided a potential financial upside.
The Saros survey revealed that 59 per cent of firms have given an IT or technical team member a 50 per cent plus pay increase to discourage them from leaving.
“This underlines the lengths large organisations are willing to go to retain skilled IT talent in an increasingly competitive market,” it said.
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To ease the work burden, organisations are increasingly outsourcing IT work.
Almost a quarter (24 per cent) said outsourced project management could help to reduce stress among technical team members.
“Our research shows that organisations in Ireland are struggling to address the issue of mental health among IT teams – and the leadership team themselves could even be compounding the issue,” said Ray Armstrong, co-founder and co-chief executive of Saros Consulting.
“The source of the issue lies in organisations not having a proper IT strategy in place. This means not only coming up with a strategy that is doable, but also one that works in tandem with the business and its goals,” said Armstrong.
“Putting a proper plan in place can help to alleviate pressure, provide clarity and lead to happier, more fulfilled workers,” he added.
