Launched in May 2014 by NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline is a $10 million publicprivate partnership created to support the growth of the city’s tech ecosystem and prepare New Yorkers for 21st century jobs.

 

More than 20 industry partners, involving companies big and small, are on board with the program. The NYC Tech Talent Pipeline is led by founding director, Kristen Titus, former executive director of Girls Who Code, a national organization working to close the gender gap in technology and engineering. For more information on the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline, go to techtalentpipeline.nyc.

 

In support of the NYC Tech Talent Pipeline’s mission, LinkedIn, in partnership with the City of New York, published data highlighting the top technology jobs and in-demand skills in New York City. The data reveals that one in every five NYC businesses employs technology talent, with the majority of NYC technology jobs located in the technology, financial services, marketing & advertising, and media & entertainment sectors. User interface design and web & mobile development rank highest among the “in-demand” skills sought by employers, with nearly 13,000 NYC firms currently employing or hiring talent with these critical skills.

 

New York City’s tech ecosystem has experienced dramatic growth, now directly employing nearly 300,000 people and indirectly generating another 250,000 jobs, altogether accounting for 12.6 percent of the city’s workforce.

 

A 2014 report, “New York City’s Growing High- Tech Industry,” prepared by the office of the New York State Comptroller, also finds a flourishing tech field.

 

Here are some highlights of the report:

 

• Job growth in the high-tech industry (33 percent) has been four times faster than the rate in the rest of the city’s economy (8 percent) during the current economic recovery.

 

•The New York State Common Retirement Fund invested $122.8 million in tech-related companies in NYC between 2007 and 2013, earning solid returns for the fund while helping to create more than 1,300 new jobs.

 

•NYC’s high-tech industry is building synergies with other industries in the city’s economy, helping to stimulate job growth. For example, job growth in advertising and public relations has grown by 25 percent in recent years.

 

•The average annual salary for workers in the high-tech industry was $118,600 in 2012, compared to an average of $79,500 for all other jobs in NYC.

 

•By some estimates, there are as many as 150,000 technology jobs in nontechnology industries, such as finance, healthcare, and retail.

 

•In 2013, venture capital firms invested $1.3 billion in the high-tech industry in the NYC metro area.