Three of every four startups have issues recruiting IT specialists . Many new businesses face not only a growing shortage of skilled workers, but more and more often must compete with established companies and global players to attract available personnel. As a result, young companies are increasingly turning to staff from outside the country. These are the findings of a current Bitkom study. At present, this is about 20% of specialists; at large startups with more than 20 employees, the figure rises to 34%.

Technology-oriented companies focused on innovative AI or blockchain projects are affected in particular. In developer teams, the quota of employees without a German passport comes in at 24 and 44%, respectively. This growing internationality is reflected in the communication at companies: 29% of all startups have declared English as their first business language, while in large teams with over 20 employees, this applies to a majority – 53% of respondents.