TITLE:
Beyond Recruitment: The Art of Keeping IT Unicorns—A Manager’s Guide to Retention
AUTHORS:
Lucie Tuttle, Kim Critchlow
KEYWORDS:
Talent Retention, Information Technology, Employee Development, Job Characteristics, Generative AI, Talent Acquisition, Workforce Planning, Talent Management, Succession Planning, Attrition
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Business and Management,
Vol.13 No.5,
September
11,
2025
ABSTRACT: Purpose: Ineffective retention strategies for niche information technology (IT) employees can negatively impact business technological capabilities. This study aims to explore strategies IT talent acquisition managers use to retain niche employees beyond 2 years. Additionally, it examines the role of job characteristics and employee expectations in shaping retention practices in the IT sector. Design/methodology/approach: This study is grounded in the job characteristics model, job characteristics theory, and expectancy theory. The authors employed a pragmatic qualitative inquiry approach. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with six IT talent acquisition managers who had successfully implemented strategies to retain niche employees beyond 2 years. Additional data sources included public websites and documents, both current and archival. Findings: The study identified key factors influencing employee retention in the IT sector: employee retention, employee performance, job autonomy, employee development, task assignment strategies. A critical finding was the importance of understanding and addressing employees’ professional development and continuous learning needs. This understanding proved to be crucial for improving retention rates in the IT industry. Originality/value: This paper explores effective retention strategies for niche IT employees, an understudied area in talent management. It contributes to the existing literature by addressing a significant gap in our understanding of specialized IT workforce retention. The study highlights the importance of job characteristics and employee expectations in retention practices, offering valuable insights for IT talent acquisition managers and organizations seeking to maintain their technological capabilities through improved employee retention. By focusing on the unique challenges of retaining niche IT talent, this research expands the scope of talent management literature and provides empirically based recommendations that can inform both theory and practice in the field. Additionally, the findings underscore the need for tailored retention approaches in the rapidly evolving IT sector, potentially opening new avenues for future research in this critical area.