Startup jobs are tapering off currently.
Less startup jobs recorded in SA
With South Africa always scrutinised as the probable startup capital of the African continent, job data gives one an idea of the growth or decline in the industry. While not all startups require numerous employees or advertise for these online, many do, allowing ample inference into the sector as a whole. As done in 2016, job aggregator Adzuna has pulled data from its more than 130,000 online job listings on how startup jobs are doing.
After a good growth spurt, since late-2016 the amount of jobs has dropped from over 1,000 to just over 750, roughly indicating a decrease in startup activity in South Africa. Gauteng still holds the bulk of the vacancies (about 50%), while the Western Cape has 30%, followed by Kwazulu-Natal at 10% and the remaining jobs scattered across mostly urban areas. This also re-confirms the announcement that Johannesburg had overtaken Cape Town as the “startup hub of South Africa”.
The roles advertised averaged an annual salary of around R355,000, with certain areas commanding higher figures. One such industry is the ever-increasingly popular fintech sector, where job growth has skyrocketed since the start of 2016. Average salaries in fintech in South Africa are now at an all-time high of R610,991, pushed up largely by requirements in tech, mostly programming or development.
And that itself is nothing new, since over 40% of the skills sought among startup jobs are for developers, who build and maintain the software or systems required to offer the various innovative products and services. These skills are rare enough for companies to find overall, let alone for those new firms that are starting up from scratch with precious funding.
The startup scene in South Africa has definitely grown over the past five years, however the recent job data suggests a downturn in activity. Are entrepreneurs simply hiring less or are there less startups? Data further down the line in 2017 will possibly show a trend.
