The IT job market in Poland has undergone dynamic changes in recent years, from the pandemic-driven boom, through the slowdown in 2023, to a renewed upswing in 2024–2025. The year 2026 is expected to bring a period of moderately optimistic stabilization—favorable for current industry employees but challenging for new candidates. The perspective of Polish IT specialists will be shaped not only by local factors but also by global trends, particularly those emerging from the United States. This article analyzes the key forecasts for 2026: the impact of artificial intelligence development on IT workforce demand, the importance of the global economic climate for employment, the growing role of globalization and remote work, outsourcing trends, and the technologies and specializations gaining (or losing) relevance.
AI Development and IT Workforce Demand
Artificial intelligence has become one of the main drivers of change in the IT market. The so-called “AI boom” already contributed to a sharp increase in job offers for IT specialists in 2025—in Poland, the number of offers in the first half of 2025 rose by 68% year-on-year, fueled by AI implementation, data analytics, and software development. Companies are investing heavily in AI and process automation, generating demand for AI engineers, data scientists, data analysts, and machine learning developers. According to World Economic Forum forecasts, as many as 86% of employers globally view AI as the main driver of organizational transformation by 2030. Importantly, automation is expected to create more jobs than it eliminates—globally, there will be a net gain of 78 million positions by 2030 (170 million new versus 92 million eliminated), though about 92 million people will need to reskill to meet new requirements. This underscores the massive need for skills transformation: specialists will need to use AI tools fluently and develop capabilities that cannot be replaced by automation.
In the short term, AI’s impact is twofold. On one hand, increased efficiency driven by AI boosts demand for employees across industries—as PwC’s “AI Barometer” indicates, AI adoption correlates with higher job offers and salaries. On the other hand, some roles are changing or being reduced: large tech companies in the U.S. during 2023–2024 laid off employees in routine or administrative roles while expanding AI teams. For example, Salesforce laid off over 1,000 people in 2025 but simultaneously recruited for AI-related positions; similarly, Microsoft reduced staff by around 6,000, citing reorganization and increased use of AI-generated code. The message for employees is clear: repetitive, automatable tasks are increasingly handled by tools, while demand grows for specialists who create and oversee these tools. In practice, this means that, for example, software testers need to expand skills in automation and AI, as managers increasingly invest in AI-powered tools rather than hiring additional staff—a trend unlikely to reverse in 2025. By 2026, AI tool proficiency could even become a requirement in many recruitment processes: beginner programmers are already evaluated not only on coding fundamentals but also on AI assistant skills and having an up-to-date project portfolio.
In summary, AI development will increase overall demand for IT workers—especially those highly skilled in AI/ML, data analysis, and automation—while simultaneously transforming the nature of work in the industry. Employees should prepare for an AI-augmented collaboration model (augmented workforce), where humans define tasks and oversee AI outputs. Specialists who master new tools while maintaining creativity and critical thinking will be most sought-after, whereas those in routine roles may see reduced demand.
Global Economic Climate and IT Employment
The state of the global economy directly affects the stability and dynamics of IT employment—an industry that operates largely on a project basis and in an export-oriented manner. After a period of euphoria in 2020–2021, when technology investments surged, 2022/2023 brought cooling: rising interest rates and recession fears led companies to cut costs. In 2023 alone, over 264,000 technical employees were laid off globally (including ~95,000 in the U.S.), with another 152,000 reductions in 2024. Fortunately, the deepest cuts were mostly one-off—not a market collapse, but rather a “rebalancing”. Layoffs primarily affected support, administrative, and duplicate roles (e.g., excess middle managers or recruiters), while key technical competencies remained in demand. By late 2024, many companies resumed intensive recruitment, targeting strategic areas such as AI, security, cloud services, and fintech. U.S. investment banks even projected “crazy” hiring of AI experts and data analysts in 2025, and Poland saw a clear rebound: in Q4 2024, IT job offers rose 22% compared to the end of 2023.
Looking into 2025 and beyond to 2026, signals are moderately positive. Macroeconomic forecasts for Poland indicate renewed GDP growth—from approximately 3.6% in 2025 to 4% in 2026—which should translate into increased corporate investments, including IT projects. By mid-2025, ManpowerGroup research showed that 40% of IT companies in Poland planned to expand teams, while only 17% expected reductions (the remaining ~42% intended to maintain staff). This results in a net positive employment forecast of +23%—one of the highest among sectors. Similar signals come from the recruitment market: the portal Just Join IT recorded growing job offers across all main technology categories in the first half of 2025, with IT salaries rising on average by 12% year-on-year. Thus, the market shows a recovery after the challenging 2023 period—companies are cautiously but steadily hiring again.
However, the situation remains sensitive to global disruptions. Risk factors include persistent geopolitical uncertainty (the war in Ukraine and other conflicts), potential slowdowns in the U.S. or Eurozone, and changes in economic policies. Experts note that U.S. policy has recently been unpredictable—sometimes isolationist—which prompts the EU to invest in its own technologies and digital infrastructure. If the EU launches large programs (e.g., funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility), Poland’s IT sector could receive an additional growth boost in digital transformation and infrastructure. Already in 2025, funds are expected for projects related to digital resilience, which could increase demand for cybersecurity specialists or system administrators. Similarly, new EU regulations (NIS2, DORA) require hiring security and compliance experts—companies are preparing to meet stricter legal standards.
From the perspective of a Polish IT employee, the global economic climate means observing broader trends. When the economy accelerates, project numbers rise, increasing demand and wage pressure (benefiting employees). Conversely, when companies cut costs globally, even top specialists may face fewer job offers or slower promotions. The good news for 2026 is that there are no signs of a speculative bubble or imminent collapse—rather, a continuation of stable demand. As noted on the industry portal testerzy.pl, “those who were going to be laid off already lost their jobs; those who were going to find one already have it”—the market has settled after the turbulence, with no major shocks expected in 2026. This is a comfortable outlook for current specialists, though newcomers will still face strong competition and rising entry requirements.
Globalization, Remote Work, and Offshoring—Opportunities and Challenges
Globalization and the spread of remote work have permanently changed the IT job landscape. For Polish specialists, this has opened broader doors to an international career without emigrating—all it takes is internet access and English proficiency to work for a company in Silicon Valley or London while remaining in Gdańsk or Kraków. The pandemic demonstrated the effectiveness of the distributed model, and Deloitte data indicate that around 30% of employees worked remotely regularly between 2022–2025. Today, the hybrid model (e.g., 2 days in the office, 3 days remote) has become standard, gaining more popularity than fully remote work—by H1 2025, hybrid arrangements appeared in 47% of job offers, slightly ahead of fully remote (46%). Crucially, workplace flexibility is not a luxury but a key factor for employees: nearly half of specialists indicated they would leave if required to spend more mandatory days in the office. Companies must balance business needs with employee expectations—top talent chooses employers offering freedom to work from anywhere and flexible hours. Surveys of Polish specialists show that 88% view remote work as a primary benefit (even above healthcare or sports cards), and 56% value flexible working hours. Opportunities for growth and training are another important factor, meaning that market globalization forces companies to compete not only on pay but also on organizational culture, development, and work style.
Offshoring and nearshoring are the other side of globalization. Poland has long been a valued IT hub for Western companies—development centers operate here for Intel, Google, IBM, and domestic outsourcing firms (e.g., SoftServe, EPAM, Sii, Luxoft) serve clients in the U.S., Western Europe, and the Middle East. According to Statista, the value of Poland’s software outsourcing market is expected to reach $3.84 billion in 2025, while the entire IT services sector will generate over $10 billion in revenue. A projected average growth of ~6% per year through 2029 indicates Poland’s continued attractiveness as a location for technology ventures. Why Poland? We have the largest talent pool in the region—over 650,000 IT specialists—many with top-tier skills (Poland consistently ranks in the top three worldwide for programmer quality). At the same time, labor costs remain competitive: an experienced Polish developer earns on average 33–40% less than a U.S. counterpart, which, combined with similar time zones and cultural compatibility, makes Poland a natural choice for U.S. or EU firms seeking savings. This trend is also visible globally—American corporations increasingly nearshore projects to cheaper, culturally compatible regions (e.g., Latin America) rather than relying solely on distant offshoring to Asia. Poland and Central-Eastern Europe benefit from this shift, offering high quality at a reasonable cost.
or Polish specialists, globalization means more opportunities but also greater competition. On one hand, they can choose from foreign offers without leaving home—for example, a programmer fluent in English can work for a British fintech or an American startup, often earning a higher salary than in the local market. On the other hand, Polish companies themselves compete for projects and contracts with providers from other countries (e.g., Romania, South America, or India). Maintaining an edge will require strong language and communication skills as well as specialization. Already today, 79% of Polish IT professionals report English proficiency at the B2/C1 level, which greatly facilitates collaboration in international teams. Increasingly, professionals are also investing in learning additional languages (German, Spanish) to boost their attractiveness on the global market.
In 2026, the hybrid work model will most likely solidify as the standard in larger cities—employees will balance occasional office presence (e.g., in R&D centers of global companies in Poland) with remote work for external clients. Globalization also brings soft challenges: working for foreign entities often requires coordinating across different time zones, understanding cultural differences, and strong self-organization skills. For Polish employees, this means being flexible and open—but the effort pays off with access to the most interesting projects and technologies worldwide without the need to emigrate. In short, the world is more open than ever for Polish IT specialists, and 2026 will only reinforce this trend.
IT Outsourcing Trends and the Domestic Job Market
IT outsourcing has long been an important segment of the Polish market, employing thousands of specialists. Global trends indicate that this model will continue evolving but will not lose relevance by 2026—on the contrary, it may become even more widespread, albeit in slightly altered forms. Traditionally, outsourcing involved delegating entire projects to external companies or relocating processes (e.g., technical support, infrastructure maintenance) to cheaper locations. Poland has benefited from this strategy thanks to the aforementioned advantages (talent pool, costs, location). As the market matures, however, we are seeing growth in specialized outsourcing and staff augmentation—hiring specific experts to join client teams. For Polish employees, this often means working on international projects while being formally employed by a Polish intermediary company.
From a labor market perspective, outsourcing provides a steady flow of jobs, stabilizing the industry even when local demand weakens. When global corporations cut costs, they increasingly turn to external providers—rather than hiring an expensive in-house developer in the West, they lease an entire team in Poland. For example, the average annual cost of a senior AI developer in Mexico is around $62,000, compared to $120–144,000 in the U.S.—similar cost ratios apply to Poland versus Western Europe or the U.S. During periods of economic uncertainty, companies value this quality-to-cost ratio, which can bring new clients to Polish outsourcers. It is already forecast that Polish IT services exports will grow by ~13% annually, highlighting Poland’s rising importance as a global IT solutions provider.
At the same time, the outsourcing model is evolving. Competence centers and R&D centers owned directly by foreign firms (so-called captive centers) are emerging, bypassing intermediaries. By 2026, we may see a continuation of the trend where corporations, instead of outsourcing to a software house, establish their own offices in Poland, hiring dozens of engineers under their own conditions. For employees, the main difference is in organizational culture and management style, but the effect—further increasing the number of attractive job opportunities—remains positive. Competition between traditional outsourcing and captive centers could improve working conditions and salaries, as both compete for the same talent pool.
Another trend is expanding the service portfolio of Polish outsourcing firms up the value chain—IT consulting, solution design, system integration, not just pure development. This responds to client expectations for turnkey solutions. For specialists, it means opportunities not only in coding but also in business analysis, UX design, project management, or technology consulting. The Polish IT labor market thus becomes more versatile.
In summary, outsourcing will remain a pillar of IT employment in Poland in 2026. It will provide a steady stream of international projects, stability, and diverse career paths. However, employees must be aware that in the global model, they are compared with colleagues from other countries—maintaining Poland’s position requires continuing high-quality work, efficiency, and skills. For now, Poland has an advantage: local specialists work an average of 1,929 hours per year (above the European average), are well-educated, and highly motivated. This builds the “Poland IT” brand globally, which in 2026 should continue generating contracts and investments that create jobs.
Key Specializations and Technologies by 2026
The key question for those planning their careers is: which specializations will gain importance, and which may decline? Trends from 2024–2025 provide a fairly clear picture of future competencies. The highest demand growth is seen in areas related to data and artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing, and system architecture. Increasing emphasis is also placed on roles combining technical and business skills. Here’s an overview of the most important specializations:
Artificial Intelligence and Data Analysis – unsurprisingly, AI/ML experts, data scientists, and Big Data analysts will be in high demand. Forecasts for 2026 indicate that AI and data-related professions will be among the fastest-growing. In Poland, the AI and Business Intelligence/Data categories already saw double-digit growth in job offers in 2024. Specialists are sought who can not only build models but also translate data into business insights. New roles, such as AI Prompt Engineer (language model trainer) or AI Risk Auditor, are emerging and could become common by 2026. Additionally, almost one in five IT job postings requires SQL knowledge, followed closely by Python, highlighting the importance of data analysis and automation.
Cybersecurity – with increasing digital threats and new regulations, IT security is among the most promising specializations. Job offers in the Security category in Poland rose by 39% year-on-year, the highest among all areas. Companies urgently need pentesters, security engineers, cloud security administrators, and compliance specialists to meet standards like NIS2. Professionals protecting data and systems can expect not only numerous job offers but also some of the highest salaries.
Cloud Services and DevOps – cloud migration continues. Cloud architects and Cloud Engineers are needed to design scalable infrastructures, while DevOps and Site Reliability Engineers ensure deployment automation and system continuity. The DevOps category is already among the highest-paid in Poland. By 2026, nearly every medium or large company will use cloud in some form, sustaining demand for these roles.
Software Development (changing structure) – programmers remain in demand, but the competency structure is evolving. Web developers (frontend/backend) dominated for a decade. Today, programming roles (backend, frontend, fullstack combined) account for only ~37% of job offers, compared to over 50% a few years ago. The importance of related specializations is rising: embedded (IoT), automation/robotics, system integration, and IT Product Management. A programmer who understands the entire product context is more valued than a coder focused solely on writing code. Technologies like Java, JavaScript, Python remain among the most sought-after (dominating 2025 alongside Data specializations), so proficiency is foundational. By 2026, coding skills should ideally be combined with AI tool knowledge, basic security, or analytical skills.
Green Tech and MedTech – trends outside pure IT also influence the market. The growth of the green economy (Green IT) creates demand for specialists in smart energy grids, IoT in energy, and efficiency analysis (e.g., climate data analyst). The medtech sector requires medical software engineers, medical data analysts, and experts in telemedicine and AI diagnostics. By 2026, these niches may become more mainstream in IT employment, especially as the pandemic highlighted the role of technology in healthcare and pro-ecological regulations impact the energy sector.
Which roles may decline? Mainly positions that can be automated or replaced by self-service tools. For example, manual testers have long faced automation pressure—tools like self-healing tests and AI-supported bug detection platforms mean companies are less likely to expand tester teams, investing instead in advanced testing solutions. Testers who do not develop automation skills or broaden competencies (e.g., security or performance testing) may struggle to find work. Similarly, first-line technical support roles—simple helpdesk tasks—may partially be taken over by chatbots and AI assistants, reducing demand for juniors in these areas.
The relative importance of some legacy technologies is also declining. Maintaining legacy systems (e.g., COBOL, old ERP systems) guarantees niche employment in the short term, but new projects in these technologies are decreasing. By 2026, recruitment may favor cloud engineers over traditional data center administrators. Additionally, there is a smaller share of purely frontend roles, likely due to mature interface-building tools (frameworks, component libraries, even AI-based generators). This does not mean frontend developers will disappear—they will need knowledge of UX, accessibility, and backend integration to stand out.
Finally, mid-level management roles in IT may grow more slowly than before. Years of optimization during the crisis taught companies to operate more efficiently—extensive managerial structures were reduced. By 2026, technical organizations will likely be flatter, with greater distributed responsibility within teams. For Project Managers or Scrum Masters, maintaining market relevance may require additional technical knowledge or specialization (e.g., leading AI projects rather than general ones).
In conclusion, the future belongs to flexible, highly skilled, and continuously learning specialists. Careers in AI engineering, data analysis, pentesting, cloud architecture, DevOps, or ML engineering are on an upward trajectory and worth investing in. Those in routine areas should consider reskilling—global forecasts confirm that by 2030, half of the world’s workforce will require retraining due to automation and technological change. By 2026, this wave of change will already be noticeable.
Conclusions
The IT employee perspective for 2026 presents a mix of stability and new challenges. After a period of turbulence, the Polish IT sector has returned to a growth path and seems resilient to minor shocks—most companies plan to hire or maintain staff, salaries continue to rise, and specialist unemployment remains low. Global trends—whether AI development or economic recovery—favor the tech sector, increasing demand for modern solutions and, consequently, the people who create them.
The key theme, however, is skills transformation. Employees must be prepared for continuous upskilling. Those already in the industry should invest in learning new technologies (AI, automation tools, cloud, security) to maintain their positions—fortunately, companies increasingly offer training programs, understanding the importance of talent development. Young aspirants must meet higher entry standards than a few years ago: the market prefers candidates with practical skills and awareness of current trends, even at the junior level. There is still room for new talent (junior job postings increased by 20% in 2025 year-on-year), but only the best-prepared and motivated will succeed.
Globalization and remote work make the market more competitive but also more diverse and full of opportunities. In 2026, a Polish specialist can work for any company worldwide without leaving the country—but just as easily, someone from abroad can apply for a position in Poland. Consequently, future-oriented skills—adaptability, creativity, communication, and teamwork in international settings—will matter. A global talent mindset means continuous learning from others and cross-border collaboration.
In terms of specializations, the high-tech trend is clear: security, data, AI, and cloud form the pillars of the digital economy. This does not mean traditional programmers or administrators will disappear—their roles will become part of a broader ecosystem. Coding will remain important (according to NoFluffJobs in 2024, one in five job offers still concerned backend developers) but will increasingly be integrated with business context and other skills.
In summary, the IT job market in 2026, from the employee perspective, should be relatively stable and full of opportunities for those who keep up with changes. There are no signs of collapse—rather, a continued evolution toward new technologies and work models. Current employees can look ahead with moderate optimism about their positions. Those planning an IT career should understand that the “easy gold rush” is over—the competition is global, and companies demand more—but for skilled specialists, the doors are wide open. With proper preparation and continuous skill development, 2026 could be a year of significant opportunity for Polish IT professionals, programmers, and engineers—both domestically and internationally.