Though only 10% of IT and technology leaders reported concerns about being laid off themselves (see figure 7), their levels of concern about departmental and institutional layoffs were slightly higher (at 20% and 31%, respectively).

Only about a third of respondents (36%) agreed that they are able to create new positions at their institutions, but more than half (56%) agreed that they are able to successfully hire into existing positions and an even stronger two-thirds (66%) that they are able to retain talent (see figure 8). These latter two percentages are marked improvements over previous years' surveys. In our 2021 IT Workforce survey, only 31% of respondents agreed that they were able to successfully hire for needed IT positions and just 44% agreed that they were able to retain needed IT talent.

Budget changes to respondents' departments or units are varied, with a roughly even balance of respondents reporting that their budget has either decreased (37%), not changed (30%), or increased (33%) (see figure 9). In contrast, an EDUCAUSE QuickPoll conducted in October 2020, a period of heightened disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic, found that nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents were reporting IT budget decreases. Indeed, with the current budget data and the above workforce hiring and retention data, this survey's findings might even be cause for cautious optimism about the trajectory of the higher education IT and technology leadership workforce.

For the still sizeable portion of respondents reporting both staffing issues and budget decreases at their institution, however, these challenges become more entangled and concerning the closer we look. Where budgets are decreasing, respondents are also far less likely to report being able to create new positions and far more likely to report concern about both departmental and institutional layoffs (see figure 10). Respondents at smaller institutions are significantly more likely to report budget decreases for their department or unit (47%, compared to 28% of respondents from larger institutions) and far less likely to report being able to create new positions (26%, compared to 41% of respondents from larger institutions).

Staffing issues are certain to have negative implications for employees' quality of work and quality of life, and indeed our data bear this out. A full 61% of respondents experiencing staffing issues at their institution reported that these issues have had "some" or "a lot" of a negative impact on their department or unit's ability to maintain its regular services and operations (see figure 11).

Respondents experiencing staffing issues are also far more likely to report excessive workloads and burnout and are significantly more likely to apply to other positions in the next 12 months (see figure 12). In short, for some institutions staffing and budget challenges are eroding quality and well-being from within and perhaps portend deeper concerns for the institution's long-term success and survival.

What might institutions do to address their current or potential staffing issues? Respondents, not surprisingly, suggested increases in both salaries (85%) and departmental budgets (56%), solutions that simply may not be possible for under-resourced institutions faced with staffing issues precisely because they are unable to offer competitive salaries or boost their departmental budgets (see figure 13).

Other solutions highlighted by our respondents, however, might be somewhat more feasible and might not strain institutions' budgets. Growing the institution's workforce from within—offering existing staff opportunities for promotion (55%) and opportunities for upskilling and reskilling (43%)—could help retain staff looking for opportunities to advance and grow professionally without needing to leave. And continuing to support the benefits of flexibility discovered through the COVID-19 pandemic—offering hybrid or remote work options (43%) and providing flexible location, hours, and even roles (40%)—may go far in attracting and retaining staff who place a premium on work–life balance and well-being, topics to which we will now turn.