1. Talent Insights
Talent Pool Report
Technical Salespeople
Technical Salespeople September 2012
Executive Summary Where should you look for talent?
Did you know that a technical salesperson living in the SF • Hidden Gems: These mid-sized markets have relatively
Bay Area is over three times more likely to be contacted lower demand, meaning hiring is likely to be easier
by a recruiter than a technical salesperson living in Austin
• High-Demand: These are the largest markets, where
or Denver? LinkedIn data shows that:
overall demand is also highest and hiring may be difficult
• There are over 378,000 total technical salespeople
• Saturated: These small to mid-sized markets also have
throughout the United States
very high demand, meaning hiring is likely to be difficult
• The SF Bay Area has the biggest population of
technical salespeople, but also has the highest demand
of any market
Region Quadrant
• Medium, lower-demand markets like Atlanta, Dallas, 100
Los Angeles, and Austin are likely to offer untapped 90 SATURATED HIGH-DEMAND
sources of talent 80
San Francisco Bay
• Professionals with skills to sell cloud, enterprise, and 70
analytical software are in high demand
60
• While this pool is driven primarily by excellent New York City
compensation and benefits, and good work-life 50
Washington D.C.
balance they differ from other talent in that they Chicago
value organizations that produce innovative products 40
Demand Index
Boston
and services Houston
30
Seattle Dallas/Fort Worth
Philadelphia Atlanta
Minneapolis/St. Paul Los Angeles
Orange County, CA
Denver
Austin
Overview 20
Phoenix, AZ
A world of insights can be gathered from LinkedIn’s
175 million members - the world’s largest professional
network. Technology-sector recruiters are searching heavily
for the terms “Sales” and “Account Management”, showing
that the market for technical sales talent is one of the hottest
HIDDEN GEMS
in the US. LinkedIn recruiter activity and member data can 10
be used to determine supply and demand for technical 2,000 5,000 10,000 20,000 50,000
salespeople. A higher demand index means that the Supply (# Professionals)
average professional in a region is receiving more contact
from recruiters than peers in other regions.
Which skills are in short supply?
Demand based on recruiter activity on LinkedIn
Recruiter activity can also highlight which skills are in high
Large, high-demand demand. For technical salespeople, our data shows that
regions
expertise with skills like analytics, ERP, digital media and
SaaS is highly sought after on LinkedIn. Professionals with
these skills are up to 3x more likely to be contacted by a
DEMAND
recruiter. Therefore, expect to spend more time filling
Large, low-demand positions that require these skills.
regions “Hidden Gems”
SUPPLY
Number of talent pool members in each region
