Published on the 19/08/2026 | Written by Heather Wright

Alternative pathways, professionalism and gaming…

Australia’s technology workforce has recorded its first decline since the Australian Computer Society and Deloitte began tracking the sector, but it’s not an indicator of a slowdown in digital demand.

The latest ACS Australia’s Digital Pulse 2026 report – the 12th edition of the annual report produced with Deloitte Access Economics – found the number of technology workers fell 0.3 percent to 967,000 in 2025, marking the first contraction since the study began.

“The findings point to a technology workforce in transition, rather than decline.”

At the same time, the report says digital skills – beyond just the technology sector – are becoming a core economic asset, contributing an estimated $476 billion to the Australian economy, more than three times the $142 billion generated directly by the technology sector itself.

The report, drawn from a workforce survey of more than 1000 Australian workers including 644 tech workers and 418 workers across various industries, along with job advertisement data, statistical data and industry consultation, notes the headline figure masks a more complex story, with growth continuing in management and professional technology roles while some others declined.

Despite the decline in workforce numbers, Australia is forecast to need another 259,000 tech workers by 2035, lifting the workforce to more than 1.2 million. ACS says demand for technology capability is continuing to expand across industries well beyond the traditional ICT sector, with tech roles growing in sectors including construction, mining and healthcare.

“The findings point to a technology workforce in transition, rather than decline,” the report notes. While employment fell in technology trades, sales and admin roles, roles in technology management and professional occupations continued to grow. Technology employment also increased outside the tech sector itself, particularly in industries such as construction, mining and healthcare.

While the technology sector generated $142 billion in economic activity in FY25 and contributed more than $12 billion in exports, the report shows digital skills now have value far beyond the technology industry itself. Building on last year’s report, which highlighted the role of digital across the economy, ACS estimates digital skills applied across the workforce were worth $476 billion to the economy in 2025, with the average Australian worker now spending around three hours a day using digital skills.

In industries including financial services, professional services and telecommunications, more than half of labour value is associated with digital tasks, while even traditionally non-technical sectors such as construction, healthcare and accommodation are becoming increasingly dependent on digital capability.

“The economic importance of technology extends well beyond the output of the technology sector.”

University dreams

But employers struggling to fill tech roles may want to take a hard look at their hiring requirements, with the report also highlighting a disconnect between what employers say they want and where tech careers are actually being built.

According to the report, 40 percent of tech workers who entered the workforce over the past five years came through alternative pathways rather than traditional university routes. Those pathways included 55,000 workers who upskilled through workplace training, 44,000 who entered through industry-recognised credentials and 34,000 self-starters.

More than half of workers who reskilled into technology careers, meanwhile, entered through non-university pathways. Two in five of those successfully transitioning into tech roles did so within their existing employer.

Despite that shift, 74 percent of tech job advertisements still require a university degree.

Beau Tydd, ACS president, says the professional is already moving beyond the traditional university pipeline has already moved beyond the traditional graduate pipeline.

“Technology careers are no longer defined by a single entry point, with university and vocational education now sitting alongside workplace training, industry credentials, skilled migration and self-directed learning as important routes into the profession,” Tydd says.

Migration also remains a major contributor to workforce growth with migrants and temporary workers accounting for 20 percent of the technology workforce inflow between 2021 and 2026. The 435,100 overseas-born tech workers contributed an estimated $56 billion in wages to the economy last year.

Game on for professionalism

But as entry pathways become more varied, ACS says professionalism becomes even more important and employers need clearer and more consistent ways to assess capability, while workers need stronger and more portable signals of skill that support both recognition and progression.

Nearly 80 percent of technology workers reported completing some form of accredited training during their careers. Almost half had completed SFIA-accredited assessments. ACS modelling found workers who undertook SFIA-accredited training earned an average wage premium of 73. Percent, equivalent to about $8,600 annually for the average worker surveyed.

For ACS chief executive Dr Prins Ralston, those figures underline the importance of recognising skills gained through multiple pathways.

“University degrees, vocational education, workplace training, industry credentials, skilled migration and self-directed learning are all now part of the pipeline, with 40 percent of new technology workers entering through alternative pathways,” he says. While that diversity is a strength, he says it also creates a new challenge in finding clear and consistent ways to recognise capability, build trust and support mobility across roles, sectors and career stages.

The report also highlights gaming as a gateway to technology careers, saying it is ‘one of the most powerful and underused entry points into technology education’. Participation in school technology courses has declined, falling from 36 percent of Year 12 students in 2012 to just 20 percent in 2024. It’s urging government and industry to support teachers to use game design and development as an accessible, creative vehicle for teaching the Digital Technologies Curriculum, especially for students who don’t see themselves in STEM.