Research: Croatian developers are not happy at work! Here's what they want...
Posted: Thu Feb 13, 2025 7:06 am
Programmers' Day is celebrated on the 256th day of the year. Usually it's September 13th, but since this year is a leap year, it's today, September 12th.
On this occasion, we are publishing the results of a survey on the job satisfaction of Croatian developers and their expectations from employers, conducted by Jelena Jelušić , HR and Employer Branding consultant, and Master of Psychology Monika Pejić , in collaboration with Netokracija.
When our sister publication ShiftMag recently pulled data from StackOverflow's vk database annual survey that 80% of developers are unhappy at work , it made a splash! The article was picked up by leading global publications and newsletters that cater to developers, and there was no shortage of comments on Reddit .
We were, of course, very interested in what the situation was like back home. If global developers say that even farmers are happier than them, are our ceramicists happier than us ?
Three years and several rounds of layoffs later…
It turned out – they almost did!
And they are much more dissatisfied than in the spring of 2021, when we last felt how they were breathing with a similar survey . Jelena comments:
The biggest difference compared to 2021 is the significant drop in those who are satisfied with their job . Then there were 72%, this year there are 52%.
Developers were then "sought after, pampered, cared for and spoiled" - companies employed 50, 100 or 200 programmers per year, and they fought for them with generous benefits and working conditions, and remote work was a given.
Three years and several rounds of layoffs, budget cuts, sitting on the bench or losing projects later, developers – and employers – are in a completely different relationship today.
On this occasion, we are publishing the results of a survey on the job satisfaction of Croatian developers and their expectations from employers, conducted by Jelena Jelušić , HR and Employer Branding consultant, and Master of Psychology Monika Pejić , in collaboration with Netokracija.
When our sister publication ShiftMag recently pulled data from StackOverflow's vk database annual survey that 80% of developers are unhappy at work , it made a splash! The article was picked up by leading global publications and newsletters that cater to developers, and there was no shortage of comments on Reddit .
We were, of course, very interested in what the situation was like back home. If global developers say that even farmers are happier than them, are our ceramicists happier than us ?
Three years and several rounds of layoffs later…
It turned out – they almost did!
And they are much more dissatisfied than in the spring of 2021, when we last felt how they were breathing with a similar survey . Jelena comments:
The biggest difference compared to 2021 is the significant drop in those who are satisfied with their job . Then there were 72%, this year there are 52%.
Developers were then "sought after, pampered, cared for and spoiled" - companies employed 50, 100 or 200 programmers per year, and they fought for them with generous benefits and working conditions, and remote work was a given.
Three years and several rounds of layoffs, budget cuts, sitting on the bench or losing projects later, developers – and employers – are in a completely different relationship today.