Amplitude Research Survey Finds Technology Professionals Expect Tough Economic Times in U.S. to Continue

Business Wire, Oct 7, 2004

DETROIT -- Amplitude Research, Inc., a full-service survey research organization, today announced the results of its third annual study of the economic climate within the technology sector -- a yearly study that gauges the sentiment of IT professionals, technology company executives and other technology professionals on the health of the economy. This study is produced and managed by Amplitude Research(R) relying on survey data collected from its proprietary web panel.

The 2004 results indicate a significant decline in sentiment from the 2003 data regarding the U.S. economy with almost 60 percent of the respondents indicating the economy is in for "tough economic times for a significant number of years to come". While there is a significant improvement from the 2003 results in timing of the last pay raise, job security, and ease in finding a new job, 40 percent of the respondents believe that finding a new job would be "somewhat difficult" and 21 percent believe it would be "very difficult" or "impossible". 46 percent of the respondents have not received a raise for over a year.

"Amplitude also added a new set of questions on the subject of outsourcing of technology jobs to offshore locations such as India, China, and other foreign countries," said Stephen Birnkrant, CEO and founder of Amplitude Research. The 2004 results include 71 respondents who work for companies that currently outsource technology jobs. Birnkrant noted that "these individuals expressed very negative opinions of the impact on their compensation level and job security when responding to questions on outsourcing, but their responses to earlier, almost identical questions on the survey seem to confirm the negative attitudes only on job security."

The study was conducted over a three-week period beginning on September 10, 2004, and ending on September 30, 2004. There were 294 survey respondents, of which 65 percent have worked in the tech sector for six years or more. The margin of error was 5.70 percent at a 95 percent confidence level.

Members of the press may obtain a free copy of the 23-page study by emailing research@amplituderesearch.net. Members of the technology community may also receive a complimentary copy by enrolling at Amplitude's sign-up site located at www.ampupnow.com.

About Amplitude Research (www.amplituderesearch.com)

Based in Bingham Farms, Michigan, Amplitude Research, Inc. is a full-service survey research organization with domain expertise in survey design, survey administration, statistical reporting, and all forms of data collection. Amplitude's blue chip client list includes computer software companies, aircraft manufacturers, content management companies, financial services companies, advertising agencies, market research firms, and public and private educational institutions. Its services include market research and customer satisfaction surveys as well as in-house development of private label software solutions for its clients. Since early 2002, Amplitude has maintained an expanding, high quality panel of IT professionals available for client surveys and its own syndicated studies.