Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, and Apple, generally called as the Big Four, are many tech professionals’ dream firms. Engineers and other competent persons have been vying for jobs at one of these renowned US-based IT behemoths since graduation. However, after successfully joining one of these firms, the issue that frequently arises is: how do these individuals determine which company to pursue next, and which of the Big Four is regarded as the most desired after obtaining expertise in one of them?
A recent Switch on Business analysis of employee migration in the tech industry indicated that Google is the most sought-after destination for former Apple employees. Surprisingly, the pattern is reciprocal, with Google employees routinely making the switch to Apple. However, the majority of Apple employees do not come from Google; instead, they have prior job experience at Intel, Microsoft, or Amazon.
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Switch on Business used LinkedIn employee profiles to conduct a study to see which tech titans attract the greatest talent from their competition. The team began by calculating the current staff numbers for the following IT firms: Google (Alphabet), Amazon, Meta, Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Tesla, Oracle, Netflix, Nvidia, Salesforce, Adobe, Intel, and Uber. Following that, for each pair of firms, they selected workers from the first list who presently work for one tech giant and previously had roles at the other.
Following data collection, the team assessed the number and proportion of current workers at each tech behemoth who had past work experience at other tech behemoths. This extensive data allowed the analysts to discover the most common career trajectories among IT titans.
The analysis then revealed that, among the major tech companies, Meta has the largest percentage of employees with previous work experience at another tech giant, with 26.51 percent of its workforce having previously worked at another tech giant. Google, on the other hand, has recruited the most tech talent overall, with 24.15 percent of its current workers previously working at another tech business. IBM, on the other hand, has the lowest percentage of employees with past tech major experience, with only 2.28 percent coming from other tech businesses.
When it comes to hiring personnel, Apple favors people from a certain set of 10 tech companies: Intel, Microsoft, Amazon, Google, IBM, Tesla, Nvidia, Oracle, Meta and Adobe
According to the data, Apple’s predilection for employing Intel personnel is most likely owing to the company’s 2019 acquisition of Intel’s smartphone modem division. This decision is consistent with Apple’s ambition of building its own radio chips. When it comes to staff leaving Apple, Google comes in first, followed by Amazon. Google’s appeal to leave Apple employees illustrates the two businesses’ continuing talent war. Google, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Tesla, Nvidia, Salesforce, Adobe, Intel, and Oracle are the top 10 destinations for exiting Apple employees.
However, the data suggests that, unlike other tech behemoths, Apple seeks talent through internal talent development and non-tech recruiting. This strategy reflects Apple’s distinct company culture and emphasis on developing a domestic workforce.
Meanwhile, Google, although actively recruiting Apple personnel as a high priority, also reaches out to other tech behemoths such as Microsoft. According to statistics, Google receives an amazing two million job applications every year, with around 12,018 persons with prior Microsoft expertise being hired. Microsoft’s long-standing reputation for industry leadership and innovation has provided its workers with unique knowledge and skill in cutting-edge technologies and software development, making them highly sought-after hires.
In terms of leaving Google, the study finds that Meta is likewise the most popular destination for Google employees looking for new chances, with 3,363 people making the switch.
