US-based IT companies are facing a serious shortage of skilled professionals, and a leading American CEO is urging for a major increase in the H-1B visa program to meet the rising demand. Veritas CEO Bill Coleman emphasized that Silicon Valley heavily supports expanding the H-1B visa system, which is heavily utilized by Indian tech firms, due to the lack of qualified talent in the US.
“We simply can’t find enough skilled workers here. Everyone is competing for the same limited talent, which is driving salaries extremely high,” Coleman said.
A veteran of Silicon Valley with around 40 years of experience, Coleman noted that major companies like Apple, Google, and Facebook have thousands of job openings, but struggle to fill them. This talent shortage has led to intense competition and skyrocketing pay for roles like data scientists.
Recently appointed as CEO of Veritas—following its $7.4 billion acquisition by The Carlyle Group—Coleman is preparing to expand operations in India, where the company already employs about 1,700 people, primarily in Pune. He mentioned plans to relocate some facilities from Florida to India, marking it as a top priority.
The H-1B visa allows US companies to employ foreign professionals in specialized roles, but recent increases in visa fees have created challenges for firms reliant on international talent, especially Indian IT companies.
Despite a recovering US economy and unemployment rates falling below five percent, the demand for skilled IT professionals continues to outpace local supply. As a result, Coleman and other tech leaders are pushing for policy changes to support growth and innovation in the tech industry.
