A new report looking into the issue of brain drain - where talent is being forced out of IT-based companies due to certain changes to business or technological structure - has been released.

The IT Job Board revealed that 76 per cent of people interviewed in the new poll said they believed such an occurrence would rise in frequency this year, with many attributing the situation to offshoring, contract rate reductions and long-term career prospects.

This is creating a strange environment for small businesses in IT and other factions, according to Adam Stokes, the operations manager at the organisation.

In a separate interview, he explained: "Since the dotcom bubble burst, the majority of IT departments have proved how going online can reduce costs and increase value, and management has witnessed this happening."

Luckily for IT support workers, the trade is an easily transferable skill, with Mr Stokes adding: "The majority of programming is also in English, which is another reason for UK techies to be able to move abroad."

In a recent survey of SMEs for Connect, the two most important benefits of outsourcing were guaranteed response times and allowing in-house IT staff to concentrate on more strategic issues.