Technology jobs stayed open for 24.7 working days in December 2015, according to the new DHI-DFH Mean Vacancy Duration measure. That’s down from 27.5 working days in November. The measure is based on the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) in the United States, which marks openings as “filled” when a job offer for an open position is accepted. (There is usually a lag between the job’s “fill date” and when the new hire actually starts, which would potentially skew the measure if incorporated.) The Mean Vacancy Duration measure is part of the DHI Hiring Indicators, produced by DHI Group and Dr. Steven Davis, a professor of international business and economics at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. What does this data mean for tech pros? Take the vacancy rate along with the tech unemployment rate—which hit 2.4 percent in January, down from 3.6 percent in December—and it’s clear that there’s considerable demand for talent, especially in “hot” categories such as software development and tech consulting. With tech salaries on the rise, employers also want to feel assured that they’re spending money on the right candidate, which may contribute to the length of vacancies.