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Why is it hard to find good programmers?

It is no secret that excellent programmers are difficult to come by. Is there truly a scarcity of experienced programmers, or is it more of a recruitment problem?

Some say there is a labour shortage in the market, while others believe it is a recruitment issue. It is, in our perspective, a blend of both.

There is no doubting that the demand for technology is expanding considerably faster than programmers’ ability to generate it. Even the most brilliant programming cannot tackle the multimillion-dollar issues that develop on a daily basis. In contrast, a single blunder can cost millions of dollars.

It is not difficult to design simple software that is undeniably functional. However, it is incredibly difficult to create innovative software that functions flawlessly, integrates effectively with the technical infrastructure with which it interacts, and scales as the organisation grows.

Let’s look at some figures:

  • According to the US Department of Labor, the global deficit of software engineers might reach 85.2
  • Between 2020 and 2030, the number of positions for developers, quality assurance analysts, and testers is predicted to increase by 22% year on year.
  • Globally, companies risk losing $8.5 trillion in revenue due to a lack of skilled talent.
  • That talent shortage could result in $8.5 trillion in unrealized annual revenue by 2030.
  • According to 71% of CEOs, skills and labour shortages would be the most significant business disruption after 2022. And by the end of the decade, the digital skills gap will have cost businesses trillions of dollars.
  • On average, it took 66 days to find suitable programmers, which was 50% longer than the time it took to find other positions. It is estimated that companies lose up to $680 in profits for every day a position remains unfilled.

Why is it so hard to find a developer who is a good fit for your business?

1. Soft skills add an extra layer of difficulty

Companies are increasingly searching for workers with additional soft skills in addition to being able to write code. Programmers must have a diverse set of soft skills, such as communication and teamwork, whereas project managers and team leaders must have strong leadership abilities as well as considerable technical expertise.

2. Over-specialisation.

According to Indeed, the issue is not so much with recruiting people as it is with relatively few really meeting the qualifications. There are up to twice as many candidates for technical posts as there are for other occupations.

In other words, it is not attributable to a shortage of IT talent. Year after year, the number of persons joining the IT profession triples. Rather, there is a talent deficit with specific skill combinations that organisations are searching for because the IT area is so wide.

There are now at least 700 programming languages, and this number is rising. While some are more popular than others, we are left with at least 20 or 30 languages in great demand, with knowledge of these languages dispersed among many programmers.

Knowing how to program is not enough; programmers must also understand the processor’s architecture and how it affects the performance of the code, among other factors.

3. The best in-house programmers are generally rather costly.

Budget is another important consideration. You can definitely employ any competent in-house developer you want if you’re a Silicon Valley tech company that can afford to hire amazing individuals and train them in software boot camps.

However, whether you’re a startup or even a larger firm that isn’t a tech behemoth, funding will always be an issue.

4. Recruiters do not have a thorough understanding of the characteristics of the technological profile

If all of the above considerations weren’t enough to make identifying the ideal applicant challenging, there’s more: Often, buzzwords like ‘Hadoop,’ ‘MapReduce jobs,’ ‘Pig Latin scripts,’ ‘hive QL,’ ‘Loading data tools,’ and so on are essentially keywords that signify nothing to recruiters. As a consequence, all keywords have the same weight.

If recruiters are in a hurry to fill positions, they will contact individuals who have one or two of these keywords on their CV. Though they are not in a hurry to hire, they will reject individuals who do not have most of the keywords on their CV, even if those abilities are reasonably straightforward to learn.

5. Localisation – where demand for developers is high

It is vital to highlight that the regions where the large tech businesses are headquartered consume all of the available talent in the area, forcing the other companies to go elsewhere for alternatives.

6. You cannot be good at just one aspect of talent management and expect to succeed

Meeting the need for IT expertise is becoming a multifaceted challenge. Finding excellent talent will not assist you if they do not want to work with you, and recruiting great talent will not help if they leave fast. Companies must spend concurrently across the ‘hire to retire’ lifetime.

Where and how can I get qualified programmers without spending thousands of dollars on recruitment?

The talent pool may appear to be shrinking, especially if you confine yourself to employing in-house and/or internal workers with university degrees.

What if you cast a broader net, making your search worldwide and hiring based on strategic skill rather than pedigree?

Employers might be averse to improving their working models when remote working already provides the circumstances required to locate highly devoted, qualified developers in other sectors, which is a significant part of the problem. Furthermore, remote working allows you complete recruiting freedom.

Simply Talented specialises in assisting startups and businesses in locating individuals with the necessary abilities.

 

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