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There is no shortage of software developers

news.ycombinator.com

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There is no shortage of software developers

#1

Post by SQL2219 »

There are only ridiculous job descriptions that are not rooted in reality, and pay ranges that are not competitive. example: Must have 3-5 years experience with a technology that has only been around for 2 years. Must know every language under the sun etc. HR people who screen resumes who have no clue about technology.

I don't write this out of frustration looking for employment, I am writing this out of frustration of being on the inside trying to hire people from within an organization.

Re: There is no shortage of software developers

#2

Post by MichaelCrawford »

A common problem is that the use of staffing firms - recruiters - has led to the common requirement that new hires "hit the ground running" because employers don't want to train someone after paying a recruiter $30,000.00 to find them.

No one seems to believe that I have skills that I've learned from a book, and by writing code on my own, so it doesn't help to invest in my own training.

There are many reasons for the perceived - and yes it is only perceived - shortage of software developers. When I was starting out it was easy to find all the employers, just look up "computer programming" in the yellow pages.

I'm working to index all the world's computer employers at http://www.warplife.com/jobs/computer/ It is just barely started but there are substantial listings for New York City, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco. I have many more written down that I have yet to post; I'm also working on some automated tools.

Re: There is no shortage of software developers

#3

Post by mattbillenstein »

I think you're wrong, it's definitely hard to find competent software engineers. The existence of Hack Reactor and friends are evidence of this -- entire businesses predicated on a supply of dev talent that doesn't meet demand.

But, I think these businesses typically fail to turn out competent software engineers and are really just making a buck off of otherwise smart people who are too focused on the allure of a six-figure software engineering salary. And thus, they don't really help close the talent gap anyway since they are turning out people with just enough software development knowledge to get past a recruiter and into an interview.

Re: There is no shortage of software developers

#4

Post by CyberFonic »

I'm confused by your post.

If you are on the inside, then why can't you write job descriptions that are "real"?

The problem of ridiculous job descriptions can only be addressed if team leaders, technical leads, etc make a stand and demand that job descriptions be kept real. Pushing back against clueless PHBs needs to become ever more widespread.

Re: There is no shortage of software developers

#5

Post by CyberFonic »

mattbillenstein wrote: post #3

I think you're wrong, it's definitely hard to find competent software engineers. The existence of Hack Reactor and friends are evidence of this -- entire businesses predicated on a supply of dev talent that doesn't meet demand. But, I think these businesses typically fail to turn out competent software engineers and are really just making a buck off of otherwise smart people who are too focused on the allure of a six…

Finding competent software engineers is like trying to find a needle in a haystack - simple because anybody can claim to be a programmer. Just imagine if anybody could claim to be a dentist!

Formal training and certification bodies is not the answer. Just look at the vendor sponsored certification programs. Instead we need some sort of peer review and rating process. Pushing back against clueless managers is a good start.

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