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If you works in technology, you´ve seen the headlines bemoaning the shortage of developers. The demand for skilled developers has steadily increased in recent years, but the supply has failed to keep up. The International Data Corporation (IDC) has predicted a global shortage of four million developers by 2025. If we don’t act now, the global talent shortage could result in around $8.5 trillion in unrealized annual revenue by 2030.
So what can we do about it?
Recently, I attended the SXSW festival in Austin and led a panel with industry leaders from Salesforce, Morgan Stanley, and Estée Lauder to address this question. Throughout the conversation, it became clear that our solutions must go beyond establishing a more robust job exchange at the top universities. To address the developer shortage, the entire industry must undergo a paradigm shift, prioritizing diversity, education and policy to effect change and secure the future of all tech-enabled businesses. ChatGPT will only take us so far.
Tap into new pools of talent
Tech, in particular, has drawn candidates from the same finite talent pool for decades. The problem is that this pool does not reflect the diversity of the world around us. 62% of all technical workers are white, and 75% are male. Relying on this extremely limited and homogenous source of talent has put the industry in a bind. Companies are unable to fill open positions, yet there are large groups of people shut out of the industry. What would the developer shortage look like if we expanded our talent pools to better include women, people of color, global workers, people with disabilities, and formerly incarcerated people?
We can’t keep going back to the same empty pot and expect gold to suddenly appear. We cannot expect to find 4 million new developers in 2025 from the same pool.
As leaders, we must consider groups we may have dismissed because of old prejudices and ask ourselves, “How can we create new pools of talent?”
Related: 4 Reasons Low-Code Tools Will Never Replace Software Developers
Use non-traditional methods
Encouraging a new generation of developers means that organizations must implement non-traditional methods to identify and attract talent.
First, look at your job descriptions – are they accessible to those with unconventional backgrounds? Do away with degree requirements and develop job descriptions that focus less on credentials and more on the skills needed to succeed in the role. Further train hiring managers and recruiters to unlock their biases and identify transferable skills in a candidate’s application.
Skills can be learned, but passion and creativity are much harder to come by. One can typically improve an employee in weeks or months, but changing someone’s behavior will take years at best. Don’t let false requirements like a four-year degree get in the way of hiring someone who could bring a vital prospect to your team.
We also need to consider how we can adapt our workflows to encourage inclusion and belonging. For example, the prevalence of remote work has opened up many opportunities for people living with physical disabilities. Pre-pandemic, many workplaces would not consider an applicant if they could not come to the office. Moving forward, we must educate ourselves about other areas of our work that may be unconsciously exclusionary and adapt so that all have the opportunity to contribute. It takes leadership and teams a lot of learning to get everyone on board.
Related: How software developer freelancers are filling the skills gap
Nurture the talent pool
If we only look for talent when we need them, we will likely default to old biases and hire the first developer who checks all our boxes. It is up to organizations to actively build and nurture an expanded talent pool through education, training and support.
Organizations must invest in STEM education beyond the traditional and expensive four-year degree. What can we do as businesses to expand access to technical education and accreditation? At Salesforce, they partner with schools to provide access to computers and coding classes to bring technology to students in their learning journey. There are also programs like Microsoft’s Accelerate, which provides free courses and resources to underserved communities to equip them with the necessary skills to participate in the tech industry.
However, education alone is not enough. My company recently partnered with a non-profit and a higher education institution in Brazil to help underserved communities gain access to tech jobs. Although these students had completed their degree in computer science—while holding down a full-time job in another field—many still didn’t feel confident applying for a job in tech or even creating a Linkedin profile. We quickly realized that it was essential to build a bridge from the hard skills learned in the classroom to the soft skills they need to get a job, including networking, interviewing and looking for opportunities. Getting the credentials is one thing, but if a person doesn’t know how to use it in the job market, they won’t get very far.
During the panel question, a student and young entrepreneur asked how companies can encourage and publicize developer bootcamps for young people. He suggested focusing on community-centered approaches—going into underserved communities and providing educational resources. We should not expect people to come to us, we should make the effort to reach them.
It is up to us to create holistic solutions at every step of the pipeline, providing the necessary structure, support and emotional security for marginalized groups to confidently apply for tech jobs.
Related: Why low-code platforms are the developer shortage solution people aren’t talking about
Act as an ecosystem
There is a visibility gap, not a talent gap in the developer industry. Finding non-traditional and creative approaches to identify and evaluate talent is how we can help our companies see the talent they think is missing.
We need to find solutions that help promote and develop talent from the earliest stages and connect more with initiatives with non-profit organizations that work with disadvantaged communities to create solutions that work for them and with them.
Most importantly, we will all fail if we compete to develop talent. The challenge at hand requires us to scale and scale well. We need to work together to build an ecosystem with partners in all industries – even those we might consider competitors.
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