The digital age has ushered in an unprecedented demand for software developers across all industries, as organizations increasingly rely on technology to drive growth and innovation. This surge in demand, however, is starkly contrasted by the persistent challenge companies face in filling software developer positions with suitable candidates. According to several polls, most hiring managers feel it’s challenging to find and hire good software developers. Major tech hubs, such as New York City and San Francisco, echo this trend with thousands of unfilled positions, signaling a deep-seated challenge in the recruitment and retention of top tech talent.
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Contact Us Today!This paradox of high demand and hiring difficulty is not merely a localized issue; reports indicate a worsening global shortage of qualified developers. For instance, a November 2024 Gartner report suggests that the acceleration of AI adoption will leave 70% of IT leaders struggling to fill roles. The difficulty in finding and hiring good developers has become a significant bottleneck, impacting project timelines, innovation, and overall business competitiveness. The increasing competition has consequently pushed companies to re-evaluate their recruitment strategies, with many turning to innovative approaches like nearshore outsourcing and a greater emphasis on skills-based hiring to navigate this challenging landscape.
This blog post will delve deeper into these multifaceted challenges, exploring the key contributing factors behind the difficulty in hiring good developers and examining potential strategies to overcome these hurdles.
A “good software developer” is defined by a balance of technical proficiency, domain expertise, and soft skills. At the core, technical problem-solving ability enables developers to design efficient, scalable solutions. This includes not only writing functional code but ensuring it is resilient, maintainable, and accompanied by artifacts like automated tests, monitoring tools, and documentation.
For instance, a “good” solution minimizes future failures, simplifies debugging, and anticipates edge cases, whereas a “bad” (and that’s not the best term, “inexperienced” is probably better) developer will give you a pile of code that seems to work with the limited amount of input its author expected, but will do nothing but churn out bugs and fall over otherwise. When it does, the people tasked with maintaining it have to spend a lot of time answering for themselves “what is this thing even doing”. It goes downhill from there.
Both a good and bad developer can fit a solution to a problem. The difference is that the good developer’s solution will be less likely to fall over, can be diagnosed with a minimum of effort when it does, and the difficulty of forward maintenance is minimized/reduced. It is more likely to contain a number of other artifacts as well: sensible monitoring metrics, a suite of tests to tell the next person if/when they break something, documentation, a rollout/deployment plan, etc.
Deep domain expertise—a thorough understanding of specific tools, industries, or systems—is a hallmark of true competence. Developers with this knowledge can effectively navigate trade-offs and anticipate long-term consequences, significantly reducing the risk of costly revisions.
Equally critical are soft skills, as building software is not a solo sport but rather a collaborative effort. Having excellent technical skills is not much use if you can’t function well as a team player, in fact it can be detrimental to the team as a whole. A developer who communicates clearly, adapts to feedback, and mentors peers enhances team productivity. Poor collaboration, even with technical brilliance, risks creating friction or unmaintainable “code silos.”
The definition of “good” is subjective and shaped by hiring practices. Companies like FAANG use Leetcode-style interviews to assess algorithmic prowess, favoring candidates who solve complex problems under time constraints. Critics argue this prioritizes exam-like preparation over real-world skills, pushing developers who lack such training to roles with “easier” interviews.
Ultimately, the market reflects a scarcity of developers excelling in all three areas. Technical excellence alone follows a normal distribution, with top performers often absorbed by elite firms. However, blanket statements like “good developers are hard to find” ring hollow without context—the term’s ambiguity masks specific skill gaps. A “good” developer isn’t just technically adept but delivers holistic, team-oriented solutions that endure beyond initial deployment.
There are many challenges that companies face when trying to hire quality talent, especially when it comes to hiring good developers. It takes a lot of time and resources, and even then, there’s no guarantee you’ll get the right person. Several interconnected factors contribute to this complex hiring landscape.
Let’s explore some of them.
It is well known that the IT sector suffers from a severe talent shortage. There are many fresh graduates in the software engineering field, however, not enough of them have the necessary skills required to be in demand. The term “software developer” is a broad one that covers a broad range of technologies and localities. As a result, businesses frequently require people with specialized skill sets, such as fluency in a certain language or understanding of a particular industry (e.g. fintech).
The competition for developers with expertise in high-demand areas like AI, cloud computing, and full-stack development is intense, with companies vying for a limited pool of talent. This suggests a fundamental mismatch between the available talent and the industry’s needs.
This difficulty is further compounded by the rapidly evolving nature of technology, where proficiency in emerging areas like generative AI and blockchain is increasingly sought after. Many candidates may possess foundational knowledge but lack the practical experience in these cutting-edge technologies.
Although there may be candidates for positions in these industries, it does not always follow that they possess the necessary abilities. The market is overinflated by people who only did a bootcamp, know how to write a bit of js and learnt a couple of css tricks but are totally lost when you mention things like a queue or a stack. Furthermore, due to their being in such great demand, most of the top-tier developers are already working.
Hiring skilled software developers takes more time, skills, and patience compared to other roles. The entire process, from publishing the job post, screening candidates, conducting technical interviews, to the developer joining the team, can stretch months. This duration can increase due to delays like notice periods at their current jobs.
There are two key reasons for this. Firstly, the number of available developer candidates is smaller than the number of applicants for other positions. This means it often takes longer before companies receive any interest in their job listings.
Once potential candidates are found, extra effort is needed to ensure they are the right fit for the role and the company. Since developers have access to sensitive business data and resources and are under pressure to meet business goals, companies invest time in making sure they find the best match. This careful approach is crucial for long-term success, even if it means a more prolonged hiring process.
Another significant challenge in tech hiring is the lack of requisite tech expertise in the existing members of a team. Understanding tech is crucial when evaluating developers, and a lack of this understanding can often lead to lowered standards. Even HR departments of large companies might lack the required technical proficiency to evaluate developers, which can lead to poor hires and lost opportunities.
One of the biggest challenges in hiring developers is finding candidates with the right skills. There is a tendency in the industry to apply to positions for which the candidate has no really any relevant experience and that makes the hiring manager skimming through a large amount of “bad” CVs. It basically means that the majority of candidates don’t meet the bar that companies set for a given opening.
Either resumes are garbage/irrelevant, or if they make it through initial screening, they’re unable to demonstrate sufficient technical or communication ability to a technical interviewer. This could be anything from stuff like having trouble with basic syntax to demonstrating insufficient leadership experience for senior roles. You would be surprised of how many people aren’t able to solve a simple problem or think through it in a straight way when we get to the interview (I am referring to things like writing a function that merges two sorted arrays into one).
In our experience, it’s fairly common for candidates to attempt to “bite more than they can chew”, e.g. applying to technical lead positions that require 10+ years of experience as a mid-level engineer, and then getting rejected due to the bar at that level being higher than at a level that would actually be appropriate for them. Doesn’t help that many companies give out inflated titles like candy, and candidates come into interviews with distorted expectations of what is expected of that level, oblivious that there is a correspondingly steep increase in expectations to go with that high level.
The challenge here is that there aren’t enough skilled developers to go around, creating a kind of talent tug-of-war.
The tech industry is rife with thousands of companies vying for the same skilled individuals, all of which offer different employee benefits, perks, salaries, and job roles—no two are going to be exactly the same. This gets even trickier when big tech giants join in—they have more resources to attract the best candidates. This is why it’s a common occurrence that techies will turn down a role as they’ve been offered a better opportunity elsewhere—and who can blame them?
Moreover, developers’ expectations regarding compensation, remote work options, and company culture have also shifted, requiring companies to offer more competitive and comprehensive packages to attract the right talent. Software developers are now largely in possession of the good cards, therefore businesses must dazzle to stand out. Return to Office (RTO) mandates don’t help. Posting job postings with unclear compensation packages and the work of two people certainly doesn’t. We find that in some of the situations where the question “Why can’t I find a good developer?” is asked it would be more accurate to ask “Why can’t we find a senior developer who wants to work for a junior developer salary?”
Hiring can also be difficult due to the behaviour of candidates. Some candidates may not be loyal to the offers they receive and may use an offer from one company to negotiate a better one from another. Many new-age workers, especially GenZs and millennials, switch jobs frequently, much more than older workers. This means companies invest months in training, only to see their employees leave in a couple of years. Replacing an employee can cost a company up to 9 months’ salary!
So, what can you do to attract top tech talent and then importantly, retain them?
Most of the time it comes down to company culture and employee benefits. For example, the most popular benefits include the ability to work remotely (as in recent times this has become more favored) and the chance to maintain a work-life balance. The majority of developers are employed and not actively seeking a new role. However, techies are curious about new opportunities—which is where they browse certain platforms for the discovery of roles and companies.
In a 2018 Jobvites Recruiter Nation survey, it was reported that up to 75% of recruiters met with candidates who didn’t take the offer. 53% of this was because they were offered a much better package elsewhere. High salary demands by software developers can mostly be attributed location, seniority, and tech stack.
Professional platforms like LinkedIn will also tell you that RTO mandates repel software developers who prefer to work remotely since the nature of their work allows them to. Remote talent is the way to go in this competitive market. You can hire talented nearshore developers from Latin America. This will save your company a lot of time and money compared to local hiring.
Another fantastic solution is to use contractual employees. They can help you meet your product goals quickly. They can also offer the flexibility you need to adapt to changing market needs. Also, you can save on overhead costs like benefits and office space.
There are a number of ways through which a software developer can be hired. However, there are only a few companies that will provide experienced and talented software developers that are rigorously vetted and chosen to best suit a company’s requirements.
Next Idea Tech has been in the tech game for over a decade now. We continue to help those in need of talented software developers. Next Idea Tech has helped many famous names in the tech industry to satisfy their needs of software developers and continues to do so amidst a global recession, big tech layoffs, and other labor market shocks.
Hiring from Next Idea Tech is fairly easy. All you are required to do is book an appointment, and wait till you are connected with a tech expert to help you through the process. You heard it right: you will be connected with a tech expert, and not an HR person to help you find what you are looking for to ensure your demands (tech and business) are being well understood.
You are then matched with a developer or a software development team that falls right into your criteria of needs. Schedule a consultation today to learn more.
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