October 5, 2024

Pierreloti Chelsea

Latest technological developments

The most valuable software developer skills to get hired now

The most valuable software developer skills to get hired now

As one of the few true growth areas of the past decade, software development is a constantly in-demand skill which spans a whole host of roles, disciplines and frameworks. Deciding which of those will place you in the best possible position to reap the benefits can feel a little like shaking a Magic 8 Ball, but there are some industry trends that will help you make shrewd skills investments.

This is especially important as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to badly impact the global job market. As of September 2020, more than 14 million Americans had filed for unemployment benefits and the US IT sector shed more than 320,000 jobs in July and August, according to a report by CompTIA.

[ Also on InfoWorld: Black developers tell how the US tech industry could do better ]

In the UK alone, the number of advertised software developer and software engineering roles were both down 33% in July 2020 compared to the previous year, according to job board CV-Library.

Looking beyond the pandemic, the number of software developers globally should rebound, meaning the competition for talent is only due to get fiercer. There were 23 million software developers in 2018 according to Evans Data Corporation analysis, with that number expected to reach 27.7 million by 2023, before being adjusted for the pandemic.

With that being the lay of the land, which developer skills are the most valuable in today’s market? We have pored through the data to find the most bankable developer skills for the coming years and how best to set yourself up for success in the fraught current job market.

Don’t put your eggs in one basket

Developers are often judged and assessed on their proficiency with certain programming languages and frameworks, but it is important to remember that these are transferrable skills.

Copyright © 2021 IDG Communications, Inc.