After three years of intense digitisation, Australian organisations have found themselves in a tricky spot: they are now relying on digital systems to run their business and innovate at a time when tech talent has never been so scarce.
This is proving particularly challenging for digital-first start-ups and SMBs that are increasingly relying on developers. Indeed, developers are the ones creating today’s business and consumer apps, software, online services and digital products, but they’re also relatively rare talent.
Developers are taking the lead on the business stage, but skills shortages threaten the future success
The current tech skills shortage is at times high, with software development skills considered among the hardest to find, as well as one of the top five must-have skills for the remainder of 2022.
If this wasn’t enough, once developers have been hired, organisations then have to retain this talent and then in-house, which is proving incredibly difficult.
According to a recent survey, 98% of Australian IT decision-makers find it has become more difficult to retain skilled developers due to the ‘Great Resignation’, while 93% are finding it more difficult to recruit in the last two years.
Adapting to new technologies, increased workload and demand from other teams are some of the top reasons behind growing developer burnout and high churn rates.
While remuneration is important, this is not the only way to attract and retain developers.
Company culture, flexibility, career growth opportunities and more are among the reasons why developers would join and stay with a company.
Here are four ways to help find, retain and enable developer talent:
1. Change the mindset around developers within the company and recognise their contribution.
While more organisations understand the key role developers play in driving innovation and business success, most non-tech employees tend to still think of developers as the “IT guys in the back room”.
There needs to be a change of mindset so developers can start being seen by everyone as the valuable assets that they are.
Too many times, developers have reported feeling that they were not considered important or recognised. Ensuring that their contribution to the company is highlighted regularly will be a key factor in making them feel more integrated, valued and valuable.
This could be done by:
Creating a greater collaboration between developers and other teams (including the leadership team and line of business leaders)
Regularly showcasing the key role of software and digital-driven products in the company’s success and highlighting developers’ work products during quarterly business meetings, internal newsletters or other forms of communication
2. Involve developers in the broader innovation agenda and process
Involving developers early on in the innovation process and in strategic business conversations is a great way to create more balance in their job.
They aren’t here to just implement ideas that have been decided without even consulting them. Developers tend to have high critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Combined with their unique technology expertise, they can share very valuable insights that can help the company make better decisions and in some cases, avoid very costly mistakes down the road.
3. Make their life easier by investing in the right developer-friendly technology tools.
Many developers are growing frustrated by having to spend too much of their limited time managing and maintaining complex, legacy infrastructures rather than spending time on more stimulating/interesting tasks such as driving innovation.
Opting for developer-focused data platforms can help simplify previously complex tasks, improving developers’ productivity and free up more time to focus on what they enjoy doing best.
Business and technology leaders need to listen to what developers want to work with instead of imposing tools or ways of working without prior consultation, ultimately hindering developers’ productivity.
4. Offer continuous upskilling training
Tech skills are in high demand both because there simply aren’t enough tech professionals available, and technology keeps on changing, which means skills need to keep evolving.
Offering dedicated upskilling training to developers is usually seen as a great perk and a way to keep their job interesting and future-proof their careers.
Fortunately, there is much qualitative yet cheap training out there – many tech companies actually offer great courses, sometimes even for free, that come with concrete certifications.
The bottom line is that developers have become the bloodline of innovation and competitive advantage. Their role will only grow in importance with time as more digitisation takes place so ensuring they’re happy and productive in their job is really a way for organisations to future-proof their business.
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