Report shows increasing demand for Linux and open source tech talent
The seventh annual report released in June by The Linux Foundation and Dice.com shows that demand for Linux coding talent is making it one of the most sought-after open source skills currently on the job market.
The 2018 Open Source Jobs Report examines trends in open source careers, which skills are most in demand, motivation for open source professionals, and how employers attract and retain qualified talent.
“Hiring skilled technology professionals remains a real pain point for employers, and our report shows newer skills like containers are growing in popularity, putting more pressure on organizations to find good talent to carry out necessary projects,” said Art Zeile, President and CEO of DHI Group, Inc., parent company of Dice.
According to the 2018 Open Source Jobs Report, the need for open source technology skills are on the rise and companies and organizations continue to increase their recruitment of open source technology talent, while offering additional training and certification opportunities for existing staff in order to fill skills gaps.
“Open source technology talent is in high demand, as Linux and other open source software dominates software development,” said Linux Foundation Executive Director Jim Zemlin. “I am encouraged that companies are recognizing more and more each day that open source technology is the way to advance their businesses.”
After a hiatus, Linux skills are back on top as the most sought-after skill with 80% of hiring managers looking for tech professionals with Linux expertise.
Additionally, 55 percent of employers are now also offering to pay for employee certifications, up from 47 percent in 2017 and only 34 percent in 2016.
“The Linux Foundation, our members and the open source ecosystem are focused on ensuring training and certification opportunities are highly accessible to everyone who wants to seek them out and we are supporting the developer community and its growth in every possible way,” said Zemlin.
Eighty-seven percent of hiring managers report difficulty finding open source talent, and nearly half (48 percent) report their organizations have begun to support open source projects with code or other resources for the explicit reason of recruiting individuals with those software skills.
The annual report features data from more than 750 hiring managers at corporations, small and medium businesses (SMBs), government organizations, and staffing agencies across the globe—as well as responses from more than 6,500 open source professionals worldwide.
Additional key findings from the 2018 Open Source Jobs Report include:
- Hiring open source talent is a priority for 83% of hiring managers, an increase from 76% in 2017.
- Containers are rapidly growing in popularity and importance, with 57% of hiring managers seeking that expertise, up from only 27% last year.
- There’s a gulf between the views of hiring managers and open source pros on the effectiveness of efforts to improve diversity in the industry, with only 52% of employees seeing efforts as effective compared to 70% of employers.
- Hiring managers are moving away from hiring outside consultants, increasingly opting to train existing employees on new open source technologies and help them gain certifications.
- Many organizations are getting involved in open source with the express purpose of attracting developers.
Search for Linux and open source careers and more on Careerlink.
