Trends in software development careers
KRS has been busy getting out and about in the past two months. In April the team engaged with around 500 first year Computer Science students at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) exploring possible career alternatives and presenting what is currently available to them, and then at the beginning of May, some Agile lessons from the trenches with the Honours students at UCT.
In a previous newsletter we made mention of the divide between academic life and the real working world. The world of technology morphs and changes at an increasingly fast pace, so it is no wonder that tertiary education is often behind commercial needs. In order to prepare for the technology jobs of the future, a great deal of upskilling needs to happen.
Here are six of the key career trends currently on offer:
Mind your language – the number of commercially based programming languages has grown exponentially in the past five years. This means that today’s software engineer needs to be conversant in more than just a couple and there is quite a selection to choose from – Java, C#, Python, Scala, Ruby, Javascript, Objective-C , PHP and hundreds more.
Mobile – like programming languages, application developers need to be comfortable with iOS, Android and Windows Mobile. With Google’s new algorithm ranking websites that have a strong mobile presence higher than those without, there is already a big demand for adaptable app developers.
Thinking outside of the box – the organisation of data – knowing what it is and what to do with it and how to get the most out of it. IT Managers and Systems Analysts’ jobs increased over 100% on average in 2014 and this will expand as data itself gets bigger. Big data skills are big buck items.
Up, up and away – as we become more mobile and with multiple devices, there will be an increased requirement for seamless connectivity and streaming between each. Therefore skills that take account of developments in cloud computing (incorporating storage and security) will become prevalent.
DevOps – sounding more like a covert operative, bridging the gap between the developer and the operational deployment of the newly created software is becoming vital. Development Operational Engineers are a new breed of high income earners, particularly if they combine knowledge and experience of the cloud and modern scripting languages.
Stylish systems sell – the user interface, what it looks like and how it works is as much if not more, important, than the inner workings of the software itself. User Interface (UI) Designers and Usability (UX) experts will work together to integrate enterprise and consumer applications and programmes. If you can judge a book by its cover, then you can a software programme.