IT Hiring Trends in 2022: Your Guide to Hiring In-Demand Software Developers

The coronavirus pandemic has forced people and businesses to switch to digital work, and it is expected to stay higher than ‘‘normal’’ in the future.

Massive business digitalization trends have led to increased demand for quality developers worldwide. Companies need quality tech specialists to help them level up their businesses and go online, but they face a great challenge. There is a huge lack of quality developers out there. According to the report, more than 85 million jobs could go unfilled by 2030 because there aren’t enough skilled people to take them.

Due to this situation and a tendency to hire remote employees, the hiring trends are also being changed. So, how to successfully find and recruit tech talent in 2022, where to look for and what to consider? In this article, we’ll show you the trends and solutions to help you hire the right software developers for your needs.

IT Market Situation in 2022

Businesses have started to rely more and more on internet-based operations, which has caused the demand for software engineers to rise.

For example, eCommerce is expected to have substantial progress, growing 22% by 2023, according to Statista. According to the IBV survey, 66% of global banking executives said that traditional value chains are being replaced with new digital solutions. Global digital transformation spending in logistics was estimated at $45.6 billion in the year 2020, and it is expected to reach a revised size of $75.5 billion by 2026.

For all businesses that want to digitize and look for tech talent to help, outsourcing software development is one of the greatest solutions, especially in this era of remote work. Companies are no longer exclusive to in-house talent and look for the needed candidates without location limits.

According to Deloitte, the outsourcing industry is expected to grow by $6.8 million in the next two years. However, IT companies are now lacking the required developers and there is a huge tech talent pool shortage. The openings to applicants ratio rose sharply in 2020, making it difficult for outsourcing agencies to find top talent to meet their needs.

Read on to find out the most in-demand tech skills and the ways of finding the needed developers with the required tech stack.

Which Roles Are Growing in Demand in the IT Industry?

Due to the report, the demand for software engineers covers all stages: front-end, back-end, and full-stack developers are in need. However, more and more companies want to hire senior software developers to quickly start working on their tasks. Recruiters consider if the candidate has a computer science degree, a previous experience in a similar business area, and evaluate tech and soft skills.

The same report also shows that among different technologies, machine learning engineers are on the highest rise right now. React.js, Google Cloud and AWS remain among the most popularly demanded skills from software specialists. Also, AI engineers are expected to be the most in-demand in the upcoming years, followed by security professionals.

How Much Time Does It Take To Fill a New Tech Role?

Despite the increase in tech recruiters, it takes 61 days to fill tech talent compared to 41 days of the recruiting process for non-tech roles. Due to the high demand for developers, it takes a longer period to find candidates open to discuss the vacancy. Also, software engineers often have a couple of offerings at the same period, and they may take some time to consider the best option for them.

Additionally, one of the main struggles for hiring managers is the process of remote candidate evaluation. The candidates have to pass several interview stages, and it takes some time to schedule all needed meetings online. Also, there is a stage of coding test to evaluate tech skills. Not all recruiters have already adjusted to conduct all the hiring steps online, so it takes almost two months to complete the process.

IT Hiring Trends 2022

Technology and new ways of searching the candidates and conducting interviews can help to speed up the process of talent acquisition and reach better results. Find out the list of tech recruiting trends below.

Digitalization of Recruitment and HR Processes

Nowadays, Artificial Intelligence chatbots that help to screen applicants are widely used among hiring practices. Algorithm-based scanners analyze resumes for keywords as the first selection round and save recruiters time. It makes the process much faster than going through resumes manually.

Job postings and application forms and now being made mobile-friendly, making the process easier for job-seekers and simplifying the process. The digitalization and automation of recruiting processes are highly valued by candidates from Gen Z and they prefer to continue communication with such companies and recruiters.

Recruitment marketing automation allows HR managers to reach out to a wide array of potential candidates and essentially helps you reach out to applicants through targeting ads. Using a DSP platform can help you launch carefully targeted job ads and let your brand show up in front of the right pool of potential candidates.

Remote Hiring and Remote Work

Remote work for software developers is a more common option than work from the office now. Tech specialists have adjusted to working from home, so asking for an offline interview may affect the candidate experience in a bad way.

Online tools for video interviews and virtual recruiting are becoming the new normal. You can ask a candidate about the preferred tool and use Skype/Zoom/Google meetings for a video interviewing. Moreover, there are several online tools that provide live coding testing, so you can collaborate and code with the candidates in real-time.

An option of further remote work is also a must, as developers tend to reject offers from companies that require the offline presence and work from offices nowadays. According to statistics, 74% of employees say that having the option to work remotely would make them less likely to leave a company.

Part-Time Hiring

The way a strong workforce looks has changed significantly over the last few years. In unstable times and with a perspective of short-term projects, companies are holding back on hiring full-time employees, and employers now tend to look for part-time specialists or freelancers. In 2020, 59 million people (more than 1 in 5 of the US population) were doing freelance work in the United States, and this number is continuously growing. That is an excellent solution for the companies that need tech specialists for their short projects or to reduce their technical debt. The perks of having such employees are that you only pay them for their work project, and you don’t need to fire them once it is complete. Also, you save a lot of hiring managers and HR executives time avoiding onboarding and hiring processes that are common for in-house employees.

Diversity and Inclusion

As established by Harvard Business Review, cognitively diverse teams can help solve a problem quicker and more efficiently, which is a top priority on a development project. With people from different backgrounds and perspectives, you are more likely to have innovative solutions to problems. It also enables you to establish yourself as an inclusive brand with positive company culture and makes it easier to retain and find new quality talent.

Quick Decisions

One of the most valuable tech recruitment trends is making quick decisions on behalf of employees. Once you have found the qualified candidates, evaluated their tech and soft skills, and understood that you are a good match with each other, try to send an offer as soon as possible not to lose a valuable developer. As we mentioned earlier, software engineers tend to have multiple job offerings at once now, so you should react faster than your competitors.

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More Perks and Benefits

The fact is that the tech specialists are pickier now and do not lack job opportunities, so they can quickly select another company that can offer more advantages.

According to the report, nearly half of the employers have added new benefits to their teams as a result of the pandemic. Amond the most popular perks, you can find mental health resources and assistance, wellness programs, additional-paid family leave, childcare assistance outside the office.

Also, as employees are now more likely to balance remote work and going to the office, but most of them prefer having the possibility to work remotely. As a result, they report more satisfaction when given the liberty to do so and can see the company’s adaptability. According to recent statistics, 16% of companies worldwide are fully remote, and 56% of organizations provide their employees with remote work as an option. 53% of companies are providing bonuses for home-office setups as well, and it is highly appreciated by employees.

Employer Branding

Every employee would want to work for a brand that is recognized and reliable. So, it is important to not only portray your company as a great working space on the outside, but it should be that way on the inside as well. Learn more about recruitment marketing and take care of your reputation.

86% of job seekers research and consider the company’s reputation and reviews before applying for a job. A similar number of potential workers say that they won’t work for a poorly conducted brand even for higher pay.

Reskilling

There is a huge demand for high-quality software specialists right now, and most companies look for experienced senior developers to work on their projects. But, plenty of junior engineers are eager to learn and grow and can be trained quickly.

That means hiring a junior employee with experience in a similar technical role can quickly learn the new skills specific to your project and implement them as needed. You can also look for developers with a similar background and offer upskilling programs to learn new technologies needed for the given tasks.

Lastly, you may change your hiring plans if you take a good look at your current employees. You might not even have to hire a new employee and just need to upskill your team to fit the role. Talk to your human resources managers and think about your inner employee development programs.

Alleviating Employees’ Burnout

Hitting a roadblock is common for employees once they have been with your team for a significant amount of time. But, it is much better to think about retain a trusted and skilled team member than go through the hassle and costs of finding and training a new one.

Having a great work environment is one of the key steps in talent retention and preventing occupational burnout. Promoting formal and informal interactions is also a good idea in terms of building relations with coworkers. You can also get an expert to speak on the topic, conduct regular motivational meetings with your team, or simply have a word with your employees to understand their professional and personal situations.

Parting Thoughts

The pandemic has caused a massive digitalization of the whole world. Besides the chaos in the recruiting area, labor market, and talent pool shortage, there are still some good ways of finding and hiring great specialists. IT hiring trends of 2022 include rethinking the recruitment process and focusing on what you already have and what you need from a new hire. When the main questions are answered, use the new digitalized and automated ways of finding tech specialists and be quick in your decisions when you notice a good candidate.