To better understand America’s software development talent shortage and devise solutions, the nonprofit TECNA (Technology Councils of North America) partnered with the global learning leader, Apollo Education Group, and its subsidiary, University of Phoenix, to conduct a research study on software development talent acquisition, skills gaps, and educational requirements. The findings can help employers, higher education institutions, and regional technology councils improve the size, quality, and sustainability of the software development workforce. View this presentation for the full report and findings.
2. Overview
•Executive Summary and Key Findings
•Research Objective and Questions
•Methodology and Data Collection Process
•Population and Sample
•Results
•Limitations
•Implications for Stakeholders
•Learn More
3. Executive Summary
• A comprehensive study on talent acquisition, skills gaps, and
educational requirements for three Software Development roles:
• Mobile developer
• Application developer
• Web developer
• Study included an online survey, telephone interviews, and a virtual
roundtable
• Survey participants included 760 technology company leaders from 29 U.S. states
and 3 Canadian provinces.
• Interview and virtual roundtable participants included 16 industry professionals who
validated and augmented the survey findings.
• Findings can help employers, educators, legislators, and technology
councils improve the size, quality, and sustainability of the software
development workforce. (Recommendations are included at the end of the report.)
10. Research Objective and Questions
Understand
workforce
development
issues in software
development
occupations
Mobile developer
Application developer
Web developer
• Research Question 1: What is the primary reason for
the reported talent shortage in the software
development sector (quantity or quality)?
• Research Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must
individuals have to perform effectively in three high-
demand software development roles in the next 2-4
years?
• Research Question 3: What education and certificates
will be required by individuals in the next 2-4 years to
perform successfully in three high-demand software
development roles?
• Research Question 4: What are employers doing to
cope with future anticipated skill gaps in three high-
demand software development roles?
13. Survey Population and Sample
Population Criteria
1.Manager or higher role or a
recruiter
2.Organization employs or helps
recruit software developers or
software engineers
Sample
N = 760
29 states
3 Canadian provinces
14. Survey Respondents’ Most Represented
Industries and States
Most represented
industries
Percent of
sample
Information technology 40%
Independent software
vendor
10%
Other industry sector 8%
Financial/banking/insura
nce
8%
Healthcare/medical 7%
Education 4%
Professional services 4%
Government 4%
Telecommunications 4%
Total 87%
Most represented
states
Percent of
sample
Massachusetts 18%
Pennsylvania 14%
Idaho 14%
Colorado 6%
New Hampshire 6%
Utah 5%
Alabama 5%
North Carolina 4%
Georgia 4%
Nebraska 4%
Texas 3%
Total 83%
17. Question 1: What is the primary reason for the reported talent shortage
in the software development sector (quantity or quality)?
Greatest talent shortage
Is there a talent shortage?
Application developer/programmer 61%
Mobile developer 14%
Other 14%
Web developer 11%
18. Question 1: What is the primary reason for the reported talent shortage
in the software development sector (quantity or quality)?
MOST
SIGNIFICA
NT CAUSE
LEAST
SIGNIFICA
NT CAUSE
19. Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must individuals have to
perform effectively in three high-demand software development roles in
the next 2-4 years?
Mobile Developer
User interface design 67%
Java 61%
JavaScript 50%
Software architecture 50%
Object-oriented
analysis and design
43%
Application
Developer/Programmer
Software architecture 63%
Java 59%
Object-oriented analysis
and design
49%
SQL programming 48%
Microsoft.NET (C#) 43%
Web Developer
User Interface design 65%
JavaScript 64%
Java 44%
Software architecture 40%
Extensible markup
language
34%
20. Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must individuals have to
perform effectively in three high-demand software development roles in
the next 2-4 years?
Most Critical Least Critical
Mobile Developer Programming, development, and
engineering (65%)
IT Support (59%)
Application
Developer/Program
mer
Programming, development, and
engineering (77%)
IT Support (58%)
Web Developer Web design and technologies (54%) Programming, development,
and engineering (59%)
21. Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must individuals have to
perform effectively in three high-demand software development roles in
the next 2-4 years?
ROLE 1: MOBILE DEVELOPER
Numbers represent percent of individuals who ranked the skill from 1 to 8 (e.g., blue represents
the percent of individuals who ranked programming as most critical)
ROLE 1: MOBILE DEVELOPER
22. Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must individuals have to
perform effectively in three high-demand software development roles in
the next 2-4 years?
ROLE 2: APPLICATION DEVELOPER/PROGRAMMER
23. Question 2: What 3-5 most critical skills must individuals have to
perform effectively in three high-demand software development roles in
the next 2-4 years?
ROLE 3: WEB DEVELOPER
24. Are soft skills
more,
equally, or
less
important to
success than
technical
skills?
39%
Communication
26% Problem
solving
28%
Collaboration
Soft Skills
25. • Support H-1B reform, including more visas for high-skilled talent
• Support computer science high school classes counting for credit
• Increase access to STEM education and training through non-4-year
institutions
• Create opportunities for underserved populations to enter the IT industry
• Establish a strong IT workforce through STEM education and training, using
industry-recognized credentials
• Support employer-hosted technology internships
“An academic degree is the basic building
block for career success, but education
must integrate real-world problem solving
to maximize its job-relevance.”
-Gregory W. Nichols, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Proxibid
26. Question 3: What education and certificates will be required by
individuals in the next 2-4 years to perform successfully in three high-
demand software development roles?
Mobile Developer
High school Academic
certificate
Associate’s
degree
Bachelor’s
degree
Master’s
degree
Doctorate
10% 5% 22% 60% 2% 0%
Application Developer/programmer
High school Academic
certificate
Associate’s
degree
Bachelor’s
degree
Master’s
degree
Doctorate
8% 3% 11% 71% 7% 0%
Web Developer
High school Academic
certificate
Associate’s
degree
Bachelor’s
degree
Master’s
degree
Doctorate
12% 7% 26% 54% 2% 0%
27. • Support H-1B reform, including more visas for high-skilled talent
• Support computer science high school classes counting for credit
• Increase access to STEM education and training through non-4-year
institutions
• Create opportunities for underserved populations to enter the IT industry
• Establish a strong IT workforce through STEM education and training, using
industry-recognized credentials
• Support employer-hosted technology internships
“Programs that help high school students
earn credit toward an undergraduate
technology degree can make a difference
in building the local talent supply.”
-James Price, Director of Product Development, Clearwater Analytics, LLC
28. Question 3: What education and certificates will be required by
individuals in the next 2-4 years to perform successfully in three high-
demand software development roles?
MOST NEEDED
APPLE IOS
COMPTIA MOBILE APP SECURITY
MOST NEEDED
MICROSOFT DEVELOPER CERTS
ORACLE (SUN) CERTIFIED JAVA
CREDENTIALS
MOST NEEDED
MICROSOFT DEVELOPER
CERTS
GOOGLE APPS FOR
BUSINESS
29. • Support H-1B reform, including more visas for high-skilled talent
• Support computer science high school classes counting for credit
• Increase access to STEM education and training through non-4-year
institutions
• Create opportunities for underserved populations to enter the IT industry
• Establish a strong IT workforce through STEM education and training, using
industry-recognized credentials
• Support employer-hosted technology internships
“Continuous learning—through academic
degrees, certificates, and ongoing training
—is a necessity for software development
professionals.”
-Stefan Ramsbott, Co-founder and Managing Partner, 303 Software
30. Question 4: What are employers doing to cope with future
anticipated skill gaps in three high-demand software
development roles?
69%
of employers are
taking action
Coping mechanisms
Conducting internal training 68%
Offering internships for students 64%
Retraining employees 53%
Building recruitment and retention networks 51%
Outsourcing work 42%
Hosting special events 38%
Establishing community college partnerships 29%
Hiring virtual employees 24%
31. • Support H-1B reform, including more visas for high-skilled talent
• Support computer science high school classes counting for credit
• Increase access to STEM education and training through non-4-year
institutions
• Create opportunities for underserved populations to enter the IT industry
• Establish a strong IT workforce through STEM education and training, using
industry-recognized credentials
• Support employer-hosted technology internships
“Businesses are recognizing the need to
offer internships or in-house residencies
that provide students with industry
experience as part of their career
preparation.”
-Cassi Hansen, Director of Talent Acquisition, Culture and Engagement, The Nerdery
32. Potential Limitations
Respondents’ perceptions may not
accurately reflect the reality of the
workforce.
The sample, while large enough to
yield fairly precise results, may not
represent the entire population.
34. EmployersEmployers
EducationEducation
Talent shortage Critical skills Degrees Coping
Partner with local
educational
institutions to
increase the
talent pipeline
Partner with
local
educational
institutions to
educate and
offer expertise
Support degree
completion with
practical work
experiences such
as internships
Evaluate
consequences of
not taking action
Consider
engaging a full-
service talent
solutions provider
Implement
programs to
increase student
interest in
pursuing relevant
career
opportunities
Focus on most
critical technical
and soft skills
Facilitate
internships with
employers
Evaluate and adjust
the mix of program
offerings
(certificates,
associate’s and
bachelor’s degrees)
to sustain the talent
pipeline
Gear marketing
efforts toward
attracting talent
Identify
outsourcing
resource partners
Create a regional
software talent
alliance
Partner with
Association of
Science-
Technology
Centers to
facilitate skills
application
Research
emerging skills
needs
Provide mentorship
and career
guidance
opportunities
Partner with
Code.org to offer
computer science in
high schools/train
teachers
Provide a forum
for companies to
ideate solutions
and merge
resources
Support
legislation that
facilitates a
pipeline of STEM-
ready talent
Technology CouncilsTechnology Councils
35. Implications for Policymakers
• Support H-1B reform, including more visas for high-skilled talent
• Support computer science high school classes counting for
credit
• Increase access to STEM education and training through non-
4-year institutions
• Create opportunities for underserved populations to enter the
technology industry
• Establish a strong technology workforce through STEM
education and training, using industry-recognized credentials
• Support employer-hosted technology internships
36. Learn More
For more information about TECNA’s peer-to-peer
networks and regional initiatives to support the
technology industry, visit www.tecna.org.
For more information about talent development
solutions, contact Jeff Greipp, Group VP, Apollo
Education Group, at Jeff.Greipp@Apollo.edu.
Email invitations were sent to TECNA members who were CEOs of their respective state technology councils.
The CEO’s then sent the email to their respective technology member companies who are members of the state technology council.
In addition, the email was adapted and sent to leaders of various technology-related councils, organizations, associations, and magazines AND posted to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Email invitations and posts included a link to the survey, which was programmed and administered using Survey Monkey.
The survey consisted of 22, primarily closed-ended, questions.
Data were collected for three weeks, between June 6th and June 27th, 2014.