Founder Q&A Part 3: The IT Skills Gap
There’s been a lot of talk recently about the “skills gap,” especially in technology fields. What does that mean for companies who need developers?
The technology field is constantly changing. Look at what mobile devices and cloud computing have done in the past few years. What makes it even more complicated is that each company has their own tools, technologies, and processes for software development. This constant change puts colleges and universities in a tough position. They can’t keep up with all of the changes, have classes for every new technology that comes out and train the students in each company’s specific development technologies and methodologies. Instead, they take the resources they have and focus more on the fundamentals of programming (I’m not blaming or knocking them here. I think they do a wonderful job). The students often work by themselves creating brand new programs from scratch that are hundreds of lines of code. In the real world, however, you work on larger teams with massive systems that have been around for years. What students learn in college is much different than what they need to know when they start on the job. Companies end up making up this “skills gap” by spending six to nine months training new college graduates on their systems, technologies and culture. Maverick eliminates this learning curve because the students-turned-new-hires already know the company’s systems, technologies and culture when they start. They hit the ground running.
What do you think the skills gap will look like in five years? In ten?
I only see it getting worse. Each new technology that comes out only compounds the issue. There is a lot of talk in the media about the “Internet of Things.” Someday, all of the devices in your house (thermostat, door locks, refrigerator, etc.) will be interconnected. It’s already happening today. Building out the “Internet of Things” will require people to write programs that control all of the devices and keep everything secure. That's only going to create more demand for software developers.
Learn more by reading the entire Q&A series with Maverick founder Marty Hebig:
