Moving Toward
Professionalization:
Rising Need for Open Source
Skills in 2016
May 2016
[Link] | [Link]
Executive Summary
In the last decade, open source development has experienced
a massive shift: Once a mostly community- and volunteerbased concern, the model has since become a mainstay of
the IT industry. Flexibility in accommodating new technologies
and speed at adapting to a changing market have made open
source vital to modern companies, who are now investing
zealously in open source and open source talent.
More and better code is the way forward, and the skilled professionals who can make
it happen are highly in demand. To look more closely at why open source talent has such
a strong advantage across the tech industry, Dice and The Linux Foundation partnered
to create a newly expanded jobs report that goes beyond Linux to examine trends in open
source recruiting and job seeking. The report also takes a broader perspective as it seeks
to understand what employers can do to attract and retain open source professionals.
Both hiring managers and open source professionals were surveyed to gain a 360-degree
view of the thriving open source jobs landscape. The resulting report uses data from the
2015 Linux Jobs Report to illustrate year-over-year industry trends, but these are not
intended to be direct comparisons.
The 2016 Open Source Jobs Report clearly illustrates hiring managers enthusiasm for open
source talent and the professionalization of open source throughout the industry. This years
survey includes responses from more than 400 hiring managers at corporations, small and
medium businesses (SMBs), government organizations, and staffing agencies across the
globeas well as responses from more than 4,500 open source professionals worldwide.
Key findings from the 2016 Open Source Jobs Survey and Report show that:
Companies are experiencing increased demand for open source talent. A clear
majority, 65 percent, of hiring managers report open source hiring will rise more than
hiring in other parts of their business over the next six months, a larger number than in
past Linux jobs reports..
DevOps is among the most sought after skills in the industry. Fifty-eight percent
of hiring managers are seeking DevOps professionals, though the need for developers
continues to top their list at 74 percent. Open source professionals (13%) identified
DevOps as the most in-demand skill today.
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
Open source networking is a leading emergent technology. As the second most
in-demand knowledge area, 21 percent of hiring managers say networking has the
biggest impact on open source hiring. Only cloud technologies remain more sought after,
with 51 percent of hiring managers saying technologies like OpenStack and CloudStack
most impact their hiring decisions.
Open source professionals want to innovate and collaborate. Only two percent
of professionals stated that money and perks were the best thing about their jobs.
Sharp eyes are on the lookout for open source talent.
Open source is now the go-to platform for building software and technology. And the
demand for talent to support it is a major priority among recruiters. Fifty-nine percent of
hiring managers say theyll add more open source pros to their ranks in the next six months.
This is a nine percent jump over last years Linux Jobs Report, which found 50 percent
planning to add Linux talent in the following six months. Within the same time frame, open
source hiring is slated to become the top field of recruitment, with 65 percent of employers
reporting more open source hiring than hiring in other parts of their business.
The survey revealed evidence that the technology economy continues to improve and drive
hiring demand, with 57 percent of hiring managers reporting they plan to bring in more open
source professionalsa leap over the previous years 44 percent who were economically
inspired to hire Linux talent.
With more than nine in 10 Amazon Web Services clouds running Linux, the rising demand
for open source skills is clearand attracting professionals has proven tricky for hiring
managers1. Eighty-seven percent surveyed report difficulty in finding the right skills and
expertise, reflecting the intense competition amongst employers in attracting skilled talent.
HIRING MANAGERS NEED OPEN SOURCE TALENT
59
are looking to increase
open source hiring
87
say its hard to find
open source talent
The Cloud Market, [Link]
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
Trained professionals seize the best jobs.
HOW OPEN SOURCE PROFESSIONALS KEEP SKILLS UP TO DATE
90%
Read books, online resources;
access free online tutorials
Take online
training courses
60%
45%
Attend conferences
and/or events
Engage in social and
professional networking
42%
Contribute to open source
software projects
41%
35%
Participate in open
source meetups
Attend instructor-led
open source training
23%
0
20
40
60
80
100
Having trained talent on board means professionalizing open source development
and supporting some of the largest shared tech investments in history. This makes certified
professionals a hot commodity. Just over half of hiring managers prioritize hiring those formally
trained in open source, while 44 percent report that candidates holding certifications were
more likely to be hired. Candidates with DevOps and application development expertise
the most marketable skills in the industryhave fifty-eight and sixty percent of surveyed
hiring managers seeking them out, respectively.
Open source professionals recognize this and are responding to the demand: 76 percent
believe certifications are useful for their careers and 47 percent plan to take a certification
exam this year, while only one percent of respondents state they have taken all the certification
exams needed for their careers. Hiring managers are championing these ambitions, with
34 percent willing to aid with the cost of an employees open source certification.
Formal open source training offers a level of depth and accuracy that piecemeal
approaches cant achieve, and it is clear open source professionals are embracing training
and certification developed by industry experts. Those working in the industry say they
keep their skills up to date with free online tutorials (90%), paid online training courses (60%),
conferences and events (45%), social and professional networking (42%), contributing to
open source projects (41%), participating in open source meetups (35%), and attending
instructor-led open source training (23%).
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
Networking will take open source to the next level.
WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT OPEN SOURCE SKILLS?
Open Source Professionals:
50%
Cloud technologies
(OpenStack,
Cloud Foundry, etc)
9%
Networking
technologies
19%
Containers
Hiring Managers:
16%
Security
5%
Other
51%
Cloud technologies
(OpenStack,
Cloud Foundry, etc)
21%
14%
Security
7%
Other
Networking
8%
Containers
Over the last year, the continuing rise of open cloud platforms and the increasing need for
support for open source security projects have created even more demand for pros with
special expertise in that area. Fifty-one percent of surveyed hiring managers say knowledge
of OpenStack and CloudStack has a big impact on open source hiring decisions.
Emerging technologies equal new opportunities for open source professionalsand the
biggest right now is open source networking. Because open source is built collaboratively, its
built faster and with more adaptability than any proprietary platforms. So its no surprise that
companies are setting their strategies around networking, with 21 percent of hiring managers
reporting that networking knowledge has the biggest impact on open source hiring, followed
by security experience (14%) and container skills (8%).
Nineteen percent of open source employees believe containers will be the next big arena for
open source growth in 2016, while half of those surveyed foresee open cloud technologies
to be the largest growing technology in 2016. Security ranks third in level of growth among
open source pros at 16 percent, followed by networking at 9 percent.
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
The highlights of being an open source pro.
WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT BEING AN OPEN SOURCE PROFESSIONAL
Interesting
projects
31%
Working on the
most cutting-edge
technology challenges
18%
Collaboration with
a global community
17%
More job
opportunities
12%
Working with some
of the world's
best developers
12%
5%
Job stability
Money
and perks
2%
3%
Other
10
15
20
25
30
35
With open source talent both scarce and in high demand, employers are willing to offer
compelling perks to entice and retain those with the right stuff. Seventy-nine percent of hiring
managers say their companies have increased incentives to hold on to employees, with
44 percent hiking up salaries for open source talent more than in other parts of the company,
and 43 percent offering more flexible work hours and telecommutingall significant increases
over the 2015 Linux Jobs Report (71%, 36%, and 37%, respectively).
Its easy for open source professionals to see how valuable theyve become: Half of those
surveyed were offered an incentive to keep them from switching jobs in the past year, while
73 percent were contacted by a recruiter at least once in the past six months. Eighty-six percent
believe their open source skills have advanced their careers.
But despite incentives that would lure open source professionals to change to another
company, (salary, 31%; better work/life balance, 19%; and training and certification
opportunities, 11%), the report also found money and perks are the least likely reasons
for professionals to seek an open source career.
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
Its about inspiration and collaboration.
What makes being an open source pro so great? Being able to work on interesting projects
is the winning answer, while working with the most cutting-edge technologies ranks secondbest. Third is the motivation felt by collaborating with a global community. Clearly, open
source professionals are passionate about their craft and are finding meaningful satisfaction
in their work. And employers are learning how to keep ushering open source toward its fully
professionalized potential, making the technology industryand the worldstronger and better.
2016 Open Source Jobs Report Methodology
During March 2016, Dice and The Linux Foundation surveyed both hiring managers and
open source professionals about their jobs needs and preferences. Hiring managers from
corporations, small and medium businesses (SMBs), government organizations, and staffing
agencies were surveyed. More than 400 responded with 77.5 percent indicating their company
was headquartered in North America, 8.5 percent in Europe, 6.3 percent in Asia (except
Japan), 2.5 percent in South America, 1.1 percent in Africa, 1.1 percent in Japan, 1.1 percent
in Australia/New Zealand, and less than 1 percent in the Middle East, Mexico, and Central
America. Respondents needed to have hired at least one open source professional in the last
year, or have plans to hire open source professionals in 2016 to participate in the survey.
In addition, more than 4,500 open source professionals responded to a survey, with 71 percent
indicating theyve been working as an open source professional for three years or more.
About Dice
Technology powers companies. Professionals power technology.
Dice quickly delivers the opportunities, insights, and connections technology
professionals and employers need to move forward. Dice is a proud winner
of 2015 Recruitment Service Innovation Awards: Innovator of the Year, Niche
Employment Site; Most Innovative Big Data Solution. Learn how to effectively
move forward at [Link]. Dice is a DHI Group, Inc. service.
To access tech careers, visit Dice and follow us on Facebook, Twitter. To access tech
talent solutions, visit Dice and follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
About The Linux Foundation
The Linux Foundation is the organization of choice for the worlds top developers and
companies to build ecosystems that accelerate open technology development and
commercial adoption. Together with the worldwide open source community, it is solving
the hardest technology problems by creating the largest shared technology investment in
history. Founded in 2000, The Linux Foundation today provides tools, training and events to
scale any open source project, which together deliver an economic impact not achievable
by any one company. More information can be found at [Link].
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Moving Toward Professionalization: Rising Need for Open Source Skills in 2016
The Linux Foundation is the nonprofit advancing professional open
source management for mass collaboration.
To learn more about The Linux Foundation or our other initiatives
please visit us at [Link]