Tech Talent Demands Transparency and Unbiased Hiring Practices: HackerEarth State of Developer Ecosystem Report 2022-23

HackerEarth, a global HR tech company providing leading solutions to sources, assess, upskill and engage software developer talent, today released its annual State of Developer Ecosystem report. The report has leveraged comparative insights by polling recruiters, engineering managers, and developers to form a comprehensive, in-depth account of where tech recruiting stands today.

HackerEarths recent survey brings together insights from developers and the tech recruiting fraternity to help better hiring amidst the downturn

According to recent data published by The World Economic Forum, over 42% of all jobs are expected to undergo significant changes, highlighting the increasing importance of skills such as analytics, critical thinking, and advanced problem-solving. HackerEarths State of Developer Ecosystem report also reveals the rising desire among developers to sharpen their Blockchain and Data Science competencies, their growing demand to be assessed fairly for their skills via developer-friendly dedicated tech hiring platforms, and the need for more equity in the workplace.

HackerEarth's report shows that in 2023, tech talent expects transparent communication, honest workplace reviews, better performance improvement plans. They also expect their organizations to create value and affect real-life change through their tech, or CSR initiatives, and this is reflected in their approach towards DEI initiatives.

Additionally, developers want biases against self-taught developers to be eliminated, highlighting the emergence of a skill-first approach to employment. HackerEarth's State of Developer Ecosystem report also highlights that 87.9% of self-taught developers have faced biases when applying for jobs.

"Tech is one of those sectors that lives in a dual reality. We are at the forefront of all innovation, and yet we are also the ones hit hardest by the current global headwinds. Our aim with this survey was to bring together the two sides of the tech recruiting coin, and build a comprehensive snapshot of what ails tech hiring and what can be improved. I believe by examining both the developer perspective and the recruiting perspective side-by-side, we can build resilient, talented and inclusive tech teams that can weather any storms that may lie ahead," said Sachin Gupta, CEO of HackerEarth.

Key findings from the 2023 State of Developer Recruitment Report include:

Hiring is mostly frozen, except for a slight thaw among certain sectors

- 40% of the recruiters are unsure of the market conditions and didn't know when they would start hiring again.

- Only 20% of the recruiters said they planned to hire upwards of 100 developers in the coming days.

The tech community and their needs

- Developers indicate that the use of tech hiring tools, ongoing skills development, and clear understanding of the technology stack are essential components for improving the hiring process.

- Upskilling in demand with 17.74% of developers aiming to sharpen their skills in Blockchain, and 17.66% choosing Data Science.

Developers feel that organizations have made efforts to facilitate better alignment

- Three years after COVID, about 86% of organizations and 78.7% of developers feel that the tech hiring process has improved for the better.

- Organizations have re-aligned their hiring flow to enhance candidate experience through the use of knowledge-sharing as an engagement tool. Social media and employer branding also features heavily in their plans to attract Gen Z talent.

- It is also clear that developers favor the use of automated tools for hiring with 44.61% of them saying they would appreciate being assessed via dedicated tech hiring platforms.

Collaboration between recruiters and hiring managers has always been a source of friction, and newer challenges are thrown up as behaviors and expectations change

- FullStack developer roles remain challenging to fill due the high demand in similar tech fields such as blockchain, machine learning, and data science.

- Recruiters also believe that remote work has reduced accountability across teams and caused siloing of functions; however, this may slowly see a change with the newer generation preferring to either work in a hybrid mode or in a fully offline mode.

Looking ahead to 2023…

- The hiring freeze offers the perfect opportunity to overhaul tech recruiting funnels, and fix flaws.

- Automated assessments with benchmarked results can help highlight candidates' coding skills.

- Job stability and rewarding job experience with open channels of communication and inclusive initiatives to take precedence.

Access the full report here:

www.hackerearth.com/recruit/resources/insights/drs2023/

About HackerEarth

HackerEarth is a global company that helps large enterprises recruit, evaluate, and upskill developers based on specific skills. The company's platform enables recruiters to make the most accurate and informed decisions about candidates, improve hiring efficiencies, facilitate continuous learning and development, and ensure the right developers are matched with the right positions. HackerEarth is also a leading facilitator of online hackathons and coding challenges, where its community of over 6.5 million developers can upskill and practice for employment interviews. The company was founded in 2012 with offices in San Francisco and India.

For more information, visit: www.hackerearth.com.