Open source talent is in high demand according to the 2016 Open Source Jobs Report, the 5th annual report from the Linux Foundation, produced in collaboration with Dice.com.
We often think of open source as a volunteer or community based activity community. However open source is increasingly important to companies who need to keep up with new technologies.
The latest survey from Dice and The Linux Foundation goes beyond Linux to examine trends in open source recruiting and job seeking. The report is based on responses from more than 400 hiring managers at corporations, small and medium businesses (SMBs), government organizations, and staffing agencies across the globe and from more than 4,500 open source professionals worldwide.
The main findings are presented in this infographic:
The full report, which is free to download, makes it clear that if you possess open source skills you are in demand as a scarce resource:
It also adds more details about what motivates the open source professional. "Interesting projects" comes out as the top factor while "Working on the most cutting edge technology challenges and "Working with some of the world best developers" seem to be just a more detailed way of saying "Interesting projects". The usual motivators of money and perks and job stability are insignificant compared to what open source pros are working on and who they are working with.
The survey also indicates that this select group actively works at staying at the cutting edge. Books and online resources are used by 90% while 60% take online training courses. Opportunities to meet and work with other people are also important - including through conferences (45%) and contributing to open source projects (41%).
This survey paints a very positive picture of being an open source professional - in high demand and working with the latest technologies in a highly collaborative manner.
If you are looking for a programmer present this holiday season, there is one book, or set of books, that should be top of any list... Donald Knuth's The Art of Computer Programming.
