Behind the code – What our developer superheroes want in 2020

Findings from the HackerEarth Developer Survey, 2020.

Developers are pretty awesome. Think of all those times that a developer had come to your rescue. As the keepers of code, they have incredible skills to create some amazing things. 

While we all can agree that they just seem to be superheroes among men (developing lightning-fast code and fixing loose ends without even wrinkling their capes), most of us forget the ‘Clark Kent’ side of them—what they want, like, and dislike just like any of us.

We went behind the scenes to understand both these alter egos – what truly makes them the superheroes we look up to as well as the little joys they seek when they go about saving your day. Here are the findings of The 2020 HackerEarth Developer Survey, where we highlight the priorities and concerns of over 16,000+ developers from across 76 countries. 

Data Science is still the demigod

From student developers (63%) to experienced ones (61%), everyone wants to have a slice of the Data Science pie. No wonder this is the most sought after developer skill. According to Glassdoor, the national average salary of a data scientist in the United States is $1,17,345, and  Firstround.com says that in a competitive field like Data Science, strong candidates often receive three or more offers.

Other skills that student developers are looking out for include Cybersecurity and IoT, while professionals are interested in IoT and BlockChain.

Everyone wants Go in their arsenal

Go is this year’s most sought-after and popular programming language, with 29% of students and 32% of experienced developers seeking to add it to their programming arsenal. Other popular programming languages that student developers prefer are JavaScript, Kotlin, and C#. On the other hand, experienced developers want to learn Python and Kotlin.

The survey showed us that the top programming languages that student developers currently know include C++, Python, and HTML/ CSS, while senior developers frequently code in SQL, Java, and HTML/ CSS.

Use LinkedIn for your next coding mission

Are you looking for a new coding project?  56% of student developers and 57% of working professionals use LinkedIn more frequently than other channels, such as job boards and referrals, to find new coding gigs.

We also came across some interesting job avenues, such as hackathons, which student developers (13%) use to find new jobs. If you’re new to hackathons, this guide will equip you with some much-needed info.

Up for a challenge? Try a take-home coding test

Most experienced developers favor take-home coding tests, followed by an onsite interview for assessing coding skills. Surprisingly, 10% of developers who took the survey said that they wanted an option to decide their interview process.

A majority of developers, 70% of students, and 53% of working professionals, make use of coding assessment platforms such as HackerEarth to upskill themselves. 

Try your next coding challenge here.

Aborting a mission midway? Let the developer know

If you’re leaving developers hanging after an interview, you need to stop, now! Developers hate it when no feedback is conveyed to them. 45% of the developers said that recruiters need to stop doing this right away.

Other reasons that irked them the most include too many interview rounds and misleading job descriptions.

Meetings are like kryptonite to  developers’ productivity

You’d want your developers to be a ‘Jack of all trades’, but very often we forget that this comes along with a ton of ideation meetings that could very well spell doom for developers’ productivity. It is no surprise that when asked what they’d need to achieve 100% productivity at work, 70% of the developers opted for fewer meetings.

Other options that could help developers be more productive include multiple monitors, clutter-free working spaces, and a no interruption policy when they have their headphones on.

Developers play foosball and watch F.R.I.E.N.D.S in their fortress of solitude

When they are not coding, most developers spend their time playing indoor games such as foosball and table tennis (29%). They also love watching  F.R.I.E.N.D.S (42%). Other TV shows they spend downtime watching include Game of Thrones and Big Bang Theory.

For more on our coding superheroes, download the developer survey report.

Developing is hard work, and it takes a coding superhero to do it well. Developers, keep using your powers to the best of your abilities to create powerful stuff. We at HackerEarth will always be cheering for you from the sidelines. Here’s to creating code that matters! 🙂

Soumya Chittigala Author 14 Blogs