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How do you compete with others fighting over the same software developer skills?

The Great Resignation has wreaked havoc with businesses all over the world. Also known as the ‘Big Quit’ or ‘Great Reshuffle’ it is a phenomenon that is giving hiring managers endless headaches as it has resulted in employees resigning in droves leaving employers trying to cope with an influx of job openings and a loss of key skills.

The software developer industry is no different and there are many reports showing that The Great Resignation phenomenon has resulted in a shortage of skilled developers with experience in the banking sector. Developers who are familiar with legacy systems in particular, are in high demand.

According to Digital Ocean’s 2022 report, which looks at open source and developer trends, over a quarter (27%) of developers with more than a year of experience have started a new job in the past year. The same report shows that one in five developers with 15 years or more experience have also started a new job in the past year. What’s more, 42% of those who haven’t resigned say they will leave or are considering doing so this year.

A worldwide problem

The Big Quit problem is not just isolated to one specific region or country. It’s an international problem that companies large, medium and small are all trying to grapple with. Globally, companies are fighting one another for the same technical specialists that are highly sought after because of the shortage of technical skills.

Banks with old legacy systems are finding it hard to recruit and retain software engineers – particularly millennials. The extremely niche skillset needed to work on legacy systems is rare. It also takes a long time for banks to grow teams that understand banking as well as technology.

While using outdated infrastructure is common it’s not the most attractive position for an IT person and it results in the job being labelled as ‘drudge work’. It’s being exacerbated by the Great Resignation where employees can cherry-pick the best roles and gravitate towards banking disruptors embracing modern technologies.

It opens banks up to enormous ‘key man’ risk, where key individuals leave – taking critical institutional experience with them. This is a major problem among bigger banks with high cost-of-operation jurisdictions like the European Union (EU) or the UK. This ‘perfect storm’ – where companies with legacy systems must fight for a small pool of talented key personnel – has resulted in a global skills war.

A skills shortage solution?

It takes a long time to build a team of talented specialists that work well together and are familiar with outdated banking systems. Retaining skills is very difficult unless you have a big budget. But, these days, big budgets don’t always win if employees face drudge work, day in and day out.

To overcome the problems that have been fuelled by the Great Resignation it’s important for hiring managers at banks to rethink their policy of trying to keep talent in-house. Outsourcing software development roles could be one solution to navigating a world where there’s a growing skills gap and an ongoing war in finding and hiring the best talent.

There are many benefits to outsourcing. It allows businesses to run a more optimal sized team. Fewer people result in lower overheads and there isn’t the constant vicious cycle of trying to hire the right staff as people become disenchanted with old legacy systems and get lured to the next unicorn with shiny new systems.

At Andile we’ve catered to this problem by employing and training software engineers with skills that meet international standards. We have created a trusted repository for this need for institutional memory, which helps to eliminate the key man risk that many banks face.

Founded in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2008 our business has created a group of key specialists and expanded into the rest of Africa. We’re growing a global client base and have a presence in Mauritius, Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

We offer our staff the right training and career path that ensures they stay focused, feel challenged and motivated at work. If you’re tired of the constant recruitment cycle and battle over skills, we are ready to offer a lasting partnership that results in sustainable business solutions and helps you exit the global recruitment rat race.