Hiring managers want coding bootcamp grads to fill software developer void

Dive Brief:

Global demand for software developers has increased, drawing a larger cross-section of people into coding bootcamps, according to a Feb. 4 HackerRank report. Because of this employers are changing their strategies for vetting and hiring talent.
The report found hiring managers are looking to hire coding bootcamp graduates. Thirty-two percent of hiring managers said they've hired someone who has graduated from a bootcamp, and 72% of managers say the bootcamp graduates are "equally or better equipped" for their jobs when compared to other hires.
While enterprises are loosening four-year degree requirements, 91% of developers at companies with 10,000 or more employees have a Bachelor's degree or higher, according to HackerRank. By comparison, one-third of developers at small companies don't have a Bachelor's degree.

Dive Insight:

Coding bootcamps and certifications are filling a need.

With 300,000 jobs expected to be added, software developers will be in demand in the next decade. Tech companies, private companies and universities — which have the most to lose as the cost of a 4-year degree skyrockets — are getting into the game.

Johns Hopkins University's Whiting School of Engineering and 2U's Trilogy Education announced in July a bootcamp for teaching front- and back-end development skills to Baltimore-area working professionals and adult learners. The program was launched in response to 36,000 unfilled jobs requiring coding skills in the city's area.

The University of Oregon also announced the opening of a coding bootcamp in 2018. The 24-week program is aimed at teaching the basics of coding, data structure and algorithms and offers intensive training in JavaScript and other coding languages to working professionals and adult learners.

Both schools partnered with 2U's Trilogy Education — the winner of HR Dive's 2019 Employee Initiative of the Year award — to launch the bootcamps.

Liberty Mutual Insurance developed an in-house coding bootcamp to meet its need for software developers and to avoid recruiting hassles. More companies may follow Liberty's example by launching coding bootcamps and other in-house training programs.