Photo: Steven NoreykoEditor's Note: Matt Genovese, an IEEE member, is the founder of Door64, a networking organization for technologists in Austin, Texas.
It’s no secret that Austin, Texas, throws a curve in the U.S. unemployment rate’s national average with a lower unemployment rate than many other cities. However, you may be surprised to learn that many employers in Austin are actually struggling to find the technology talent they need to grow their businesses. Door64 is an organization I founded in 2007 to coalesce and serve Austin’s high-tech community. Today our membership consists of more than 20,000 professionals working for Austin-area software, information technology, hardware, and semiconductor companies.
In the first quarter of this year, Door64 surveyed over 50 local technology companies and asked which of their highest-priority open positions were impeding their ability to conduct or grow their business. The results showed that software developers were by far the most desired. Interestingly, 40 percent of respondents stated that at least one of the following roles was among their top three hiring priorities:
- Java software development
- Microsoft .NET software development
- User Interface or User Experience design (UI/UX)
- Software quality assurance (QA)
These four roles encompass the major engineering components of a software project: the language and framework (Java or .NET), user interface design, and test. In short, Austin needs software engineers. You can read more details about from the survey here.
Based on these findings, Door64 is holding Austin’s Painpoint Job Fair on 29 June, at the city’s AT&T Hotel and Conference Center. If you are considering relocating to a city that needs engineers and have experience in at least one of those four areas, invest in your career and swing down for this one-day event. You may walk away with some interviews, or better yet, a few job offers in hand.
Door64 will continue conducting our hiring Painpoint survey in subsequent quarters to assess the changing hiring priorities of Austin’s tech industry.