Mendix 2020 Software Developer Drought Index Reveals Unexpected Hiring Hotspots and a Changing US Map of Tech Talent Scarcity and Needs

Despite COVID-19, states in the US heartland are actively hiring developers. Meanwhile, professionals on the coasts are reassessing work-life opportunities and exploring start-up opportunities outside Silicon Valley and other tech hotspots

Mendix, a Siemens business and global leader in low-code application development for the enterprise, announced the launch of the ‘Mendix Software Developer Drought Index,’ which reveals where the hiring shortage is most critical for developers at a U.S. county and state level.

An analysis of over three million U.S. households (American Community Survey), combined with a detailed geo-analysis of over 2,000 job ads for U.S. software developers in July 2020 revealed new patterns spotlighting areas of the highest demand, but with the least supply of software developers nationally. On a state level, the gap between supply and demand is most significant in middle America, with some exceptions. At a county level, the highest Developer Demand is in Cumberland County, NJ (outside Philadelphia), Minnehaha County, SD (Sioux Falls), and Pontotoc County, MS(Tupelo). Well-known tech hubs such as Fairfax, Virginia, and Silicon Valley, California, have a better balance – these areas have the highest demand, but also the highest supply of talent. (See below for geographical information).

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These findings reveal opportunities for companies and individuals to decentralize talent away from established tech hubs using virtual teams and cloud technology. As firms move to outer locations with lower office/home rents, we might expect U.S. tech talent to relocate to these new hotspots of tech growth and start-up innovation — reinforced by recent migration away from dense urban centers during the COVID-19 crisis.

However, tech companies offering jobs in Developer Drought locations must also consider the recent acceleration towards remote working, prompted by COVID-19. Google recently announced an extension of home working for its employees until July 2021, and Facebook has said that it would allow many employees to w************* permanently. Yet surprisingly, 92% of the job ads analyzed required a specific location. While industry leaders are reassessing the remote work landscape, other tech companies are slower to adjust to new post-pandemic realities.

Companies located in or moving to Developer Drought locations may have an increased interest in software solutions that can bridge the tech talent gap. For example, low-code solutions can democratize and speed up software development by empowering staff who do not have  specialized coding expertise, and are not in the IT department, to build software solutions.

Derek Roos, CEO of Mendix, says, “The Software Developer Drought Index shows that companies need to think differently about how and where to engage skilled tech workers in 2021 and beyond. Traditional development paradigms basically fall apart when you’re dealing with mobile or remote workflows. Low-code platforms like Mendix help customers scale software development capability across the whole enterprise and leverage the cloud to provide collaborative software development wherever people choose to live.”

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Leading Developer Drought Counties

Cumberland County, NJ: The US county with the highest developer demand, Cumberland County, New Jersey, offers an average wage of $47,461 – the third lowest of the top 10 Developer Drought counties. This is despite average rental prices being the third highest at $833. Cumberland County’s proximity to Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and New York make it an increasingly attractive location for companies to operate from.

Minnehaha County, SD: Part of the emerging “Silicon Prairie,” Minnehaha County has the second-highest developer demand. Big players, including PayPal, are currently hiring in Sioux Falls, South Dakota), and cases of COVID-19 in South Dakota are the lowest in the country. Minnehaha County has an average commute time of just 16 minutes, the lowest of the top 10 Developer Drought counties.

Pontotoc County, MS: Pontotoc County has the third-highest developer demand. Despite recent efforts to establish Mississippi as the Silicon Valley of the South, just 0.1% of its population have IT degrees, the lowest of the top 10 Developer Drought counties. Average wages are the second lowest of the top 10 Developer Demand counties ($46,454), but rent is also relatively low at $639 (the fourth lowest of the top 10 Developer Demand counties).

Key Takeaways

The tech-based industry managers and workforce, no longer confined to Silicon Valley or other traditional tech hubs, are now beginning to be untethered from any specific geography. The Developer Demand Index pinpoints leading opportunities for companies to leverage remote teams, cloud technology, and low-code software as a new powerhouse strategy for collaborative innovation.

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