Job Seekers in the Software Job Market: Behind the Scenes

I am sharing this experience with job seekers in software development, wherever they are in the world. Behind every resume is a person trying to turn what they have learned into work that offers stability and an opportunity to grow.

For more than ten years, I have been involved in job searches, sometimes for myself and sometimes for people close to me. Over those years, I have seen how the ways of finding work have changed, and how a capable person can face a long wait because reaching someone who needs their skills has become a challenge in its own right.

The approach we once knew has become much less common: visiting a company, handing in your resume, and perhaps getting a chance to speak with the person responsible for hiring. Much of that process has moved online, allowing job seekers to send their resumes to dozens of employers without leaving home. But the ease of applying has also brought an overwhelming volume of applications, with some vacancies attracting hundreds, perhaps even thousands.

That volume creates a problem on both sides. Job seekers want their resumes to receive a fair reading, while employers are trying to find the right person among a large number of applicants. When the person reviewing resumes finds that many are far removed from the basic requirements of the role, the screening process becomes exhausting. They may never even reach the resume of someone who has the skills they need.

This is why, in the cases I have followed, I have noticed a growing reliance on professional referrals. An employer asks a colleague or a friend in the same field: "Do you know someone who can do this work?" A name then passes from one person to another, and the candidate reaches an interview, perhaps even a job offer.

This is an observation from my own experience, not a universal rule or a description of every company and market. But it has shown me the value of having others know your work and abilities, and of having someone who has worked with you recommend you based on firsthand knowledge and trust.

That led me to consider another way of finding an opportunity for my son.

I had seen many people publish posts on LinkedIn asking for work. I thought that sharing his experience and skills publicly might open a door that would be difficult to reach through conventional job applications.

I shared his resume and mentioned that I had tried to persuade him to work with me at my company and move into C++ and assembly programming to help with my project. But he chose web development. I respected his choice and wanted him to find an opportunity in the field he enjoys and does well.

Then something happened that I had not expected.

Many people picked up on the sentence about working with me. Both my son and I began receiving messages through the contact channels listed in the post from people looking for jobs in C++, assembly, and systems programming. My purpose was to find an opportunity for my son in his field. I had mentioned my project to explain how his interests differed from the nature of my work, and how I had respected his preference.

I realized that the sentence had created room for misunderstanding and that I should have worded it more clearly. But it also revealed a painful reality behind the scenes: people with knowledge and skills in demanding specialties who hold on to any sign that might lead to a job opportunity.

I empathize with these people, particularly those specializing in C++, assembly, and low-level systems programming. I understand the value of these fields and the effort required to master them, because I have spent many years working in them. From the experiences people share with me, I also know that finding a suitable opportunity in these areas can be difficult, and that opportunities vary considerably depending on the country, industry, level of experience, and particular specialty.

I hope each of them finds a place that values their skills. Drawing on this experience, I would like to offer four pieces of advice that I believe may help those able to apply them, while recognizing that people's circumstances and capabilities differ.

My first piece of advice is to broaden your skills when opportunities in your current specialty are limited.

If you have the ability and interest to learn frontend development, backend development, or mobile application development, you can add another path to your expertise and become eligible for other kinds of jobs. You might pursue native application development using Kotlin or Swift, or build applications for multiple platforms using React Native or Flutter, depending on your target market and the kind of work you want to do.

I believe these paths are worth considering for anyone seeking a wider range of opportunities. But making that choice requires examining actual vacancies in your target market and then making a serious effort to learn the tools they require. Your previous experience in systems programming can remain a valuable asset in understanding performance, memory, and debugging, even when you move into a different area of application development.

My second piece of advice is to master your craft and build strong projects that demonstrate that mastery.

A resume can say that you know a language or framework, but a well-built project can show what you can do with that knowledge. Create something people can try, make it solve a clear problem, pay attention to its quality and ease of use, and explain your role in it and the decisions you made while building it.

When an employer sees a working product and can discuss its details with you, they have a clearer basis for evaluating your abilities. The more organized and specific the presentation of your projects is, the easier it becomes for others to understand what you can do and remember you when a suitable opportunity arises.

My third piece of advice, for those whose circumstances allow it, is to consider starting a business of your own.

You may have a new idea, or you may see an existing product that you could improve on by making it easier to use, better suited to a particular group, or better in an area that customers need. Start by studying the problem and talking to the people you expect to use the product. Then build a limited version to test the idea before investing substantial time and money.

Give marketing as much attention as development. Learn how to communicate the product's value, reach its audience, and make effective use of appropriate promotional and advertising channels. Running a business requires an understanding of customers, costs, support, and how to keep it going, alongside programming ability.

This path may be more suitable for some people, and it may eventually put them in a position to hire others. But it requires a realistic assessment of their circumstances and resources, and steps they can afford to take.

My fourth piece of advice is to make thoughtful use of artificial intelligence.

Use it wherever you can to work faster, explore ideas, and assist with programming, testing, documentation, and design. It may help you carry out ideas that would otherwise take a long time to implement alone or cost more than you could comfortably afford.

Throughout that process, retain control of your work. Understand what these tools produce, review the code, test the results, and make the decisions yourself. You are responsible for the quality of the product and for any errors that may reach its users.

I believe that combining professional experience with the effective use of artificial intelligence can increase your capacity to produce, experiment, and improve. The value of that combination becomes visible in the quality of the work you deliver.

As I read the messages that arrived after my post, I saw behind each one a person trying to find a place for their skills, perhaps carrying responsibilities we know nothing about. That is why I hope anyone with a real opportunity to offer will take some time to consider capable people who might otherwise be lost among the crowd.

For job seekers, I hope this experience helps you explore several ways of reaching an opportunity: purposeful learning, well-crafted work you can present, professional relationships built through people knowing your abilities, and perhaps a business of your own that begins with a small step.

I hope every job seeker finds an opportunity that respects their skills, and every capable person reaches someone who appreciates what they can contribute. Each of us can help make the path less difficult: through an honest referral, a useful post or resource, a fair opportunity, or time given to someone whose voice has yet to be heard.