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Software Developers Today Demand A Variety Of Skills – Here Are 6 Of Them
A lot of entry-level software developers ask what kind of developer they should become.
They don’t mean what kind of specialization, or what technology they should learn. Rather, look into the general characteristics needed to be a great developer in today’s market.
You’re going to face more competition than ever, and you’ll need to be ready to showcase your true value.
The market has seen way too many developers get blinded by their own genius, and think they can pull off being a one-man band. They end up delivering sub-par results and getting fired from their position at the first sign of trouble.
You need to be ready for today’s market. Never before have developers needed more than a handful of skills under their belt. It is a fine balance of developing and growing new skills and knowing when to share the responsibilities. Of course, you’ll need a basis to determine which skills you’ll need for today’s market.
Here are some of the most essential skills needed by software developers today.
6 Skills Software Developers Need In Today’s Market
The needs of clients are constantly shifting. For software developers, this can be a lot to keep up with and manage. However, it is one of the most vital things that can be done to keep yourself in the game.
Customers are always searching for a more streamlined and intuitive process for their business. As emphasized at onestopdevshop.io, using tools and development teams is something many businesses are turning towards. As a developer, it’s important to see and note these types of trends and changes.
The 6 skills in this guide should help you understand what’s needed for today’s market and give you an idea of where you can make improvements in your existing skillset.
Communication Skills
You can’t just be a code monkey anymore, because it won’t work in the real world. You’re going to be on a team, or working closely with someone.
You’ll have to understand your teammate’s strengths and weaknesses, including yours too, so you can make it work as efficiently as possible. You’ll need to be able to communicate effectively with them, explaining complex details in simple terms that they’ll understand.
If you’re a machine, you won’t be able to work with other machines. Though processes are slowly requiring less human involvement, the actual development isn’t. If anything, there is more of a demand for cooperative teams for the creation of various projects. Enhancing your communications skills can easily set you up for a better position within the team.
Understanding of User Feedback
Never before in the history of software development has user feedback been more important.
People are now much pickier about how things look, act, and respond under different scenarios. You can’t afford to not be on top of it, because that’s how you’re going to win new customers and retain old ones.
You can’t be short-sighted with your development decisions or ignore the user feedback if you want to succeed. It’s not about whether the solution is technically feasible, it’s whether it will work from a business perspective.
Understanding of Culture
Not only will you be working with new developers, but you’ll also need to work with other teams, such as marketing, support, and sales.
You can’t just ignore their needs, or go ahead and develop something that’s technically sound without thinking of how it may help or accommodate these other teams. As a developer, it is easy to get caught up in your own way of thinking and doing things. As such, you will create software accordingly. This does not, however, account for the needs of the various branches of the team.
You’ll need to understand your company’s culture, and know how you can fit into that system. You don’t want to be a black sheep or an outcast, because it won’t work for anyone long term.
Understanding of Business Model
Software development isn’t an island. It’s part of the business, and as such, it needs to abide by how the company operates.
You’ll have to take on board how your decisions will impact other departments around you, including what features need adding or removing from your product. You must know the difference between functionality and scope.
It may be hard, but your company needs to know what it’s paying for.
Understanding of Financial Model
It’s clear that software development is a business strategy now more than ever before. Success in this area depends on how well you take into account financial factors and models. You need to understand if your software development approach is sustainable, including if it’s profitable.
You can’t just focus on having a great product; you have to know the costs and risks that go into delivering it. Having access to data will help with this quite a bit.
Understanding of Market Needs and Technology Trends
Nobody can predict the future, but you can always understand what trends are happening today.
The more you know about your market and the technology in general, the better off you will be with making decisions for your company’s success. I’m not just talking about knowing some buzzwords either; it’s how you can apply them to your business.
Using technology trends can be a great shortcut to success with software development, and you have to know how to go about it. It takes more than just having the right skills; it also comes down to knowing when those skills should be applied.
In the software development world, developers are a dime a dozen. There’s a huge surplus, so it can be hard to stand out from the crowd and find work as an individual. However, if you have these six skills, that won’t matter. You’ll be able to get hired on your own merit and succeed where others may not.
It is likely that you’ll come across developers that match or even surpass your skill level. However, developing skills beyond the traditional landscape of developers will truly set you on a separate platform for success.
