Blockchain, JavaScript Most In-Demand Programming Skills

Demand for blockchain programming skills increased by 552% in 2022, despite the meltdowns in the cryptocurrency market, according to DevSkiller's Digital & IT Skills Report 2023.

JavaScript, Java, SQL, and Python led the list of the most in-demand programming skills, according to the report, which is based on 209,249 skills assessments sent through the DevSkiller platform to candidates and employees globally.

The report indicated that there is a growing demand for roles that require deep technical expertise and sophisticated IT skills like cloud-native Java.

"If you follow industry trends carefully, the report isn't that surprising," said Tomasz Nurkiewicz, DevSkiller's CTO. "It closely reflects job trends and listings."

However, Nurkiewicz admitted that he is surprised by the rise of blockchain-related technologies and said it's hard to predict how the collapse of FTX and other crypto crashes might affect the IT job market in 2023.

"Either the market still didn't account for a crypto crash or enterprises began using blockchains for non-financial use cases," he noted. "We don't see a drop yet in 2022 data — quite the opposite — but recruitment processes may be lagging behind the market."

Related:10 Enterprise Applications for Blockchain Technology

From his perspective, many startups built around NFTs or Ethereum will go bust, lowering the popularity of blockchain.

"In case that happens, blockchain developers should think about reskilling or gaining extra skills to shift their careers," he advised.

Python and C Popular Still Among Most In-Demand Programming Skills

Other predictions find Python and C will continue to be popular with programmers, while Java and PHP could slip in popularity.

Nurkiewicz added that it might be a bit surprising to see the same technologies repeatedly: For example, React is the No. 1 web technology for the fourth time.

"Our report represents a large portion of the market, rather than whatever is popular recently," he explained. "So, in one respect, it more closely resembles the current industry, but at the same time, it lacks the most recent technologies. That's understandable, as such technologies aren't adopted straight away."

Skills in Java and JavaScript platforms are still very attractive to organizations looking for IT talent because web applications became an essential part of the internet, he said.

Related:Should Developers Learn Java Programming Language in 2022?

"Moreover, many organizations prefer having a responsive web application, rather than a native app," Nurkiewicz said. "Native apps, on the other hand, are also often written using JavaScript."

Reskilling and Upskilling May Be Best Option

The study also found more than half of skills assessment invitations in 2022 were for junior developers, while 18% were for middle developers, and 31% were for senior developers and engineers.

"From our report and our internal studies, we see that reskilling is more important than ever," Nurkiewicz said. "Take the Great Resignation, followed by massive layoffs and the crypto crash. All these circumstances mean we have a lot of skilled workers who can easily take another job position if they carefully plan their career."

Related:Combat IT Talent Shortage with Upskilling and Reskilling

However, some of the workers left without a job do not have the skills that are sufficient or are aligned with the market, he said, adding that companies also expect a certain level of "softer" digital skills proficiency even from traditionally non-technical employees.

With concerns of recession growing and major tech companies are laying off thousands, Nurkiewicz cautioned that the coming months might be hard for some engineers but added that there are still plenty of companies hiring.

"The pandemic has shown us that the remote and hybrid model works, so it might be easier to find a remote job," he said. "Moreover, engineers have an ever-learning culture. Reskilling or upskilling might be their best option. Also, an understanding of a certain business domain will help tremendously."

Overall demand for tech workers is still high, resulting in a rise in salaries for IT pros, a recent Janco report found, with median salaries for the positions surveyed now exceeding $101,000.

All salaries for IT workers in large enterprises went up an average of 3.61%, with most of the major increases found at the staff levels, while salaries in small to medium-size businesses (SMBs) increased 7.74% across the board, with slightly greater percentages for IT executives.