Open-source really could help get you a job, study finds

Cloud, OpenStack, and networking expertise in open source are all sought by those filling jobs

Experience in the open-source world is a valuable asset for technology job-seekers, and it’s getting more so over time, according to the latest Open-Source Jobs Report, which was published today by Dice and the Linux Foundation.

The report, which surveyed tech hiring managers, found that nearly two-thirds were planning to increase open-source hiring more than other areas of their business in the near future, and that 59 percent had definite plans to add open-source workers.

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The news was also good for open-source workers who are already employed. Four out of five hiring managers who responded to the survey said that they had increased incentives to retain open-source employees — 44 percent had hiked salaries to this end, while 43 percent had offered more flexible working conditions like telecommuting.

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Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, said that the trends are strong for open-source workers.

“It’s a seller’s market and it’s only going to get more beneficial for open-source professionals,” he said in a statement. “As more and more open source projects are developed, open source professionals will need to update their skill sets with knowledge and experience including DevOps and networking.”

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One of the most in-demand subsets of open-source knowledge is OpenStack and the cloud, with 51 percent of respondents saying that cloud expertise is the most critical consideration in open-source hiring. Networking technology was the second most important, according to the survey, at 21 percent.

The idea that the technology jobs market it tilted sharply in favor of applicants is underlined by another report released today, this one from the CIO Executive Council — just 11 percent of 133 IT executives surveyed by the CEC said that they had a “robust” pool of potential workers to choose from.

This story, “Open-source really could help get you a job, study finds” was originally published by Network World.