Is a developer shortage holding Atlanta back?

01/17/13 21:55:00    

By Michael Mealling

I don't mean to repeat a previous post but the issue of developer talent, specifically around Ruby on Rails, is Pipefish's number one issue right now. This week I decided to think a bit creatively about ways to find and recruit RoR developers: signing bonuses, free Big Nerd Ranch training, free ticket in a Zero Gravity flight, etc. Things to shake people loose and consider a startup vs contract to contract consultancies.

So I decided to do some googling to look for what works and what doesn't. No glaring conclusions but some interesting data:

• Java is still the highest paid developer type but RoR and Python are a close second. .NET is the lowest paid of the mainline languages, even behind Perl and COBOL. - http://www.jiansnet.com/topic/24694/Top-IT-Skills-and-Salaries

• Top tier developers in the Valley get paid quite well but have a cost of living that negates about a fifth of that salary. And with the recent retroactive state tax the tax bill for living there just went WAY up. http://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-salaries-2011-8

• This is a little old but a poll on HN suggests that startups gravitate toward RoR and Python. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1843083

As a developer from long ago I understand that what drives good developers is the vision as much as anything. Can your code change the world? Second comes the environment and people. Salary, benefits and the rest tend to come last. So if that's the case why aren't developers flocking to the dozens of startups in Atlanta?

Are agencies and consultancies the new normal that Atlanta startups just need to deal with or is there something we're doing wrong that we can fix?