Written by: Patrick Dougherty, Mobile Development Recruitment Lead & Account Manager.
Key Takeaways
- Companies who want to stay on the cutting edge need a mix of contract specialists and permanent staff.
- Hiring a team at one time is more beneficial to a project than hiring as needs arise.
- Working with a specialty tech staffing firm is the most effective way to find the talent needed to meet the fast-changing requirements of a top mobile developer.
Hiring mobile developers in 2022 is very different than it was prior to the pandemic, in the last decade, and even within the last year. Computer Futures has operated as a leading tech specialist staffing firm for 36 years and has come to establish authority on the ever-changing technology talent market. There is no more rapidly growing and changing corner of the tech world than mobile development, and so hiring within the industry changes at the speed of light.
Back in the Day
The first iOS device was released in 2007 and the first Android device in 2008 and were used primarily by those who were considered more cutting-edge and technologically adept. People slowly began integrating mobile devices into their daily lives, as updates and overhauls to device capabilities were driven to feed the need for innovation. Having a smartphone shifted from a luxury to a cultural norm rapidly and is now a necessity for day-to-day life for most people.
There are now thought to be more than three billion smartphone users in the world. Research has found that smartphone users spend 90% of the time on their devices on mobile apps. Two million apps launched in 2021 alone.
What Changed?
Even prior to the global pandemic, mobile-first was becoming more and more of a trend across almost every industry. The mobile app economy flourished throughout the pandemic as consumer working habits adjusted to a new way of life. Mobile adoption boomed with growth across downloads, usage, and app store consumer spend. In turn, hiring mobile developers changed as well.
A dramatic spike in downloads of apps such as Zoom, Google Meets and Microsoft Teams that coincided with remote working was one of the more visible consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Here's How it is Now
Is it the end of the web application? No, but Mobile is more important to a business' success than ever.
The market for the most talented and capable developers has become so competitive that 53% of companies are increasing their budgets to accommodate developers' demands for higher pay and better benefits.
In 2022, companies have been hiring to expand the number of developers on their team to increase their development velocity in order to improve users’ experiences and add new features for their applications. Recruiters are placing more and more developers at one time for their clients to support the increasing demand for talent.
The number of Computer Futures' clients doubling the size of their development teams has increased 50% since 2020.
As the world becomes more and more mobile-first, the size of the teams required to keep pace with the technology increases too. Hiring a team rather than a few specialists at any given time provides a company with a competitive advantage. Procedures and strategies can be set up and executed with more agility, better quality, and at better scale.
Contractors and Project-based Employment
Employers have crucial decisions to make that will have a major impact on how their needs are met. The decision of whether to hire a permanent or contract IT specialist depends a great deal on the specific needs of each company, down to each project. Most of the time, the solution that best suits a company in the long-term is a blend of project-based contract specialists and a team of permanent, full-time employees.
Finding the right balance is tricky and depends on factors that change as the industry and the world change around mobile technology. Having timely and skilled developers on-hand and within quick reach can be a major contributor to a mobile application project’s success or failure.
Where a Mobile Development Staffing Firm Comes In
The demand for the number of developers is expected to increase from 17% to 24% by the year 2026.
Finding and vetting qualified people to fill open roles remains the top challenge to hiring managers across the board. Companies need more specialized talent to implement, maintain, and enhance their systems for better return-on-investment.
Most of the time a company’s own talent acquisition or HR departments do not have the knowledge of the mobile tech industry to distinguish a good prospective employee from a phenomenal one. Working with just any staffing firm will not provide a solution to the problem that is sustainable.
For the best and most highly skilled mobile developers, companies need to partner with a specialty tech recruitment firm who has the in-depth knowledge and network to produce the candidates that fill the meaning of the phrase ‘cutting-edge’. Computer Futures has a proprietary process for finding the best developers and presenting our clients with the top-of-field specialists for their projects. We work with a company to create a staffing plan that is catered and optimized to bring the best potential out of their projects.
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