Linux is the foundation of the new tech world
These days, everyone is a tech company. Technology is increasingly driving business productivity, whether it’s new-school video streaming services such as Netflix or old-school grocery stores and government agencies. Linux is at the heart of this movement, which has created exceptional, highly-paid job opportunities for Linux professionals.
Redmonk analyst Stephen O’Grady says that software developers are the new kingmakers. It’s no surprise then that software developers are ranked #1 on the US News & World Report’s top 100 jobs list, with system administrators ranked in the top 20.
The economy is clearly rebuilding around technology as every company seeks to gain competitive advantage through more intelligent use of its data and seeks agility with cloud and open source technologies.
It’s not clear, however, how dependent this new tech economy is on Linux.
The New World Of Tech is Built on Linux This dependence is evident in the survey of over 5,000 Linux professionals and hiring managers that the Linux Foundation recently released in partnership to Dice.com. The report also contains other findings:
7% of hiring managers now have “hiring Linux talent” as a priority for 2014. This is up from 70% in 2013. 7% of hiring managers have “hiring Linux talent” on their list of priorities for 2014, up from 70% in 2013. Considerably.
Linux: There is a lot of demand, but not enough supply 75% of Linux professionals polled said they had received at least one call in the past six months from a recruiter. Nearly half of those surveyed received six or more calls.
It’s a great time to be a Linux expert.
This results in higher salaries and better benefits. 55% of Linux pros think it would be “very easy” (or “fairly easy”) to find a better job. 20% of them stated that they received incentives such a higher pay or a more flexible schedule or additional training from their employer as part of a counteroffer after they had tested the job market.
Linux pros received salary increases that were more than twice the average for technology professionals over the past year to keep them from entering the market. This year, the average bonus for these professionals was $10,336, an increase of 12% over the previous year.
The Future, Present, and Past of Linux Ten years ago, learning Linux was the best way to make more money. This is still true today. In 2004, Linux was still a new operating system and was being used mainly by early adopters looking to gain a competitive advantage in their markets and financial services. Linux is now the default operating system for cloud, Big Data, and mobile, which are the big trends that are changing industries. Linux is not just for early adopters. It is the platform on which most of our innovation takes place.
As such, I will continue to give the same career advice that I gave in 2004 and which I will likely still repeat in 2024: Learn Linux. It’s the future.
The article above, written by Matt Asay originally appeared in ReadWriteWeb.
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