10th Annual Jobs Report: Skill up for the summer and your next open source gig

For those of us in the northern hemisphere, summer is finally here! Perhaps you celebrated the Summer Solstice a few weeks ago. If you’re from the United States, the fireworks from the 4th of July are now just a fun memory.

Like me, you’re now probably thinking about how you’re going to spend your downtime this summer. Perhaps you plan on taking things easy, maybe finishing off that novel you never got to this year, or taking a road trip?

With the news of layoffs and inflation, and investment market declines taking the wind out of summer sailboats, there’s no better time than now to learn new skills for your next job, or to stay up-to-date on your current one. The good news is that there are great resources to help stay competitive during uncertain market times, and just in time for summer, too!

Linux Foundation Research and LF Training & Certification recently published its latest paper, the 10th Annual Open Source Jobs Report. While it’s not your usual beach reading material, the conclusions are timely and significant, so you should pay close attention.

One of the key takeaways was this: open source professionals seek satisfying employment with plenty of opportunities to develop skills. Unsurprisingly, they want to work in a pleasant and collaborative atmosphere, with a competent staff that is equally enthusiastic about their chosen field. If you’re highly skilled, maybe now’s a good time to ask for a raise?

And the folks that want to fill those jobs, the hiring managers? They’re seeking the brightest talent to fill open positions. They want individuals who are not only qualified but also a good match for their business culture. And guess what. There are not enough people with the necessary skills.

So what does this mean for open source professionals? Training and certifications can give you that extra edge when looking for that new position and potentially command a higher salary in your current job.

And what kinds of open source skills are organizations looking for when hiring prospective professionals?

• 77% of organizations are growing in their use of open cloud and container technologies like Kubernetes. Cloud and container technologies were the top-ranked, in-demand skills for 2022 by hiring managers and open source professionals, followed by Linux, DevOps, and cybersecurity.
• 67% of hiring managers seek open source professionals with architectural skills, followed by the ability to deploy open source software (67%) and using open source development tools (such as GitHub) at 42%

To put it in perspective, in 2022, it’s all about architecting, deploying, and developing open source software.

At the Linux Foundation, we’ve got the courseware and certification exams for you to achieve this, with over 55 offerings in open cloud and container technologies alone, including tracks for Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD), and Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS).

To help make these offerings more affordable, from July 12-13 you can save 25% on all training and certification by using code FLASH22 in your shopping cart at checkout.

What if you want to get started without laying any money out? We’ve got over 50 courses in these technologies that are absolutely free.

We know that getting rewarding jobs in open source isn’t always easy. Nor is it easy to fill open positions. But there are also numerous opportunities for those individuals willing to secure them, and an equal number of training options for managers to work with upskilling the talent that is already in-house.

So what’s on your summer reading list now? Make sure it’s the 10th Annual Jobs Report.