Nearly 1 in 2 Indian software developer plan to quit job this year

About 44 per cent of developers based in India are considering leaving their job this year compared to 42 per cent globally, according to a report. The report by DigitalOcean Holdings, the cloud for developers, startups and SMBs, surveyed over 2,500 respondents from 94 countries including India, US, Germany, Canada and the UK.

It shows that the developer talent shortage has potential to worsen with 64 per cent of those with less than a year's experience, and 32 per cent of those with 1-5 years experience, leaving their job recently.

Motivations for leaving jobs were found to be consistent among both those who have already left and those considering leaving, with compensation, remote or flexible work environments, and better benefits being the top factors that motivate people to leave jobs, especially for younger developers.

Nearly 18 per cent of respondents cited lack of time and resources to work on projects is also a key challenge, and 11 per cent mention team members leaving as a challenge, demonstrating that the developer talent shortage is impacting even those who stay in their roles.

"Attracting and retaining developer talent is evolving rapidly and companies need to adapt to the new landscape," said Gabe Monroy, Chief Product Officer at DigitalOcean, in a statement.

"Businesses need to better understand developers and give them the tools, benefits, and pay they need to be successful - business survival in the digital era depends on it," Monroy added.

About 56 per cent of India developers also participated in open source projects in the past year, of which just 12 per cent of were paid for their contribution.

Open source has contributed to learning and networking in India, with 37 per cent stating they have gained enhanced skills from open source, 23 per cent networking opportunities, and 10 per cent have found job opportunities through the open source community.

It is clear that businesses of all sizes need to rethink their approach to attracting and retaining highly-skilled developer talent.

The report also identifies compensation and desire for fully remote or more flexible work environments as the top reasons developers are thinking about quitting, or already have.