The Rise of

the Enterprise
Developer
Rising Influence, Strategic Thinking and Decision-Making
Every organization is a software
company. Applications are never
complete, but are constantly being
adapted to meet the needs of
the business. At the nexus of the
business and the software that
powers it, sits the Developer.

LEARN THE LINGO . . .

Developer
Strategic thinker open to new tactical solutions, responsible for resolving the evolving
software needs of teams throughout their organization and face next level challenges.

DevOps
Redefining operations through new tools and expertise to set up, develop and test
environments on demand using a software-defined infrastructure.

NoOps
No operations. Using cloud and other newer technologies to eliminate the need for
developers to work with their organizations operations team.

WHO IS THE
ENTERPRISE
DEVELOPER?

JOB TITLE
Developer
17% Software
(<age 35: 27%)
Engineer/
8% Software
Development Engineer

ROLE

Architect
8% IT(ageArchitect/Software
45+: 14%)

91%

develop software
applications
(<age 45: 97%)

53%

modify/maintain existing
software applications
(age 45+: 75%)

4%

38%

testing software
applications

13%

35%

researching software
applications

23%

purchasing software
applications

DEMOGRAPHIC
2%

65+

18-24

55-64

32%

90%

25-34

MALE

19%

29%

45-54

35-44

Average age: 42 years

62%

of developers say the pace of software development at their

organization is EXTREMELY/VERY/SOMEWHAT fast paced.

80% are extremely/very/somewhat satisfied with this pace

A good chunk of
my time is spent
talking with
department
leaders about their
development needs.
Sometimes I need
to go to senior
management to
make the case for
a new solution.

RISING INFLUENCER
IN THE ENTERPRISE
73%
meet (frequently/sometimes) with senior management
72% to talk about enterprise development needs
meet (frequently/sometimes) with line of business
leaders to gather development requirements

DEVELOPER

82% <age 45 vs 57% age 45+

Developers describe their relationship with business management as:

86% | COLLABORATIVE & CONSULTATIVE | 82%

{48%

say that communication/collaboration skills

are important to be successful in their role

42%

DEVELOPERS FREQUENTLY ...

MODIFY/MAINTAIN SOFTWARE

51%

DEVELOP SOFTWARE

50%

DESIGN SOFTWARE

46%

ARE INTERESTED IN LEARNING NEW

PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES OR SKILLS
#1 JAVASCRIPT
#2 HTML/CSS
#3 C#

... AND SHOW PROFICIENCY IN

MULTIPLE PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

#4 JAVA

#1 HTML5

#5 PYTHON

#2 JAVASCRIPT

Throughout their day, developers

must stay aware of ongoing
enterprise developments and
business context otherwise
challenges occur.

#3 SQL
#4 C#
#5 C++

CHALLENGES
THAT GET IN THE WAY
29%
Doing more
with less staff

up with
29% Keeping
new technology

Scope creep/
uncontrolled
growth in project
requirements

28%

advancements/changing
skill requirements

BUT, DEVELOPERS ARE RESOURCEFUL

IN FINDING SOLUTIONS

59%

say problem solving/

troubleshooting skills
are most important to be
successful in their role
52% are confident in these skills

FUTURE
BENEFITS
AND GOALS

Seek advice from peers

when challenges arise

51%

STRATEGIC
CHALLENGE

They will also perform

Google searches, check blogs
and post in online communities

47%

TECHNICAL OR
DEVELOPMENT
CHALLENGE

44%

40%

42%

STRATEGIC
CHALLENGE

TECHNICAL OR
DEVELOPMENT
CHALLENGE

42%

41%

LEARNING NEW
PROGRAMMING
SKILLS OR
LANGUAGES

RESEARCHING
NEW TOOLS
AND SOLUTIONS

39%

DEVELOPERS WOULD LIKE

TO DO MORE OF:
DEVELOPING
SOFTWARE

31% <age 45 / 38% age 45+

34%

33%

CLOUD API
EXPERTISE

DATA ANALYTICS
KNOWLEDGE

DESIGNING
SOFTWARE

31%

THEY COULD USE

MORE TRAINING IN:
SECURITY ISSUES
MANAGEMENT/
SECURITY KNOWLEDGE

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT:

2015 Rise of the Developer Tech Persona

www.idgenterprise.com/contact-us
www.idgenterprise.com/research-reports