Exploring the Roots of Blockchain Talent Scarcity
Blockchain is perceived as overhyped
We live in a world where technology affects our daily lives. As soon as a new technology emerges, tech blogs and newspapers immediately begin to debate its potential implications for consumers, companies, and whole industries.
Blockchain is one of most hyped emerging technologies of recent years. Hype and expectations also have a downside: according to Deloitte’s 2018 global blockchain survey, 39% of a broad global sample of senior executives believe that blockchain is an overhyped technology. In the US, this figure is even higher, increasing from 34% to 44% between 2016 and 2018.
Thus, it seems that executives have become more sceptical about blockchain’s potential. One of the reasons for this mistrust could be that as blockchain is primarily known as the technology that powers Bitcoin, it is guilty by association with various cases of cryptocurrency fraud. As a result, a “trust gap” has emerged which could explain why there is a lack of experienced blockchain developers, despite the fact that the technology is now being deployed for a much wider range of applications in the real world.
Industry-wide Blockchain Adoption is pushing the Demand for Staff
The first blockchain was conceptualized in 2008. By 2016, blockchain had already been deployed by 13.5% of the financial services industry. 2019 could be an historic year for the blockchain sector as we move towards a more regulated environment — Malta, for example, is planning to issue the first license for operators in the blockchain sphere. Blockchain will become more and more integrated into the economy and is expected to be worth US$20 billion by the end of 2024.
“2018 was a tough year, but we have a longer term outlook for our industry. The builders have been building in 2018, so for 2019, I think we will see a lot of real products and real applications coming into the market.” — Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Binance CEO and Founder
While the financial sector leads the way in terms of blockchain adoption, other sectors are still figuring out how they can use the technology most effectively. In China and Mexico, nearly half of respondents to a global blockchain survey said that the technology was already under development in their organization. This percentage ranges between 36% and 40% in Western countries such as Canada, France, Germany and the UK. The US is an outlier here, with a 14% adoption rate.
As an increasing number of organisations adopt blockchain, the demand for specialised staff with relevant experience is constantly growing. About a third of organizations are investing in blockchain-based changes to existing systems and are hiring staff with blockchain experience to implement their plans. About 40% plan to invest $5 million or more in blockchain in 2019.
As a result, demand for blockchain developers has grown 400% since the end of 2017, leading to a scarcity of talent. This has been accelerated by the decision of some large tech companies — such as Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft — to adopt the technology and salaries for experienced blockchain developers have grown accordingly. While developers have a great opportunity to significantly increase their salaries, companies are struggling to find the talent to implement their blockchain strategies.
Education could not keep up with the fast development
The scarcity of high-quality blockchain developers also stems from lack of education on blockchain. In recent years, however, this has started to change as a number of universities have developed lectures on blockchain and organised meetups to highlight its social and economic implications. An increasing number of universities now even offer blockchain courses, including both Harvard and Stanford University. However, such courses remain relatively niche and are still not available to everyone.
Young adults and students need to become aware of the opportunities presented by blockchain. We need to make blockchain education more accessible and increase the number of apprenticeships in the sector. This means moving beyond the conventional narrative about cryptocurrency and making people aware of blockchain’s broader uses. Ultimately, access to blockchain education will be crucial in order to encourage the next generation of blockchain talent.
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