Communications of the ACM
Silicon Valley's Dark Secret: It's All About Age
Credit: TechCrunch
Vivek Wadhwa, an entrepreneur and noted academic, weighs in on an interesting paradox in the technology world: there appears to be both a shortage and a surplus of engineers in the United States. Technology companies are finding it hard to find qualified talent; at the same time, there are tens of thousands of unemployed engineers who can't find jobs. As Wadhwa points out, one explanation is that tech companies prefer to hire young, inexperienced, engineers. For companies, it is more cost-effective to hire and train younger, inexperienced engineers, even if they have no skills. With that in mind, Wadhwa suggests a few ways that older, experienced IT candidates can make themselves more attractive to employers.
According to recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and census data for the semiconductor industry, salaries increased dramatically for engineers during their 30s, but these increases slowed after the age of 40. Salaries then started dropping after age 40, dependent on the level of education. After 50, the mean salary of engineers was lower -- by 17 percent for those with bachelors degrees, and by 14 percent for those with masters degrees and Ph.D.s -- than the salary of those younger than 50. Salary increases for holders of postgraduate degrees were always lower than increases for those with bachelor's degrees. The same dynamic is at work in the software and Internet industries. For tech startups, it usually boils down to cost: most can't even afford to pay $60K salaries, so they look for motivated, young software developers who will accept minimum wage in return for equity ownership and the opportunity to build their careers.
For older workers, there are several options to reverse this trend. You can move into management, design, sales or product management. You can also jump ship and become an entrepreneur. If you're going to stay in programming, realize that employers aren't willing or able to pay an experienced worker twice or three times what an entry-level worker earns. Try to keep your skills current and keep up-to-date with the latest trends in computing, programming techniques, and languages. You also need to demonstrate that your experience brings wisdom and the abilities to follow direction, mentor and lead. As an older worker, you can also demonstrate the value of being a loyal team player.
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