EDITOR ’ S QUESTION
JOHN SELVADURAI , VICE PRESIDENT OF
R & D , ITERATE . AI
With generative AI and other transformative emerging technologies quickly reshaping enterprise development practices and introducing must-have application capabilities , the ability to recruit and retain top talent is arguably more critical than ever . The enterprises that win this competition for tech talent will , increasingly often , be those that can provide the most compelling and inviting developer experience ( DX ).
Developer experience has made tremendous strides as a focus in just the last five years ( after decades of no one particularly caring whether enterprise developers found their tools easy to work with ).
It ’ s now wholly unacceptable if organizations fail to provide their developers with tools that are easy to use and responsive to their requirements .
Importantly , DX is frequently the decisive factor developers examine when choosing where to take their talents . I know developers who have shaped their careers around pursuing opportunities to work with development tools they ’ re excited about .
On the flip side of that , it ’ s harder than ever to find a good developer who ’ s willing to work with bad tools ... or even just boring traditional ones .
Smart enterprises know this and have adapted talent acquisition to fit .
Developer job descriptions now call out enticing modern developer tools by name . Hiring managers come to developer interviews ready to sell prospects on the strength of their DX and delineate just how committed the organization is to developer needs .
Digging a little deeper into this , one overlooked but invaluable DX strategy is to champion the community . An enterprise vetting any new developer tool as part of a DX strategy should assess the size and strength of its developer community early in the process .
For developers , connecting with peers to share and solve mutual issues across a supportive community is as important to the developer experience as anything a tool itself might offer .
Whatever a tool ’ s features , make sure the community is there to draw out that value .
I also recommend that DX-minded organizations embrace generative AI now . Already , AI assistants are here to help developers create code . Full AI assistant code development systems – with DX ready to replace coding as we know it – are coming sooner than you think .
When developer talent comes looking for those experiences , enterprises already offering them will thrive .
DX is frequently the decisive factor developers examine when choosing where to take their talents . I know developers who have shaped their careers around pursuing opportunities to work with development tools they ’ re excited about .
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