[IT Developer Battle] The Reality is a 'Rockstar Hiring Shortage'... Need to Increase Training Opportunities

Rockstar vs. Ordinary Technicians: 100x Difference
IT Industry Hiring Focused on 'Rockstar'
"Government, Universities, and Companies Must Collaborate for Development"

[Rockstar Principle]

Refers to a single talented individual who delivers outstanding performance, fulfilling the roles of dozens of people. Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, revealed in his book "No Rules Rules" that the 'Rockstar Principle' is applied in Netflix's personnel evaluations, sparking interest in South Korea as well.

[Asia Economy Reporter Junhyung Lee] # CEO A of an edutech company focusing on artificial intelligence (AI) technology development struggled to hire experienced AI developers. The reality is that a small number of experts head to large IT companies offering high compensation, resulting in an absolute shortage of skilled researchers. CEO A stated, "After repeated hiring failures, I concluded over time that hiring experienced professionals with high proficiency was difficult."

CEO A changed the recruitment strategy to hire new developers and train them into experts. A small number of senior researchers with doctoral degrees took charge of educating the new developers. The senior researchers conducted training by implementing discussed ideas into prototypes on the spot. Supported by the company, they became mentors to the new developers.

The results were successful. CEO A said, "The learning speed of new developers trained by senior researchers was faster than expected," adding, "The senior researchers act as a kind of influencer, and their impact in the field is very significant." He added, "Perhaps they are a real-life example of the (Rockstar Principle)."

Behind the fierce competition for developers sweeping the IT industry recently lies the 'Rockstar Principle.' The Rockstar Principle is a concept that Netflix CEO Reed Hastings revealed he applies in talent management, which became a hot topic. What IT companies desperately seek are 'high-level talents' who perform the roles of dozens or hundreds of ordinary developers. Experts unanimously said, "The supply is far below the demand for rockstars." There are also calls for measures due to insufficient educational infrastructure.

The Real Focus of Developer Competition is Rockstars... "Worth Over 100 Times"

Although IT companies are actively hiring large numbers of developers, industry insiders say the actual focus is on 'rockstars.' A CEO of a 6-year-old IT startup said, "Only a very small number of excellent developers can properly solve the problems the company faces," adding, "Many applications come in when job postings are made, but most are low-skilled." An HR official familiar with the IT industry explained, "(The IT industry) has always wanted high-level developers, but their salaries have risen significantly, and recruiting them has become difficult, so since last year, the trend has shifted to 'hire even new graduates and train them.'

Rockstars especially demonstrate their true value in knowledge-based industries. The Rockstar Principle originated in the software (SW) industry. It is based on an experiment conducted in the 1960s during the computer development boom in the United States. Researchers asked nine apprentice programmers to complete coding and other tasks within two hours. They predicted there would be no significant difference between the first and last place, but the results showed a 20-fold speed difference in coding, 25-fold in debugging (error correction), and 10-fold in program execution.

Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, wrote in his book "No Rules Rules" that "the best programmers were worth more than 100 times the value of average programmers." For this reason, he emphasized the importance of the Rockstar Principle in Netflix's talent recruitment. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft (MS), where Hastings once served as a board member, also said, "Great software programmers are worth more than 10,000 times ordinary programmers."

Insufficient Educational Infrastructure and Other Issues

Experts also emphasized the importance of rockstars in specific industries. Professor Kyungmook Lee of Seoul National University Graduate School of Business said, "In knowledge-based industries where the success or failure of the entire organization depends on a few groundbreaking achievements, the performance difference of rockstars is enormous," adding, "Especially in the field of software architecture (system structure collection), the productivity of top-level designers is over 1,000 times that of ordinary technicians."

Professor Dohyun Kim of Kookmin University’s Department of Business Administration said, "The Rockstar Principle intensifies in industries that must solve unprecedented unstructured problems," adding, "Working with rockstars makes you deeply feel their value, so companies inevitably become desperate to find high-level developers."

The problem is the supply is far below the demand. The manpower shortage is even more severe in rapidly emerging fields such as AI and virtual reality (VR). According to the Software Policy & Research Institute (SPRi), the shortage of developers in advanced fields like AI is about 10,000 this year and is expected to reach 15,000 next year.

Professor Kim said, "The shortage of AI experts is already at a serious level," adding, "It is basically a global-scale war, with not only companies but also universities participating." He added, "There are already quite a few ordinary developers in the market. The so-called 'black hole' recruitment happening in the IT industry is not focused on them."

There are also calls for urgent creation of an environment to recognize the necessity of rockstars and nurture them. As domestic IT companies competing in the global market increase, demand for high-level developers has surged, but social infrastructure such as university quotas has not kept pace with the changes. Professor Kim explained, "The number of master's and doctoral graduates in computer science is absolutely insufficient," adding, "To prevent a bigger manpower shortage, quotas must be significantly increased starting now."

Director Jongho Lee of Seoul National University Semiconductor Joint Research Center said, "Rockstars should be nurtured not only in IT but also in various fields to enable convergence of diverse majors," adding, "Developing the new gap they create into a super-gap is the direction our industry should pursue." Director Lee suggested, "The government should cooperate in a tripartite manner with budgets and regulations, universities and educational institutions executing, and companies supporting infrastructure."