You’ve probably heard about it... “the great resignation”, “IT professionals shortage”, and the seeming coming apocalypse of what this is bringing... and that brings me to:

My little rant

As the pandemic seemed to be dying down and after almost two years basically without leaving home... I want nothing more than some change right now. So, I’ve been trying for the last few months to get a job abroad.

But... depending on your passport and the country you’re aiming for, it’s not just about finding a job. You need visa sponsorship.

The alternative, if you don’t have the “right” passport, is to apply for a resident visa (or some other type of visa that would also let you work there).

The catch and source of my rant is: visa sponsorship is cheap!
When you compare with how much a developer makes, it’s only a fraction of that.

Money is not everything, and some, me included, would see that as a “perk” when comparing companies.

The big companies already know that and sponsor visas, but somehow... many companies are already digging their graves in anticipation of the day they won’t find more people... but won’t even consider hiring foreigners.

And I ask: Why?

Is it that feel people are not qualified enough?

Because let me tell you... I heard a story from a guy that have 15+ years of experience happy to get a job paying less than 30K USD/year, which is very good where I live, but, as you might be thinking, that can be a fraction of what a junior fresh out of college makes.

How about English (or the language of the country)?

Another story I heard is about a Ruby developer at a Conference... he was coding when someone went to talk to him, he didn’t speak English, but with whatever rudimentary English he had and some gestures... he got a job!
(This one is from a podcast I follow, and I don’t remember all the details, but that's the gist.)

The point is... that language (natural language, that is) is not really a barrier. It’s a lot easier to learn English than it is to learn (and be good at) a programming language.

Or is it the bureaucracy?

Is that the root of all evil? Or is it something else?

The big opportunity

Companies still have to learn to live in a global world... they have to be open to getting people from anywhere.

And there are companies that connect companies to developers from all around the world, but they are few and far between.

But it is still something that the company has to... “subscribe” to.

OR

Someone will have to make a “bridge” of sorts, making hiring someone from abroad so stupid easily as hiring someone locally/in the country.

The one who makes the “Uber of hiring foreigners”, will certainly make a killing.

And when I say that, I’m talking about something where I, a job seeker, will use and the hiring company will know that if they like me, that “bridge” will take care of the rest.
(Just ask and I will tell you exactly what I’m thinking about it.)

The little opportunity

As you might have guessed, this is my shameless self-promotion section.

I’m up for grabs and you can interactively interview me (yes, you’ve read that right!) at:

https://noriller-interview.vercel.app/

You can also check my last post for more about this:

https://dev.to/noriller/i-made-a-bandersnatch-clone-come-interview-me-5bkg

(or check my profile for more, I have a few fun posts!)

Cover Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels