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The IT industry has evolved dramatically over the past few decades, growing from small teams of developers in garages to the large, global corporations we see today. Along with this growth, job titles in software development have become more complex and specialized, making it increasingly difficult for recruiters to keep up with hiring best practices.
To simplify things, we’ve created a guide to help you understand the shift from the basic "programmer" role of the past to the highly specialized, multi-faceted positions that are in demand today.
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Software Developer Job Titles for Recruiters: Then and Now
The most in-demand software development job titles have changed a great deal since the early days of Silicon Valley. Back then, there were only a few essential roles that needed to be filled to get a project off the ground.
These days, the landscape is much different. There are dozens of specialized positions that all contribute to the success of a software development project. To make things even more complicated, the industry isn't entirely standardized, so you might find people with the same job title doing completely different jobs in different companies. Despite that, however, the titles used today can be broadly grouped into a few distinct categories, which we will discuss a bit later on in this article.
To circle back to the expansion of the software development job titles, let's take a closer look at what, more exactly, has changed since the dawn of the first jobs in software development.
The Rise of Agile Development
One of the main reasons for the increase in software development job titles is the rise of agile development. This methodology changed the face of software development by breaking down projects into small, manageable pieces that could be completed quickly and efficiently.
The Increased Complexity of Software Development Projects
In the early days, a software development team might have consisted of nothing more than a handful of programmers. These days, a single project can require the expertise of hundreds of different professionals — from designers and user experience experts to security specialists and quality assurance engineers and marketers.
The Need for Greater Specialization
In the past, a programmer might have been responsible for coding an entire application on their own. Nowadays, however, most programmers specialize in a particular area, such as front-end development or back-end development. This allows them to become experts in their field and to produce higher-quality code more efficiently.
The Expansion of Open-Source Software
In the past, most software was developed in-house by a team of employees working for a single company. Nowadays, however, more and more software is being developed openly, by teams of developers from all over the world. This has led to the creation of new job titles, such as open-source contributor and maintainer, which didn't exist before.
Modern Software Development Job Titles Explained for Recruiters
From Junior Developer to Senior Developer and beyond (CTO, CIO, etc.), today's range of software development job titles for recruiters is quite vast. Let's take a closer look at some of the most common software development job titles for recruiters.
Junior Developer
A Junior Developer is someone who is just starting a career in Software Development. They usually have 0-2 years of experience and are still learning the ropes.
They typically work on small, simple projects under the supervision of a more experienced developer. Junior Developers usually don't have much decision-making power and their job is mostly to code according to the specification.
In most cases, Junior Developers are college graduates with a degree in Computer Science or a related field.
In the US, a Junior Developer's average salary is around $69,000/ year.
Senior Developer
A Senior Developer is a more experienced software developer who has been in the industry for 3-5 years. They typically work on larger, more complex projects and have more responsibility than Junior Developers.
Senior Developers usually have a higher level of decision-making power and are often responsible for mentoring Junior Developers. In some cases, Senior Developers may also be involved in the management of a development team (usually a cluster of developers, but sometimes, larger teams too).
A Senior Developer's average salary is around $98,000/ year.
It is worth noting that some companies will also include Intermediate/ Mid Developers in their organization. In general, these are developers with 2-3 years of experience who are somewhere in-between junior and senior developers in terms of responsibility and expertise.
Lead Developer
A Lead Developer is a software developer who has been in the industry for 5 years or more. They typically manage a team of developers and are responsible for the overall development of a project.
Lead Developers typically have a great deal of decision-making power and are responsible for mentoring Junior Developers. In some cases, Lead Developers may also be involved in the management of a development team.
A Lead Developer's average salary is around $111,000/ year.
A Note on Specializations
Before we move higher up the totem pole, it's important to note that the titles of Lead Developer, Senior Developer, and Junior Developer are not always clearly defined. In some cases, these titles may be used interchangeably, or the title of Senior Developer may be given to someone with less experience if they are working on a large, complex project.
Furthermore, it is also worth noting that Junior, Senior, and even Lead Developers can specialize in back-end engineering or front-end engineering. A back-end developer deals with the server side of things, while a front-end developer focuses on the client side (i.e., what the user sees.)
Likewise, developers can also specialize in a development language or technology, such as Java, Python, PHP, Ruby, React .JS, etc.
Software Architect
A Software Architect is a software developer who has been in the industry for 10 years or more. They typically design and oversee the development of complex software systems.
Software Architects typically have a great deal of decision-making power and are responsible for mentoring other developers. In general, Software Architects don't have direct reports (unless they manage a specific team), but it is not unusual for a Software Architect to also manage a development team.
On average, a software architect in the US makes about $130,000/ year.
CTO (Chief Technical Officer)
The CTO is the executive responsible for the technology of a company. They typically oversee the development of all software products and are responsible for the technical direction of the company.
The CTO is usually a software developer who has been in the industry for 10 years or more. They have a high level of decision-making power and, sometimes, they are responsible for mentoring junior developers, as well as senior developers looking to grow their careers.
A CTO's salary is, on average, around $132,000/ year.
VP of Engineering
The VP of Engineering is the executive responsible for the engineering department of a company. They typically oversee the development of all software products and they too are responsible for the technical direction of the company.
Large organizations with multiple or very complex software products tend to need a VP of Engineering. The role can encompass a variety of tasks, including overseeing the work of software architects, managing development teams, and making high-level decisions about the technology used by the company.
The role of a VP of Engineering and that of a Director of Engineering are sometimes interchangeable, depending on company structure, how the product is built, and a series of other factors.
A VP of engineering's salary is around $175,000/ year.
CIO (Chief Information Officer)
The CIO is the executive responsible for the IT of a company. The role of a CIO is frequently mistaken for that of a CTO, but there is a major difference between them. The CIO usually focuses on internal systems (such as ERP, CRM, and BI systems) while the CTO focuses on products and software development, as well as how they interact with the market.
Like the CTO, the CIO will usually have a great deal of decision-making power, they will oversee high-level projects, and may be responsible for mentoring and managing other developers, development leads, or software architects.
On average, a CIO in the US makes around $106,000/ year.
FAQs
Q1. What is the job title of a software developer?
The job title of a software developer depends on their level of experience, the company they work for, and the specific software development role they perform. Some common job titles for software developers include Junior Software Developer, Software Developer, Senior Software Developer, Lead Software Developer, and Principal Software Developer. Likewise, if the company is looking for specialized roles, they might add "front-end" or "back-end."
Q2. What is another name for a software developer?
Software developers are also known as programmers, coders, or software engineers. Furthermore, there are specializations within the role of “software developer,” such as front-end developer, back-end developer, full stack developer, or web developer.
Q3. What are the levels of software developer?
In general, there are three levels: junior, mid-level, and senior. Junior Developers are entry-level employees who are new to the field. Mid-level Developers have a few years of experience and are able to take on more responsibility. Senior Developers are experienced professionals who often lead projects or mentor other developers. After that, Senior Developers can advance into being Lead Developers, Software Architects, Chief Technology Officers, and so on. The experience levels of a software developer depend on the company's organizational structure.
