In this article, we explore why developers’ perks are on the decline, why your offer still needs to stand out and what you can do to make your offer as attractive as possible.
Fewer developers are getting benefits in 2024
Over the past 12 months, we’ve seen companies respond to a tougher macroeconomic climate that’s seen some organisations implement layoffs, while others have had to reduce salary increases. We’re also seeing this play out when it comes to benefits. We’re seeing reduced perks across the board, with bonuses being a notable exception:
Despite a hiring climate where the dynamics have shifted in favour of employers, it’s still hard to hire great developers and skilled developers still receive more than one job offer on average:
That means you need to make sure that your offer still stands out.
This made us ask: How do you make a standout offer in a tougher environment?
Leverage your benefits package
Your benefits package is one tool you can use to make an offer more attractive to potential team members, especially as a better salary is the top reason why developers leave a role.
While the current macroeconomic context makes it hard to offer the salaries we saw during the peak of the tech boom in 2021, the majority of devs rank take home pay as the most important factor in a great package:
Successfully leveraging your benefits can help you bridge the gap between what developers want and what you’re able to offer in the current climate.
It’s important to take the time to explain your benefits to a prospective team member and how that will affect their take home pay. For example, subsidised medical aid or bonuses can mean more money in their pocket at the end of the month.
If you’re able to offer monetary benefits, bonuses, medical aid and pension contributions are the most desired by developers and will further increase the attractiveness of your offer:
Double-down on your non-monetary benefits
While market-related salaries and great benefits can help push your offer over the line, a standout offer doesn’t need to cost you an arm and a leg. In fact, non-monetary considerations can be just as important:
Companies that offer remote will have a significant edge in attracting the best tech talent, as the majority of ZA devs consider remote options their top non-monetary consideration when evaluating an offer.
If you can’t offer remote work, then you can double down on other non-monetary benefits that can help you craft a standout offer:
- First, showcase how you’ll ensure potential team members grow and develop as coders.
- Next, highlight what makes your tech stack or mission exciting.
- Lastly, don’t forget to make your case for why your company is a great place to work.
For more data and insights to make your hiring process as efficient as possible, get our 2024 Developer hiring & retention report.
Further reading:
- 2024 developer hiring and retention support
- 2024 Software Developer Salary Benchmarking Report
- Decoding the 2024 tech job market
- Developer salaries are stagnating: Here’s how to prepare for tougher salary conversations
- Senior developers are losing their ability to negotiate high increases, but can bonuses sweeten the deal?
- Not all seniors are equally affected by slowing salary growth — your tech stack matters too
- Week in Review: Full stack skills are in demand but it still pays more to specialise on the backend
- More developers are looking to go full stack to drive more product impact
- Management red flags that kill retention
- Enabling and not replacing: How AI is freeing up devs to do more impactful work
