It is more difficult than it needs to be for employers to find qualified ColdFusion talent, and for Developers to find companies that are hiring for ColdFusion positions. Adobe could help with a solution that would also bolster the community by creating a CF Jobs portal.
In my 20+ year history with ColdFusion, one element has been a constant.
Is ColdFusion viable? Isn’t it a dead language? Nobody uses ColdFusion any more.
…which is total and complete bull$#!t. If the Adobe ColdFusion Evangelism Kit shows anything, it’s that ColdFusion is not only alive and well, but thriving and growing. I personally have enjoyed a very prosperous and rewarding career by focusing my skills on that “dead language.”
However; there is a singular argument that could be made for pursuing a different technology over ColdFusion; the difficulty in finding qualified ColdFusion developers. Put out an advertisement for a PhP developer in a reasonably sized market and you’ll get 300 resumes, whereas an ad for a ColdFusion developer may illicit a fraction of that many responses. I’ve experienced this for almost 20 years. Our community is small and passionate and talented; but many employers have a hard time committing to a technology platform that also comes with burden on Human Resources.
There’s arguments here, and I agree with some of the comments on my previous article “The Delicate Balancing Act between the number of ColdFusion Jobs and the number of ColdFusion Developers“, namely the idea of hiring a good developer and training them to use ColdFusion. It should not be difficult for a company to find qualified CF talent, and it should not be difficult for qualified CF talent to find a company that is hiring. In reality, it’s more of a challenge than it need to/should be.
I would posit that the gatekeepers of the technology are in the best position to create a jobs portal that connects ColdFusion employers with ColdFusion developers and vice versa. Adobe knows who their CF customers are. They know who has downloaded ColdFusion in the last year, three years, ten years. They have a registered community of users on this very website. It couldn’t be that difficult to create a portal that connects the two.
There are lots of job portals out there. There are websites, and communities, and Facebook groups, and staffing firms that are all happy to promote ColdFusion jobs around the world. However, it’s my belief that a niche solution for our beloved community would be incredibly helpful to resolve the valid argument of how difficult it is to find qualified ColdFusion talent. Adobe should create a simple portal with two audiences; my company uses ColdFusion, and I develop in ColdFusion. Maybe a few tests to show proficiency in the language. Connect the two and bolster the community at large, which can only result in more growth.
Thoughts?
Newbie
49 posts
How would any employeer know to look at a specific portal? Plus is Adobe in the job portal business?
Valid points, James, and I think these challenges can be overcome.
Adobe prides itself on its marketing prowess, so getting the word out should be in their wheelhouse. That being said, they could also send a marketing email to all of their ColdFusion customers in the last 5 years promoting a job portal. They know who their customers are. Sending them a message is a no-brainer.
As for whether or not Adobe is in the job portal business specifically? I’d say that the likely answer is no; not specifically. But they are in the ColdFusion business. They are in the customer retention business. They are in the “selling software” business. I’m confident a job portal, much akin to a community portal like this one, is a loss-leader for them. It would be a cost, but the benefit would be a stronger community of developers, and a more confident customer base that has additional tools to fill their Human Resources needs.
Adobe isn’t in the social networking business… but here we are discussing it on a social platform specific to our community.
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