Thousands of students are set to earn college degrees this May. Forward thinking IT service providers are interviewing those students for positions right now. That's wise. But don't forget about another fast-growing talent pool -- especially if you're looking for programmers.
Indeed, take a look at coding schools like Fullstack Academy or The Starter League (which are in the process of merging, by the way). Roughly 16,000 students graduated from coding schools in 2015, up nearly 140 percent from 2014, according to Course Report. Amid that surging demand, there are nearly 100 full-time coding schools serving students who want to master the art of programming.
Unlike traditional colleges and universities, coding schools are like intense boot camps. Some high school students skip college to attend coding schools. Other students never quite complete college. Still others are college graduates or workforce members who want to change careers -- and jump into the coding market to earn a better living.
Intellectual Property Boosts Valuations
The rise of coding schools is particularly timely for VARs and MSPs -- many of which are starting software practices for the cloud and mobile markets. Why's that? Simple math:
- On the one hand, MSPs can leverage recurring managed services revenues to generate a reasonable company valuation (typically 6X to 7X EBITDA; sometimes even higher).
- But on the other hand, VARs and MSPs that have software development practices -- and their own intellectual property (IP) can start to resemble SaaS companies. Names like And fast-growth SaaS companies -- even money-losing businesses -- can earn valuations of 10X revenues; sometimes even higher.
Still, hiring students who complete coding bootcamps isn't easy. Some Fullstack Academy graduates now earn top dollar at Google, Dropbox and other well-known digital giants.
For a list of coding bootcamps that you can potentially raid for talent, check out The Ultimate Guide to Coding Bootcamps.
