I have a confession to make.
Five years ago, if I had a tedious task like writing unit tests for a legacy module or converting a JSON schema, I wo...
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Great article - really enjoyed it! This is exactly how I see the future heading.
Glad you enjoyed it! It is reassuring (and a bit worrying) that so many of us are seeing the exact same trend. We really need to figure out how to bridge that gap before it is too late.
love the picture btw 😂
It was crafted specially for this post - I just couldn’t resist 😄
Haha hillarious! 😄I love the humor!
Great picture 😂!
You're almost there too! 😁 Okay, you have a bit more leeway than me, but as a senior developer... 🤔
haha! It is so true
Kinda seeing myself in the lady at the front.
With all due respect, I beg to differ. The junior developer is neither extinct, nor would it be - some thoughts shared in this article here - dev.to/shitij_bhatnagar_b6d1be72/d... (in case interested).
And as far as worries is concerned, every developer junior or senior has some apprehensions (that's what I have seen), however with time that will get clear.
Thanks for the article.
I appreciate the rebuttal, Shitij! You are right that every generation has its apprehensions. My worry is specifically about the velocity of this change compared to previous shifts. But I am genuinely happy to see a differing view, if I am wrong and the role is safe, that is the best possible outcome for everyone!
Thanks for your openness, appreciate your note.
I agree on the velocity aspect however my take on currently over-hyped themes is that there is lot of general messaging while very less specific messaging in public domain on AI 'real use'. Let me give an example, how does a software developer (junior or developer) use AI effectively - we hear everything under the sun as answer sometimes, but no practical examples from daily life e.g. one real life example is when we do load testing and run a 1000 requests against the service (REST), we get 1000 responses, I want to know which requests were fastest, how many took between 100-300 ms etc.. this analysis is what AI does for me when I give it the log file that contains the requests and responses.. its a time saving and I carefully look at the final summary 'information' from the data i.e. log. Of course, I verify what AI has given. Having said that, I am yet to see a single article or insight from any software developer that says, these are the 10-20 types of tasks I do in a Sprint (e.g. creating a confluence, tagging JIRAs with a release version, baselining code, creating a feature branch and so on) and out of these 20 tasks, task 1, 2 and 3 are where AI is able to be the multiplier for me / save my time.. I think that's a nice idea for an article as well :-)
Hope you see my point mate.
Personally, my view on this is that it up to all of us on communities such as DEV to ensure those coming into the sector (such as myself to an extent), are shown that fundamentals still offer the most solid of foundations and that AI should be seen very much of a tool that you do not turn into a crutch. Junior developers will be needed more than ever when the dust settles on the AI bubble, and for more than vibe coding.
Spot On :-)
I share your optimism. Once the initial hype settles and companies realize that maintaining AI-generated code actually requires deep knowledge, the value of a solid Junior who understands the basics will skyrocket again. We just need to ensure we keep teaching those basics in the meantime.
Excellent point, mate. We are drowning in general AI advice but starving for practical, sprint-level workflows. Using it for load-test analysis is a great example of high-value/low-risk AI usage.
That list of 20 tasks is something the industry needs right now to set realistic expectations. I might just take you up on that idea for a future post, or I’ll be the first one to read it if you write it!
Couldn’t have said it better myself. What’s that saying again? Oh right - those who can, teach.
Exactly! I truly believe that you don't fully understand a concept until you can explain it to a Junior (or write about it). Teaching isn't the fallback option; it is the mastery level. Thanks for the support, Richard
You're more than welcome!
I can tell you from experience that the junior hires in the past company I worked for ended up being the most ambitious and loyal years down the line. This is because the company was perceived as willing to invest and trust in them. This pays off in dividends and is a win-win for both parties.
The consequences also impact senior devs. The role of senior devs is also to mentor more junior devs. There are many benefits to this relationship:
I agree with you that the question shouldn't be to stop hiring junior devs but to adapt the training to this new era of software development.
We often focus on what Juniors 'cost' in time, but we forget what they contribute to Senior growth. If you have no one to mentor, you lose the opportunity to refine your own understanding and develop leadership skills. A Senior with no one to lead is just a high-paid individual contributor.
You made a great point! I agree with you completely. The problem is that most companies believe AI can replace and do the work of the junior developer or other roles during the economical uncertainty at the moment. What will happen in 5 years from now? The senior developer will retire. Who will replace them not the AI.
You still need a junior developer or junior data scientist to learn/make sure that AI is correct with the information. I read an article from InfoWorld before the holidays.
The author mentions that you still need software engineer in 7 or 8 years but AI will not replace them. The role of junior developer and other roles are changing with AI. I see companies are hiring junior developers with AI knowledge in my country. I doubt that the role will disappear in the near future.
My concern is exactly that: to verify if the AI is correct, you need to understand the fundamentals. If the new role of the Junior Developer is to be an 'AI Auditor', we need to teach them how to catch the subtle bugs that LLMs introduce. Glad to hear you are seeing positive hiring trends in your region, though!