South Korean developers fret over inflow of Indian talent

South Korea is opening the door wide to jobs for Indian developers, causing some concerns that the inflow of highly talented software developers from the South Asian country could threaten Korean peers’ job security amid a slowdown in the local information technology industry.

The Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups on Thursday announced that 30 Korean firms, mostly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups, have hired 103 software developers from India over the past six months.

Those developers will be responsible for the development of AI, mobile and front-end and back-end programs.

Of the total, 98 developers will work remotely from India, while the remaining five people are waiting for visa issuance to work in Korea, the ministry said.

Korean companies could bring Indian developers on board through a special job-matching program organized by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups earlier this year.

In response to a shortage of highly skilled developers in Korea, the SME ministry officials in February flew out to India, a thriving hub for tech talent, to recruit foreign software developers at special job fairs.

The program has been well received by Korean companies that have been struggling to employ experienced, senior developers due to a job mismatch in the IT industry, the ministry said.

India’s technology talent, which is highly skilled and cost-effective, is actively sought after by companies around the world, including the US and Korea, thanks to the country’s strong education system that produces a steady stream of qualified engineers and developers.

The advance of India's skilled developers could be a game changer in the Korean software job market, industry observers said. It is, especially, expected to lower the salary levels for local developers. 

CAUSE FOR CONCERN

As India’s tech talent is set to flood into the Korean IT industry, concerns are also growing that they may take away jobs from Korean developers, especially those at the entry level, industry observers said.

During the COVID-19 pandemic when working from home and contactless IT services became the norm, demand for software developers shot up regardless of their skill levels.

However, as the world entered the endemic, developers' demand started dwindling on the heels of a slump in the overall IT industry.   

Worse yet, artificial intelligence has emerged as a threat to entry-level developer jobs, while demand for highly experienced software developers and engineers, who can make companies' AI business jump-start, has jumped.

However, it is hard to find highly skilled senior developers and engineers in Korea due to job mismatches in the country’s IT industry, said industry observers.

There are many entry-level developers trained in short-term government or corporate-sponsored coding courses in Korea. 

This is one of the reasons why Korean companies have shifted their eyes to top tech talent from abroad, and the trend will likely continue for a while.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups said it will also tap foreign students graduating from Korean universities to supply quality employees to the country’s companies and bolster companies' venture into overseas markets.

Write to Joo-Wan Kim at kjwan@hankyung.com
Sookyung Seo edited this article.