Our Guide to Hiring Talent for Rust and Golang Developer Jobs

Rust and Golang have emerged as powerful tools for building efficient, secure, and high-performance software in the ever-evolving landscape of programming languages. Whether you're a tech startup or an established enterprise, finding and hiring skilled developers proficient in Rust and Golang can be a critical factor in the success of your projects. By knowing what skills and qualifications to look for in candidates for your Rust and Golang developer jobs, you’ll be able to optimise your recruitment strategies to source the best possible talent. 

In this guide, we’ll take an in-depth look at why Rust and Golang developers are so sought-after by tech companies, the key skills and qualifications required to thrive in Rust and Golang developer jobs, and the effective recruitment strategies your company should adopt to attract tech talent. 

Why Rust and Golang Developers Are in High Demand 

Rust and Golang have gained popularity in recent years, particularly among developers looking for scalable and high-performance alternatives to traditional programming languages like Java and C++. Despite being relatively new, Rust and Golang have already significantly reshaped the programming sector, with an increasing number of businesses choosing to use them for software development projects. 

Developers with expertise in Rust and Golang will find themselves in sharp demand in 2023, and there are various reasons behind this trend. In the case of Rust, the language has been praised for its exceptional performance and memory safety, features that are particularly appealing to programmers who conduct CPU-heavy tasks such as building operating systems and game engines. Defined by its ease of use and built-in concurrency support, Golang is especially favoured by developers who design web APIs, command-line tools, and microservices. 

Given the various advantages Rust and Golang offer, it is unsurprising that both languages are among the top programming languages that developers are most likely to learn in 2023. While Rust and Golang possess their own unique sets of strengths and weaknesses, they both have one thing in common; they are significantly changing the face of software development. 

To get a greater sense of why companies are hiring developers with Rust and Golang programming skills, let’s take a detailed look at the benefits of both languages: 

What a Rust Developer can Bring to Your Team 

With figures showing that Rust adoption nearly quadrupled from 2020 to 2022, it is clear that Rust’s rise shows no sign of abating any time soon. The language is not only a hit with companies looking to enhance their software development projects, it’s also becoming a go-to option for programmers, having been labelled the most loved coding language in numerous Stack Overflow Developer Surveys. Hiring tech talent with Rust skills is a wise move, and here are the key advantages you can expect: 

Memory Safety 

Rust has been particularly praised for its excellent memory safety, a feature that allows developers to create code without having to constantly deal with software bugs and vulnerabilities. The language is able to achieve this by implementing features like ownership, unsafe blocks, and ownership-based concurrency, which effectively prevent memory-related issues such as buffer overflows and dangling pointers.

Versatility  

Another of Rust’s key strengths lies in its versatility. It is known for its unique combination of features and capabilities that make it suitable for a wide range of applications. Whether you are planning a systems programming, web development, or network programming project, Rust has the flexibility to suit your needs. 

High Performance 

Rust's impressive speed has won over many programmers, putting it on par with the performance of well-established programming languages like C and C++. Several factors contribute to Rust's ability to deliver high performance while maintaining memory safety, such as strong concurrency support, ownership system, and lack of garbage collection. 

What a Golang Developer Can Bring to Your Team 

Developed by the tech giant Google, Golang is a statically typed, compiled language that’s perfect for building high-performance and reliable software. Owing to its simplicity, efficiency, and in-built concurrent support, Golang has become a popular option for developers. Given that Golang’s adoption rose from 41% in 2019 to 82% in 2020, it is unsurprising that so many organisations are eager to hire tech talent with Golang expertise. 

Simplicity and Readability 

Golang has earned acclaim from many programmers for its simplicity and ease of understanding. With a modest set of features and a concise syntax, Golang is an excellent option for early-career developers looking to hone their coding abilities. 

 Experienced programmers also find Golang’s core concepts relatively straightforward to understand owing to its similarities with traditional languages such as Java and C. 

Efficiency 

Golang has established a strong reputation for its exceptional speed and efficiency, positioning it as an ideal choice for developers specialising in crafting high-performance applications. Its rapid compilation times, capacity to produce native machine code, and minimal memory usage all contribute to its impressive speed.

Concurrency

Many programmers are drawn to Golang because of its impressive concurrency support. The language has a unique feature called Goroutines that enables developers to build applications capable of executing multiple tasks concurrently. As there has been a growing demand for coding languages that facilitate concurrent programming in recent years, it is unsurprising that Golang has reached the heights it had. 

Whether you choose to hire a Rust or Golang developer, you can rest assured that your decision will help to ignite innovation and secure long-term success. If you’d like to learn more about how to future-proof your tech company, we invite you to check out our Upskilling and Reskilling Your Go and Rust Developers guide. 

Top Skills and Qualifications of Rust and Golang Developers

Once you have decided that recruiting a Rust or Golang developer will be advantageous for your tech team, it’s time to consider the various skills and qualifications that suitable candidates should possess. While top Rust and Golang programmers have specific qualities that your hiring team need to take into account, there are numerous technical and soft skills that all high-quality software developers need to exhibit, including: 

• The ability to identify and resolve debugging issues
• A solid understanding of software development tools, data structures, and algorithms
• Proficiency in multiple programming languages, from traditional options like JavaScript and C++ to modern languages such as Rust and Golang 
• Outstanding problem-solving skills
• Knowledge of cyber security best practices

Your perfect Rust or Golang developer candidate will likely possess all these transferable software developer skills and more, but what are the unique qualities that they can bring to the table? In this section, we’ll look at the most important skills and qualifications that you should look for when hiring talent for Rust and Golang developer jobs. 

Ideal Rust Developer Candidate Persona 

High-calibre Rust developers should have three or more years in coding and development, with a significant background in using Rust. If they have the required experience, they should be able to demonstrate a strong understanding of Rust’s ecosystem of libraries and frameworks and the various Rust-specific programming tasks, such as:

• Ensuring memory and thread safety using Rust’s ownership and borrowing system 
• Handling errors safely and concisely using Rust’s error-handling system 
• Writing efficient and concurrent code using Rust tools like threads and channels
• Destructing values and matching enums with Rust’s pattern-matching syntax
• Utilising Rust’s manager and build tool Cargo 

In addition to possessing a range of Rust-specific and general software development skills, suitable candidates should also have the necessary academic qualifications. Hiring managers typically look for a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related discipline as well as the requisite three years of coding and developing experience. Candidates who have portfolios brimming with examples of Rust projects they’ve worked on are especially desirable. 

Ideal Golang Developer Candidate Persona 

If you are looking for a Golang developer, you should prioritise candidates who have significant experience in writing clean and efficient Go code. As well as having a strong command of the language, candidates should also possess an in-depth knowledge of Golang’s ecosystem, including its package management systems and third-party libraries. Here’s a list of the essential Golang-related tasks that candidates should have a background in: 

• Developing concurrent software using Goroutines, lightweight execution units that enable concurrent execution in a Golang program 
• Creating and managing dependencies with the ‘go mod’ command using Golang’s module system
• Writing and running tests with the ‘go test’ command 
• Analysing and optimising applications with Golang’s built-in profiling tools
• Utilising Golang’s benchmarking tools to measure the performance of code and identify bottlenecks. 

Like applicants for Rust developer jobs, Golang developers are usually required to hold a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, along with three or more years of experience in software development. Candidates with a combination of exceptional academic achievements, sufficient experience, and a portfolio full of concrete examples of their achievements should earn a place on your shortlist. Golang portfolios may include projects, code samples, and contributions to open-source projects. 

Strategies for Hiring Your Next Rust or Golang Developer 

When you have established your ideal candidate persona, you’ll be in a position to begin looking for applicants with the vital Rust or Golang skills you need. Recruiting software developers with expertise in these languages can be a particularly difficult task, not least because the demand for top-tier developers far outpaces supply. In fact, Reveal’s Annual Software Developer Survey from 2023 found that a developer shortage remains a key challenge for many tech companies, with 37.5% of responders indicating that they’ll have trouble finding skilled developers. 

With the right recruitment strategies in place and an in-depth understanding of the skills and qualifications required to succeed in Rust and Golang developer jobs, your business has a greater chance of overcoming the recruitment challenges and making successful hires. Let’s explore 5 effective recruitment strategies for hiring Rust and Golang developers. 

1. Create a Compelling, Well-Defined Job Listing 

Creating a job listing with clearly defining job requirements is paramount, particularly for roles requiring niche expertise like Rust and Golang developer jobs. By doing so, there is a higher likelihood that you’ll attract candidates who are well-suited for the roles and responsibilities of your open position. Explicitly outlining the job requirements is also a great way to ensure that your new recruit’s responsibilities are aligned with your company’s ambitions and needs. 

Crafting a well-defined job description is a fundamental step in building a successful software development team, and here are the top tips you should follow to achieve this: 

• Include a short, engaging overview of the job 
• Use simple, easy-to-understand language with job-specific keywords
• List requirements in bullet points, divided into mandatory and desirable 
• Add information about your organisation’s mission and values
• Ensure that the ad is inclusive

2. Post Your Job Opening in the Right Places

Once you have crafted a job advertisement that accurately communicates the requirements to potential candidates, the next step is to post your job opening in the right places. Of course, placing your job ad on widely used job boards like LinkedIn and Indeed is a sensible move, but to draw in the best possible talent, you should utilise specialised tech job boards like GitHub and Stack Overflow Jobs. 

If you’d like to specify your candidate search even further, you can leverage platforms that advertise Rust and Golang developer jobs specifically. Established in the mid-2010s, Golangprojects is a job site that showcases Golang developer jobs from around the world. Alternatively, if you’re looking for a Rust developer, you can add your position to RustJobs.dev, a site dedicated to connecting tech businesses with experienced developers proficient in Rust programming skills. 

3. Conduct Technical Assessments 

Conducting technical assessments is key for determining whether your shortlisted candidates have the required skills to succeed in your Rust or Golang position. Although their CVs may be impressive, it is vital that you assess their programming expertise prior to making any appointments. Your evaluation of their skills can start at the interview stage, where you can ask them technical questions about their Rust or Golang knowledge. The questions may be centred around topics such as the language’s syntax, control structures, memory management, or error handling. 

You can invite your candidates to participate in technical assessments that test their coding and problem-solving skills. Coding challenges, take-home projects, and paired programming sessions are all excellent ways to test software development abilities. TestGorilla is a particularly useful platform for evaluating programming skills, and you can use it to develop a test that assesses a candidate’s knowledge of Rust or Golang, the features of the languages, and best practices. 

4. Offer Competitive Compensation and Benefits 

Rust and Golang developers are in high demand right now, so they command relatively high salaries. Offering competitive pay is a surefire way to attract and retain top tech talent, and in a candidate-led job market in which it is hard to hire high-quality developers, this is a must. With research showing that the worldwide developer shortage is set to increase to 4 million by 2025, it is essential for tech companies to go above and beyond to recruit top talent, and offering above-average pay is a must. 

Companies should offer appealing benefits as well as competitive compensation packages to draw in the candidates they want. Flexible working arrangements are an especially sought-after benefit among software developers at the moment, with figures from the Stack Overflow Developer Survey highlighting that the majority of developers have fully remote or hybrid work arrangements. Other key benefits that candidates desire include unlimited PTO, health insurance, and profit sharing. 

5. Partner with a Dedicated Software Recruitment Agency 

Partnering with a software recruitment agency with specialist knowledge of the industry is a tried-and-tested method of securing the best and brightest professionals. With vast talent networks that include excellent Rust and Golang developers, software recruitment agencies like Understanding Recruitment can streamline your hiring process, connect you with your ideal candidates, and save you time and money. 

Tech recruitment can be a lengthy and challenging process, but with a dedicated team of experienced recruiters with expertise in the latest industry trends and developments, you can expect a much more efficient experience. From handling all of the paperwork to conducting regular check-ins with new recruits, they can perform a wide range of tasks, leaving you to get on with the day-to-day running of your organisation. 

The Key Takeaways for Hiring Rust and Golang Tech Talent 

The demand for Rust and Golang developers continues to surge in the ever-evolving landscape of programming languages. These languages offer unique advantages, from Rust's exceptional memory safety and versatility to Golang's simplicity, efficiency, and powerful concurrency support. To effectively recruit top talent with expertise in these languages, it's crucial to have a clear understanding of the skills and qualifications required.

By following effective recruitment strategies and understanding the unique skills these developers bring to the table, your company can secure the tech talent needed for innovative and successful projects in today's competitive tech landscape.

Connecting Tech Talent with Rust and Golang Developer Jobs 

At Understanding Recruitment, we have been connecting tech talent with developer jobs throughout the UK, Europe, and the USA for many years. Whether you are looking for an experienced programmer with in-depth knowledge of Golang or a beginner Rust developer with potential, we are here to match you with a candidate who perfectly suits your needs. Reach out to us today to discover more about our best-in-class software recruitment services.