Go Skills

What is Go?

Go, also known as Golang, is a powerful programming language designed by Google. It is a compiled, statically typed, open-source programming language developer. Go features memory safety and concurrent programming, as well as a robust package system. 

Hired platform data named Go as the hottest programming skill in 2023. In this context, ‘hottest’  means the employer demand for expertise in this skill is greater than the supply of talent with it. Engineers experienced in this language receive 22% more interview requests compared to the marketplace average.

Check out Hired’s Trends in Software Engineer Tech Skills: 2024 Report for new data on Go and other technical skills for developers. Stay in the know with the whole Software Engineer Trends series.

What to use Go for

Its simplicity, efficiency, and concurrency support make it an ideal choice for a wide range of applications. Here are some key areas where Go excels:

Backend development

Go is well-suited for building robust and scalable backend services, thanks to its strong support for concurrency and networking.

Microservices

Its lightweight syntax and built-in support for concurrency make Go an excellent choice for developing microservices architectures, allowing for easy scalability and maintainability.

Cloud-native development

With its native support for building cloud-native applications, Go enables developers to create efficient and portable code that can run seamlessly across different cloud platforms.

DevOps tools

Many popular DevOps tools, such as Docker and Kubernetes, are written in Go. This makes it an ideal language for developing tools and utilities for automation and infrastructure management.

Networking and distributed systems

Go’s concurrency primitives and standard library make it well-suited for building networking and distributed systems. This allows developers to create high-performance applications that can handle large volumes of traffic.

Who uses Go?

Golang has gained widespread adoption across various industries and by companies of all sizes. Some prominent organizations using Go include:

• Google: As the language’s creator, Google heavily uses Go in many of its projects from large-scale backend systems to infrastructure services.
• Uber: Uber uses Go for its backend systems to handle millions of requests from users and drivers every day, ensuring reliability and scalability.
• Dropbox: Dropbox uses Go for building services to handle file synchronization and storage, benefiting from its concurrency features and performance speed.
• Twitch: Twitch relies on Go for its busy system. It uses Go for its backend infrastructure to manage real-time chat and video streaming at scale.
• BBC Worldwide: BBC Worldwide uses Go to power its content delivery systems, enabling efficient and reliable delivery of multimedia content to users worldwide.

Companies of all sizes use Hired to find engineers with Go skills

What is a Go developer?

A Go developer is a software engineer with a deep understanding of Go’s syntax, concurrency model, and standard libraries. A Go developer typically has experience in:

1. Backend development: Designing and implementing backend services and APIs using Go.
2. Concurrency: Leveraging Go’s goroutines and channels for building concurrent and parallel applications.
3. Microservices architecture: Designing and deploying microservices using Go to create scalable and modular systems.
4. Cloud-native development: Developing cloud-native applications that can run on platforms like Kubernetes and Docker.
5. Testing and debugging: Writing unit tests and debugging code to ensure the reliability and correctness of Go applications.

Most important Golang developer skills in 2024

What skills should you have as a Go developer to stay competitive this year?

1. Proficiency in Go: A strong command of the Go programming language (of course!), including its syntax, idioms, and best practices.
2. Concurrency: Understanding Go’s concurrency primitives and how to effectively write concurrent code to utilize modern multi-core processors efficiently.
3. Microservices architecture: Knowledge of designing, developing, and deploying microservices using Go and related technologies like gRPC and protobuf.
4. Cloud-native development: Familiarity with building cloud-native applications and deploying them on platforms like Kubernetes and serverless architectures.
5. Performance optimization: Ability to write high-performance code and optimize applications for speed and efficiency.
6. Security: Understanding of security best practices in Go development, including secure coding techniques and vulnerability mitigation.

Why should you hire Go developers?

If you’re a talent acquisition professional or tech hiring manager seeking software engineers, consider a Go developer to bring these key benefits to the table: 

• Performance: Go’s compiled nature and efficient concurrency model enable developers to build high-performance applications that can handle heavy workloads with ease.
• Scalability: Golang’s support for concurrency and microservices architectures makes it well-suited for building scalable systems that can grow with the demands of the business.
• Reliability: Go’s static typing and built-in error handling mechanisms help developers write more reliable and robust code, reducing the likelihood of runtime errors and crashes.
• Productivity: Go’s simplicity and readability contribute to developer productivity, allowing teams to build and iterate on software solutions more efficiently.
• Community and ecosystem: The Go community is vibrant and supportive, with a rich ecosystem of libraries, frameworks, and tools that can accelerate development and solve common challenges.

Assess tech candidates for Go skills

Looking for candidates skilled in Go? Technical assessments are a multi-pronged solution. They allow you to streamline the hiring process and reduce bias with tech skill-focused benchmarks. 
Hired Assessments offer a library of hundreds of questions and customizable challenges tailored to technical preferences. See how Mastercard and Axon used Hired Assessments to vet top candidates.

More Customer Success Stories…

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How to find a tech job using Go skills

Go resources

Check out our resources to continue sharpening your Go skills.

Hired profiles help developers showcase their top tech skills

Hired is completely free for job searchers, from start to finish. As a talent marketplace, we help match up employers with actively looking and qualified tech talent. For more, check out our jobseekers page and job search resources.

After their profile is approved to go live on the Hired platform, jobseekers may optimize their profiles with tech skills assessment badges. Candidates may take various assessments including Programming Skills, Full Stack, Backend, Frontend, iOS, Android, Debugging, DevOps Generalist, and DevOps AWS.

Once they pass, the badge automatically appears on their profile, increasing the chance of an interview request.