Exactly. The premise of the article is wrong. "This model is certainly different from Joel’s model. Joel’s model assumes that “great” developers are sticky – t

Exactly. The premise of the article is wrong. "This model is certainly different from Joel’s model. Joel’s model assumes that “great” developers are sticky – that they stay at each job for a long time." Is false. Joel simply did not say that. Joel actually said: "..prospective employers recognize their greatness quickly, which means, basically, they get to work wherever they want, so they honestly don’t send out a lot of resumes or apply for a lot of jobs." Great devs aren't on the market because they don't use the "market" to get their next job - not because the don't leave jobs very often.