I’m not saying this guy’s experience isn’t valid, just that there is something else going on here whether it’s a changing job market that hasn’t caught up with me yet or soft skills or that market or outdated skill set or what.

The blogger described his career path as "After more than a decade of sitting behind a single company's desk, my CV looks bleak." That doesn't sound like someone who was mindful of their career path.

I also don't think the blogger is completely honest or factual with regards to the job interview process. The blogger claims that "Nowadays, you have to pass through several layers of random and arbitrary screening in order to even get invited to the even more grueling in-person interviews." As someone who somewhat recently switched roles, my personal experience is not the same. The bulk of recruiting processes start with a phone screening to verify that you really exist and have basic social skills, but technical screenings follow right after. Some organizations do pride themselves in having close to a dozen interview rounds, but you are expected to prove your worth in each and every single interview round you're pulled into it.

The truth of the matter is that as labor supply is increasing, you have to do more than show up in a meeting to get a job offer. Not having a degree is also a red herring because that's effectively irrelevant for the bulk of the development positions out there.

There's however a critical factor that I feel everyone should have in mind: the bulk of IT services/consultancy recruiters out there might post job ads but they actually have zero positions to fill. The blogger briefly mention those without appearing to connect the dots when they mention "Mr X was very impressed with your skills, however, we don't have any opening for you right now". Odds are they really really do not have a opening, and they just forced you to go through tests and assessments just so that they could add another entry in their database.