Most desired programming skills in a startup?
pragmatic: In ANY organization these skills matter:
SQL - MOST Important - If you can fix a SQL problem (mysql, sqlserver, oracle) you ARE THE MAN.
Administration - can you rotate the log files and fix the problems?  Can you assign the correct permissions to a directory in centos, redhat and windows (03, 08) server - You are "teh" man.
I can code in C++, Java, C# & Python but I get the most praise (and raise) from fixing common mis-configurations on our web servers and databases (things the "admins" don't know how to fix) and this is usually a combination of batch files, dos and or *nix shell scripting abilities.Programming is such a small part of the job, understand the OS and the DB and you own the house!!!!In the end, if you can simply read the hot fix readme files and apply them correctly, you are valuable.  Hello 6 figure income!The administrator/programmer is a God among boys.