Creating a skilled team of developers largely hinges on the hiring process. There are multiple skills and competencies that you should look for in a prospective developer, and best practices for screening developers for the coding skills needed. Following our guide, you’ll be able to improve the performance of your hiring team in bringing transformative talent to your organization. Let’s get started by going over what you should look for specifically in a developer.
What to Look For in a Great Developer
There is a multitude of skills that can contribute to being a great developer. Some are job specific, such as knowledge of programming and the development process. Additionally, there are general skills and traits that could apply to many jobs that you may not think to look for. As far as programming goes, developers should show proficiency in the languages they’re listing on their resume. There are multiple ways to test this proficiency, which we’ll touch on later.
In addition to knowledge of coding languages, they should also show strength through past experiences in the software development process. This can include things like app design, testing, and UI/UX design. Having a background in these skills will ensure that a developer performs well and makes strong contributions throughout development.
Outside of programming and development-specific skills, developers should also show strong teamwork and time management skills. Developers will have a responsibility to work closely with other programmers, design teams, and leadership. This makes communication essential to strengthen team relationships, work together through problems, and increase productivity.
Time management and efficiency also contribute directly to increasing productivity. Developers should be able to plan out their work effectively and spend their time based on areas of the development process that require attention. This will not only help to distribute responsibility evenly but take pressure off of leadership in terms of meeting deadlines and maintaining quality standards.
Methods of Gathering Insights About Applicants
Now that you know what to look for in a developer, how can you go about screening for these traits? There are multiple ways of going about this, and successful hiring teams will use a number of these methods in conjunction with each other.
Online Coding Tests
Online coding tests are a great place to start. This method of testing applicant skills requires less direct involvement from the hiring team. It can be a great way to initially screen applicants to see which ones you’d like to learn more about. Coding tests can be altered depending on which programming languages you’re seeking developers for.
Past Projects & Community Involvement
A developer’s project portfolio is arguably one of the most important considerations when bringing on talent to your development team. There may be projects that directly relate to what your developing, or ones that generally display skills that are required. You should inquire with developers about the timeline and work process during projects to gain insight into time management skills.
Community involvement shows more about a developer’s reputation and general knowledge within development-related areas. Hiring teams should pay attention to well-known online platforms such as GitHub and Stack Overflow that developers use regularly. There are other platforms that developers may use, but these typically serve as a good starting point.
Targeted Interview Questions
Coming up with specific interview questions based on the candidate’s resume and background is an excellent way to supplement any information you’ve already received. You can get answers to any questions that remain, and ask follow-up questions related to any information on a candidate’s resume, related to their coding test results, or portfolio projects they’ve presented to you.
