A Guide for Hiring Web Developers in Remote Startups
The entire business landscape depends on technology to meet the growing demands of digitization. Digitization on the other hand has accelerated ever since the Pandemic shook the economies, small and big businesses alike. This Global Pandemic resulted in remote work and virtual meetings, which now has become the new normal.
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All the work activities are taking place through online platforms either its marketing, development, or even hiring employees. Seemingly, the businesses are dependent on technology for everyday tasks. Therefore making the web industry one of the most profitable and invaluable businesses in the modern digital world. We can see startups founded by entrepreneurs every day. There were approx. 543,000 new businesses started per month in the year 2018. Now, this is huge!
These startups are typically online or technology-oriented businesses that offer a unique set of products and services to reach a larger market. But we can see many startups failing to reach fruition. Why? Mainly because they run out of cash way before the final lift-off or they do not have a diverse team of developers. Speaking of building a diverse team for ultimate success, this is where most newer businesses go downhill.
Therefore, the need for finding high quality full-time and long-term web developers including full-stack developers and graphic designers increases every year. This demand grows constantly due to the growing popularity of smart devices and applications that are making lives easier.
According to a study;
The employment of web developers is projected to grow 13 percent from 2018 to 2028, much faster than the average for all occupations.
Now the real question is how and from where you can find and ultimately hire a dedicated team of web developers remotely? Hiring web developers based on the number of programming languages they know is not a way to go about it. In fact, before finding a remote web developer, set out a plan that why do you need one? Which project will they be working on? What skills should he have? Are you looking for a front end developer with a strong grip on HTML, CSS, and Javascript but also someone who knows the dos and don’ts of project management?
Speaking from my experience, nowadays companies want candidates with expertise in multiple industries, fields, and skills. In short, someone who is willing to grow and explore. Alomst 53% of companies are using flexible talent.
You see, there are many factors to consider. So if you are looking for an expert in the field and don’t know how to find one without exceeding the budget, that’s exactly why I am here and that’s exactly why you should be reading this blog. Do not despair, I am here to assist.
Few benefits of hiring a remote web developer
The modern workforce seems to be going through a drastic digital transformation over the past few decades. One of these transformations is hiring remote talent.
The remote workforce has dramatically increased by 80% from 2005 to 2012 with the highest growth in the Information Technology field.
For example; GitHub has two-third of its developers working from home. Followed by the biggest giants such as Dell, Amazon, Yahoo, IBM, etc. So let’s see why it is beneficial to hire full-time remote web developers.
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High levels of developer productivity
Many companies consider it a myth that remote developers do not show better performance. But what they don’t know is that this isn’t a myth instead a reality. Working at physical workspaces may be more convenient for the management but as opposed to that, remote developers are more likely to be productive.
Mostly supervisors assume that remote work can make developers lazy, which can be true to some extent but many studies have shown that employees prefer working from home for better productivity.
2/3 of Employers Report Increased Productivity for Remote Workers Compared to In-Office Workers.
Ability to hire talent across borders
Developer talent is spread around the world so to get the best hiring remote developers gives companies an edge. Not only can they hire the best talent but they can retain good staff. How? Because remote work makes employees happier and healthy as it is less stressful which results in better retention and performance and lower costs for the company.
Flexible schedules
In today’s work culture, flexibility in terms of working hours has become a norm. Our young generation would prefer a company that brings in more flexibility rather than just following 9–5 job hours. Therefore, hiring freelance developers can help scale-up businesses with fewer roadblocks.
There are still many misinterpretations when it comes to hiring remote developers. However, remote work is boundaryless with endless opportunities.
A guide for hiring web developers for your remote workplace
Now that we have looked into some of the benefits of hiring remote web developers, let’s see how to hire one either remotely or otherwise. Your team of web developers is critical for your product success. Because if you don’t have the right team you will be risking your business, wasting time and money in the process. Either you can start by posting a remote job or by outsourcing. So let’s dig in:
Be clear about your “ideal” candidate’s profile
The growing need for web developers is making employers pay top dollar to get the job done. But before you do that, you need to make sure that you know what you want? No, I am not particularly talking about 5+ years of experience, I am talking about the quality, passion, and new skills that a developer is willing to bring to the table.
Experience does matter based on which hiring managers can judge a candidate’s knowledge. But finding the right set of skills is a priority. Whether you are building a startup from scratch or just looking for someone to code your next mobile application, be specific and transparent about your needs for front-end developers, back-end, or even full-stack developers.
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Scrutinize online platforms before making an offer
Gone are the days when companies used to advertise for jobs in the newspaper. Nowadays everything is available online. There are many platforms and online forums from where you can find the skills and experience you are looking for.
Some are completely free to browse but make sure you know where to look. Once you have decided on the platforms, do not hire right away. Take a breather and perform a thorough vetting process. This may seem like a lot of work but totally worth it.
If nothing else works, outsource!
Yes. Unable to find a good resource on freelance platforms? Or if you don’t need a part-time individual freelance employee but something long term, then outsourcing software development companies is the right solution. They not only provide skilled web developers who know about programming languages and the latest trends in the industry.
Many outsourcing companies will not only fall within your budget but also seeking innovative solutions to work on. For example, Invozone — one of the leading tech companies partners with small, medium-sized companies and large enterprises to provide end-to-end software development services. The company’s team of developers can design, develop, test, and deploy mobile applications to web-oriented software products in eCommerce, healthcare, travel, fintech (and others) industries.
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Specify your project specifications beforehand
Web development projects vary from industry to industry therefore the specifications too. So during the recruiting and hiring process make sure you are clear about your project size, duration, and the end goals based on which you can give it to the one who suits your project better, rather than handing it over to a noob who hasn’t worked on the kind of technologies before. You may use a beginner level web developer for a simple project and seek experts for long term, high-quality web projects.
Be creative while interviewing potential web developers
Now you have a comprehensive list of capable web developers. It’s time to prepare for the interview. Try not to ask theoretical bookish- questions rather be creative in your approach. Because asking simple questions like “What is web development?” will less likely to help you in determining the right candidate.
Ask problem-solving questions, questions that are not easily searchable on the internet. This way you can judge your candidates better because even a layman can answer questions like; what is WWW?
Key takeaways
So before putting it out there, make sure you know the kind of developer you need for your project. But keep in mind, there is a huge difference between designer and a developer. So be sure whether you need a front end developer or a back end, freelance or full time, on fixed rate or hourly rate payments.
There are several ways you can hire web developers, but not all of them are practical. Meaning there are many unreliable sources out there, who may just scam you. So before you hire anyone make sure you are doing it the right way. The solution that has benefited me the most is outsourcing companies because they have all the right tools for a website or mobile development including reliable resources.
So are you looking to outsource software development? Here are some of the mistakes you should avoid.
