How to Find a Mobile App Developer?

The demand for mobile apps is growing rapidly, and so is the demand for mobile app developers. You need to plan well to find a mobile app developer with the right skills and competencies.

Find a Mobile App Developer

Do the following to find a mobile app developer for your next mobile app project:

1. Assess the complexity of your mobile app development project

You might need different hiring approaches for projects of different complexities. Assess the complexity of your projects by reviewing the following aspects:

• Do you plan to launch a FOAK (first of a kind) mobile app? Such projects tend to be complex.
• Are you developing a mobile app as a part of a series of major projects with transformational objectives? You likely have a complex project at hand.
• Do you plan to offer an app to an entirely new target audience? You are essentially targeting a new market segment, and such projects are typically complex.
• Do you foresee frequent changes in your project requirements? You will likely execute a complex project.
• Are you planning to hire a remote app development team due to your business needs? You can expect to deal with a complex project.
• Does your app idea require multiple cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, IoT (Internet of Things), etc.? Mobile development projects with cutting-edge technology components tend to be complex.
• Do you have a stringent budget, schedule, and quality requirements to meet? That could make your project complex.

The above isn’t an exhaustive list, and you can consider relevant unique aspects to judge the complexity of a project.

2. Choose between hiring field-expert app developers vs hiring freelance app developers

You have two choices when hiring app developers. The first one is to hire app developers from an app development company. The second one is to hire freelance mobile app developers.

Hiring a freelance app developer: A risky choice

You can hire freelance app developers if you have a rather simple project to execute. For this, you need to post your job on the job boards of freelance websites. Freelance developers registered with those hiring platforms can respond to your job ad.

You can interview them and hire an app developer. Freelance mobile app developers might cost less. However, going with mobile app development freelancers has several risks.

Freelancers work part-time on your project. You might not get sufficient bandwidth from them. They routinely look for better pay, therefore, they might leave your project mid-way. You will need to hire a replacement in that case.

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Integrating the work of a remote freelancer with your in-house team can be a challenge. Time zone differences can make it hard to work with a part-time freelancer.

You don’t get any project management support from the freelance platform. If you have a complex project, then these risks can derail your project.

Hiring mobile app developers from a trusted software development company: The right choice for complex projects

Hire top mobile app developers from a trustworthy software development company if you have a complex project. Such a software development outsourcing company provides full-time developers.

Trusted outsourcing companies, like DevTeam.Space, follow stringent screening processes for tech talents. You can find the right mobile app developer with the required skills and competencies here.

Such companies can provide talented developers to augment your in-house team. They can also provide a complete software development team.

These software development companies need to maintain transparency. Therefore, you can review their portfolio of successful mobile app development projects before hiring app programmers.

Companies, like DevTeam.Space, provide project management support. Their dedicated project managers support you through the entire development process. In the case of a turnover, these companies will provide a replacement mobile app developer.

3. Create a job posting to hire mobile app developers

You need to create an effective job posting to hire top app developers. Include the following information:

3a. Company Introduction

Introduce your company with relevant facts, however, make it an exciting introduction. Describe your growth trajectory and the opportunities you target. Talk about the organizational culture and work environment in your company.

Explain the career growth opportunities for software developers, and describe the compensation and benefits in your organization.

3b. Job description of the mobile app developer

Briefly describe the projects that the mobile app programmer will work on. Explain the importance of the development projects. Furthermore, mention whether the developer will maintain and enhance the existing app.

Specify the primary focus areas of the new developer. Finally, explain how the contribution of the new developer will help your organization.

3c. Roles and responsibilities of mobile app developers

At a high level, describe the roles and responsibilities of the new mobile app developer. These could include the following:

• Understanding the business requirements of the business users;
• Studying and understanding the technical solutions created by the architects;
• Creating low-level technical specifications for mobile app development projects;
• Coding new mobile apps and performing unit testing for them;
• Performing code reviews;
• Working with the testers and user testing teams to resolve bugs;
• Working with the DevOps team for smooth deployment;
• Working on existing projects including maintenance and enhancement projects;
• Balancing the tasks between multiple projects based on the organizational priorities;
• Collaborating with other team members;
• Reporting project status;
• Contributing to the improvement of the entire software development process in the organization.

3d. Skill requirements for mobile app development

Specify the tech stack based on your project requirements, e.g.:

• Programming languages like Java or Kotlin, which are needed for native Android development;
• Swift, the programming language used by native iOS developers;
• Tools like Android Studio and Espresso for native Android development;
• Xcode, the popular IDE for native iOS development;
• XCTest, the testing framework for iOS apps;
• Services like the Apple Push Notification service (APNS) for iOS development;
• The Apple Core services framework for iOS development;
• Services like the Firebase Cloud Messaging;
• Frameworks like Flutter and React Native for developing cross-platform mobile apps.

Mention if you need other skills, e.g.:

• Python for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) development;
• C/C++ for IoT development.

3e. Skill requirements for the development of web apps

Mention the skills for web app developers that the mobile developer should have. These could include the following:

• The ability to code in line with user interface (UI) design parameters;
• Sound knowledge of SQL databases like MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc.;
• In-depth knowledge of NoSQL databases like MongoDB, Apache Cassandra, etc.;
• API development skills;
• Sound knowledge of meeting non-functional requirements like performance, scalability, security, etc.

3f. Other software development skill requirements

Mention other software development skills that the new developer needs, e.g.:

• Good knowledge of software architecture;
• Code review skills;
• In-depth understanding of software development methodologies like Agile;
• Understanding of software development lifecycle phases;
• Knowledge of test automation, DevOps, etc.

3g. Competencies required for mobile app development

Specify the soft skills that you want in a good app developer, e.g.:

• Leadership skills;
• Communication skills;
• Teamwork;
• Collaboration skills;
• Passion for excellence;
• Commitment to your project objectives.

4. Interview the developers

You will need to interview the candidates. We recommend you focus on relevant project experience more than theoretical knowledge. Assess whether a candidate has done high-quality work on complex projects.

Ask how the candidate has enriched the whole process of software development in a project. Check whether a developer has worked on the performance tuning of a mobile app. Assess the work done by a candidate to make an app more scalable.

Check how the candidate has contributed to delivering a great user experience. Evaluate the work done by app developers to mitigate application security vulnerabilities.

Explain your project requirements and ask for suggestions from the candidate. You should expect pointed answers and not jargon.

5. Hire and onboard the right software engineer

After you have selected the right person for your mobile app development project, you need to hire and onboard effectively. Follow the hiring process. Provide the necessary documents to the new developers.

Explain the project requirements and technical solutions to the new software engineer. Provide the necessary access to the project technical environment including the code repository. Introduce the new developer to your in-house team.

Explain the project schedule and milestones. Set up a communication process through communication tools, and establish accountability mechanisms.

Wondering how to find a mobile app developer? Contact DevTeam.Space, and a dedicated account manager will explain the value that our mobile app developers offer.

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