reviews
Smart contracts are one of the most promising applications of blockchain, a distributed ledger technology that offers a secure and transparent way for transactions of money, property, and other assets. Blockchain smart contracts are tamper-proof programs that run on a decentralized blockchain network and only execute when a set of pre-defined conditions are met.
The benefits of smart contracts, such as accurate, automatic, and fast execution of transactions without any need for intermediaries, make them extremely useful across many industries, including insurance, supply chain, real estate, etc. The growing applications of smart contracts are one of the most promising aspects of the blockchain industry. The blockchain smart contracts market is expected to reach 1.46 billion US dollars by 2028.
If you are also planning to invest in the lucrative and growing smart contracts industry, you will require experienced smart contract developers to help you implement smart contract technology.
You might start out considering freelance developers for your smart contract development services, but freelance developers come with several drawbacks. We suggest you partner with an expert software development company, like DevTeam.Space, to hire experienced developers who are experts in creating smart contracts. We will discuss this in detail shortly.
Before you start, you need to know the skills requirements for smart contract developers to make the right hiring decisions.
Primary Skills for Smart Contract Developers
Smart contract developers need to have the following skills:
- Proficiency in smart contracts programming languages like Solidity and Rust;
- Knowledge of high-level programming languages like JavScript and Python;
- Knowledge of public and private blockchain networks;
- Expertise in multiple blockchain platforms such as Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, Stellar, etc.;
- Proficiency in node.js or Java to develop chaincodes, programs that implement business logic on a blockchain network;
- Thorough knowledge of consensus algorithms, such as proof of stake and proof of work;
- Expertise in the development of decentralized applications using full-stack development tools;
- Ability to design, develop, and test smart contracts with simplicity, efficiency, and ease of use;
- Expertise in the development and deployment of digital wallets;
- Experience with smart contract optimization;
- Expertise in using development and testing environments for smart contracts such as Truffle Suite, Embark, etc.;
- Expertise in web application development using frameworks like React.js, ASP.Net, etc.;
- Experience in mobile development using native app development toolkits such as Android Studio for Android apps and Xcode IDE for iOS apps;
- Familiar with application UI/UX design using app store guidelines such as Human Interface Guidelines by Apple and Material Design Guidelines by Google;
The smart contract developers need to have the following skills too:
- Knowledge of structured and unstructured data;
- Expertise in API design and development, including protocols such as REST, SOAP, etc.;
- Familiarity with API development and documentation tools like Postman, Swagger Hub, etc.;
- Understanding of DevOps practices such as continuous testing, continuous delivery, task automation, etc.;
- Experience in agile development and related frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, etc.;
Other Software Development Skills
Smart contract developers should have the following additional skills too:
1. Smart Contract Security Skills
A good understanding of cryptography is crucial for ensuring the security of smart contracts. You need developers with cryptography skills, including various cryptographic protocols and techniques, such as digital signatures, hash functions, public-key cryptography, etc.
Get a complimentary discovery call and a free ballpark estimate for your project
Trusted by 100x of startups and companies like
Your developers also need a good understanding of security testing techniques and tools to conduct various tests and simulations to identify potential security vulnerabilities and risks in the smart contract’s code.
2. Deep Understanding of Blockchain Technologies
A thorough understanding of blockchain technology is imperative for smart contract developers. Developers need to know how smart contracts work in the real world. They should understand different types of blockchains, transaction validation algorithms, and components of a blockchain platform, such as nodes, wallets, etc.
Depending on what application you plan to build, they should also have knowledge in crypto mining, crypto trading, decentralized applications, etc. Extensive hands-on experience in blockchain technologies will help developers write robust and secure smart contracts.
3. Smart Contract Review Skills
You will need developers with experience in smart contract review. Smart contracts reviews ensure that smart contracts are secure, accurate, and meet all the requirements. As smart contracts are self-executing and run only when certain conditions are met, smart contracts must be free from potential security risks. Your developers should be skilled in formal verification that utilizes complex mathematical techniques to verify the safety of a smart contract.
4. Communication and Team Skills
Good smart contract developers need good interpersonal or soft skills, some of which are as follows:
- Communication: You need developers with good communication skills, including verbal and written communication, and presentation skills, to collaborate effectively with project managers, clients, and other developers.
- Commitment: You require committed developers, as smart contracts development is a challenging process. Developers need to learn and work with evolving technologies and tools to develop smart contracts. Moreover, there are stringent regulatory requirements to meet. You need motivated smart contract programmers to overcome all challenges.
- Team Player: Smart contact projects are a collaborative effort. You require developers who could work closely with designers, developers, and testers. They should be open to different perspectives, acknowledge other peoples’ expertise, etc.
- Empathy: You need empathetic developers ready to understand end-user needs and motivations.
How to Find a Good Smart Contract Developer?
You know the skills of good smart contract developers, and now you need to find and hire them, for which you would follow these steps:
1. Decide on the Hiring Platform:
You need to decide on your hiring platform first. Freelance marketplaces are a popular option today, but working with freelancers comes with drawbacks.
Freelance platforms offer you access to a pool of candidates who match your skill requirements. However, no extensive screening process guarantees the credibility of freelancers’ skills and experience. You have to conduct the interviews yourself, and in case of a misjudgment, you bear the loss in terms of bad-quality software.
Freelancers also work on multiple projects simultaneously, and there is a chance they will not give optimum time and effort to your complex blockchain project. Freelance developers also work from different time zones, which makes project management quite difficult.
Given these cons of partnering with freelance developers for a smart contract project, we suggest you partner with a professional blockchain software development company like DevTeam.Space, and hire high-quality smart contract developers from them.
All our developers are vetted for their software development skills. They undergo interviews and coding tests to establish their expertise in cutting-edge technologies. Moreover, our account managers, who are themselves senior developers with masses of experience in software development, manage these developers. All our developers also follow an AI-powered agile process that assists in project management via task scheduling, performance updates, streamlined communication channels, etc.
We also sign an NDA with our onboarding clients to uphold privacy and security requirements. You can rest assured that field-expert and motivated developers work on your smart contract development project.
Hire expert smart contract developers for your next project
1,200 top developers
us since 2016
2. Interview Shortlisted Candidates:
You have now decided on the hiring platform, posted your smart contract developer’s requirements, and received resumes from interested candidates. You now need to shortlist candidates based on your project’s skills requirements and call them in for an interview.
If you do not have sufficient experience, you can get help from your colleagues who have experience in blockchain and smart contract development in order to conduct the interview.
You will need to assess the technical knowledge of candidate developers. Ask questions that help you understand their level of hands-on experience with blockchain technology. You can discuss the related projects they have worked on in the past.
Discuss your smart contract development project, present specific development scenarios, and ask developers about the solutions. For example, you can ask about the smart contract development framework they prefer and the reason for it, their technique to ensure smart contract security, etc.
3. Explain your Smart Contract Development Project in Detail:
You have hired a suitable smart contract developer for your project; you need to start the onboarding process. You could start by setting up communication channels and introducing your new developers to the existing team.
You should explain your smart contract project to the new developers, including project goals, objectives, and requirements, and provide them with the related project documentation to help them understand the project. Also, you need to give them access to the code repositories and development tools.
We suggest you design a project plan, set milestones, assign tasks, and establish accountability. A smooth onboarding process will help new developers quickly settle into your team and contribute to the project.
Tips to Hire Smart Contract Developers
Some tips to hire smart contract developers include the following:
1. Hire Experienced Blockchain Developers:
Smart contract development is a challenging task. You require blockchain developers with extensive experience in software development and the latest technologies. Junior or mid-level developers are easily available in the market for reasonable rates, but to build reliable smart contracts you need senior developers with hands-on experience working with blockchain applications.
Senior developers can also ensure that you adopt the right smart contract development approach and the related tools. They will help you build secure and error-free smart contracts.
2. Evaluate Problem-Solving Skills:
Good problem-solving skills are essential for smart contract development. Hire developers with excellent problem-solving skills. These developers will be able to identify, analyze, and solve technical blockchain problems efficiently.
3. Look for a Flexible Service Provider:
Hire expert smart contract developers for your next project
You require a smart contract development service provider that offers flexible hiring services. A fixed-cost model might work for simple software apps, but smart contracts involve complex technologies and industry regulations. You require flexibility in hiring developers to fulfill project requirements.
Look for a software development company such as DevTeam.Space that offers a flexible time-and-materials model. This model offers the flexibility to change the scope and requirements of your project. You also get transparency into the time and resources spent on your project, which helps you manage cost and quality issues.
Examples of Interview Questions to Ask Smart Contract Developers During an Interview
1. Explain the difference between off-chain and on-chain smart contract development.
On-chain smart contract development involves writing smart contracts directly on the blockchain network. Blockchain stores the contract code, and nodes manage its execution. On-chain smart contracts work autonomously and are self-executing. Off-chain smart contracts are written outside the blockchain network on a different platform. The smart contract code connects to the blockchain network via an API. Centralized third-party service manages off-chain contracts, indicating that off-chain contracts are not entirely decentralized compared to on-chain contracts.
Off-chain contracts are more flexible and scalable than on-chain contracts. They are also more vulnerable to security risks and not completely transparent as they rely on an intermediate party.
2. How can you ensure that the smart contract is scalable and offers optimized performance?
The scalability of a smart contract is a crucial factor. Some techniques to optimize the performance of smart contracts include the following:
- Simplifying the contract logic as a complex logic leads to high computational costs and transaction times. Simplified smart contracts reduce gas consumption and optimize performance.
- Optimize data storage by using data structures that can be easily indexed or searched to reduce gas consumption.
- Implementing caching for frequently accessed data as it reduces the number of calls to the contract and improves performance.
- Use a sidechain or a layer-2 solution to offload some processing tasks from the main chain and improve the performance and scalability of the smart contract.
- How do you ensure that a smart contract is secure and free from vulnerabilities?
Smart contracts security is critical, as once deployed, they are immutable and cannot be modified. Some practices to ensure the deployment of a secure smart contract are as follows:
- Following established standards like ERC-20 and ERC-721 ensures smart contracts have a well-defined interface that reduces security risks;
- Conducting smart contract audit reviews by experienced developers helps identify common security issues such as reentrancy attacks, integer overflow/underflow, and unchecked return values before deployment;
- Penetration testing helps identify vulnerabilities by simulating an attack on the contract;
- Dynamic analysis helps identify security issues in code by running it on a test network, etc.
Submit a Project with Zero Risk
Smart contract development is a challenging task. You require highly skilled software developers with hands-on experience with cutting-edge blockchain technology. Why risk the success of your project by hiring anything but the best smart contract developers?
DevTeam.Space is a community of field-expert software developers with expertise in innovative technologies. All our developers are skilled in the latest tech stacks and have developed software solutions for all major industries.
If you plan to partner with our high-quality developers for your smart contracts project, you can send us your initial project specifications via this quick form. One of our account managers will get in touch to discuss further details on how we can help you.
