How to Hire a Tech Lead To Handle Your Next (or Current) Software Project
No matter your technical background, it’s easy to hire a qualified tech lead for your project. Whether it’s an app that you want to create or a website maintained, coming prepared for your initial consultation is important for your teams’ success. Here are some things to consider to make the most of your teams’ time.
Know What You Want and Why You Want It
This might sound obvious, but it’s incredibly easy to feel you need tech help, get on a call, then have your mind go blank.
The first part of this is pretty simple: sit down, chat with your team, and determine what you want the final product to look like. If it’s an existing product, what new features do you want to add, and what issues do you want resolved?
Why you want it tends to be a question a lot of teams fail to ask, which results in a directionless project. Hype cycles often exacerbate the failure to ask the question — the current extended LLM hype cycle often blinds businesses from asking whether launching a ChatGPT wrapper is really really the best way to improve their existing product. Have a clear vision and goal for your product and what sets you apart in the market.
Know Your Budget
Know how much you’re willing to spend for the project.
It’s well known in business that more expensive = greater value = better product for you. It’s not any different in technology. Paying more for a more experienced tech lead will mean a better product for your customers.
But wait, what happens if the quote is too much? Do you scrap your project?
No — Don’t scrap your project!
It may be tempting to consider your project too expensive or too ambitions to pursue. However, a qualified tech lead will scale the features to your project, focusing on the most profitable components first. This will allow your product to fail fast and provide the core value to your customers. Then, once you have a bigger budget you can add on more features.
What’s The Length of Your Project?
Is this a short stint or more of a long-term vision?
Plan out how long you’d like this project to take. Hint: in reality, the project will probably take longer than you want.
If you have a larger vision or plan, roadmap how long you want each step to take, then focus on the next step of the project.
Determine The Type of Contract
Determine if you want the developer on full-time or on a contract basis.
If your project is an experiment, or something short-term, then you’d want to hire the tech lead with a contract.
If your project is more long-term, then making the position part-time or full-time would be prudent.
Want a good low-risk Option?
A good low-risk option is to hire on the tech lead for something short-term to see how well they do. Then move on to bringing them onboard full time.
On the Call: Get Down To Business
Tech seems to be the only industry where the team never talks about the problem at hand, but always try to talk around the issue. And teams often try to get very creative with how to talk about the issue without actually talking about the issue.
Don’t get fancy. Just tell the tech lead what the issue is, what you’re needing done, and he’ll come up with a game plan. Skilled tech leads are able to do this within 1–2 hours, helping your team feel empowered!
Where to Look for a Tech Lead
You can always check out https://upwork.com or https://guru.com or any number of freelance sits to find a tech lead.
Also look on social media. On X, LinkedIn, or Mastodon, search for accounts with “tech lead” in the title. Solid tech leads will provide valuable tips and insights on their social media.
You can also hire me. I have over 10 years development experience and would love to make your business a wild success. Head on over to https://damngood.tech or send me an email jordan@damngood.tech for a free consultation.
Conclusion
It’s important to make the right decisions for your business. Your customers are relying on your for top-quality tech. In times when you need additional help, it can be daunting to know where to look. Who has your back? Who’s not going to take the money and run?
Hopefully this article lays out how to look for a tech lead. I’d certainly like to be a tech lead for your project. When you’re ready, feel free to reach out to me at jordan@damngood.tech, or head on over to damngood.tech for free resources for your business.
I hope you have an amazing week and are able to make a positive impact on the world!
