How to hire iOS web developer?

Today iOS developers can be found under every bush, but good iOS developers, who can find a solution from a complex problem close to the deadline and fix the bug, are worth their weight in gold.

But first things first, why would you even bother getting an iOS developer if Android-based apps occupy 86.6% of the whole market share leaving iOS with only 13.4%? The truth is, 13.4% of iOS users account for 80% of all spending on mobile apps. So while with Android you can go wider, with iOS you can get richer, which is the ultimate goal of any business.

So how do you find the mind that will listen to your ideas, understand your values, and then turn them into a user-friendly, engaging, and exceptional app? It all comes down to a shortlist of points:
- Skills
- Personal traits
- Experience
- Fit for your team

If you need to know where to get such a treasure, scroll down to check the websites that will help you hire one.

Skills

Below you can find the basic demands of an iOS developer but remember at all times that the success of your whole app development depends on the precise tasks you set for your employees. Clear-cut tasks to a developer and an accurately defined goal are half of the job. So here is what to look for:

- Languages: Swift 3.0, Objective-C
- DB: CoreData, Realm, SQLite
- SDK and frameworks: UIKit and Foundation, Cocoa and Cocoa Touch
- Platform: Xcode IDE
- Framework: Core Data
- UI: XIB, spatial reasoning, Apple Human Interface guidelines;
- Code versioning tools: Git

Soft skills/personal traits

Gone are the days when a developer was an unsociable geek in thin glasses living in the basement. Forever. Nowadays a developer needs to have relationship-building abilities and get along well with the team. Collaboration with other departments is also a crucial talent, especially for the senior management iOS developers. If you notice a lack of fluid work style, great interpersonal, and general professional traits, you should be concerned about the utility of such a worker.

While we have already talked about the essential soft skills in this article, here is a short summary of those fundamental traits to look for in an iOS developer:

- Proactivity. Proactive people can lead their team forward, generate ideas, and see opportunities rather than obstacles. Though an essential trait for a developer, it comes in handy more for Seniors (read below).

- Teamwork. This is a must! One developer cannot build an app. It is a team effort that leads to success; so the ability to work within a team, communicate within one another, and factor in the opinions of teammates can altogether drive your new app development to success.

- Time management. This is vital for fluid teams working from all over the world. Proper planning allows for accountability and helps in staying on schedule. Poor time management and a small delay of one developer bear consequences for the whole team.

- Flexibility. This is the search for new ideas, creativity, and strong will. Flexible dev teams can re-prioritize their schedules, push on the must-wins, and come up with a perfect solution in the shortest time possible. Flexible iOS developers don’t ask “why me”, they just do.

Open-mindedness. Open-mindedness means acceptance of the new practices, constant changes, and the capacity to efficiently adapt to the ever-changing app development space. Such developers are constantly improving their skills to stay on top of the industry.

Experience

Experience matters when you need new hands on deck. The necessary seniority of a candidate for hire depends on the tasks you set for them because seniority is determined by the number and complexity of projects an iOS developer has worked with before. There are three levels of devs you can get: junior, middle (mid, regular), and senior.

Junior iOS developer
This is a green newcomer in the industry who has little to no experience. If you have time and need a blank mind to take alternate routes, find unusual solutions, and adjust to your development needs, then Junior is the right choice.

Middle/Mid iOS developer
It takes several years for an average dev to become a Middle iOS expert. These guys have more knowledge, know how to work with complex structures, can be trusted with building project architecture and task estimation.

Senior iOS developer
A Senior iOS developer is an expert who has delivered multiple apps, worked in many teams and companies and pretty much knows it all. This is the person to lead your development process because s/he can develop the right tech stack, create a fluid design, think through the project architecture, disperse the tasks within a team, and mentor those who need help.

Cultural fit

An introvert dev might not be the best choice for an extravert team and vice versa. Cultural fit is an unexplainable phenomenon, and sometimes a perfect candidate does not naturalize into your team and company. This is sad and upsetting but you need to be ready for that.

To ensure that you are getting the right iOS developer for the job, create monthly probation for every candidate. This is enough time to evaluate their skills, personal traits, professional abilities, and cultural/mental compatibility with the team. Failure to go through the probation before signing the contract might lead to lower work productivity, prejudice, misunderstandings, and an overall decline of project success.

Hiring the right iOS developer
As said before, hiring the right iOS developer completely depends on your needs and goals. You can go for a part-time freelancer if you need to fix a bug or help with a particular task. The cost is good but the quality might be mediocre. You can hire an in-house developer whenever you have space and time to adjust the skill-set of the candidate to your project development needs. Whenever you have a limited budget and an oncoming deadline, you’ll need first-class professionals at affordable rates, and an external vendor can be a life-saving option. Pay attention to the iOS developers available in Ukraine or Belarus because these are the Atlases of the worldwide iOS development market.

Where to search for the best developer?
You can monitor your local directories for some free hands, but the trustworthy sites that our HRs are using include:

- Authentic jobs
- Clutch
- GitHub Jobs
- Glassdoor
- Gun.io
- Guru
- LinkedIn ProFinder
- Stack Overflow
- Toptal

Now you have a package of information to track down a perfect iOS developer for your company, project, or start-up. So go ahead and begin going through the applications. And good luck!

If you still don’t feel comfortable getting an unknown member on board or if you don’t have time to pre-screen potential candidates, get in touch! We offer help and support in hiring the best local iOS developers that match your needs, requirements, and budget. Don’t hesitate, contact us.

Originally published at https://doit.software on April 23, 2020.