What makes the best software developers in the world?
More and more corporations are looking to technology to improve and automate their existing processes, and as a result, there has been a large influx of software developers to meet this need.
Quantity, however, does not necessarily mean quality. It is extremely important to be able to identify great software developers as they have the ability to make or break your product or service.
At Silverstag Consulting, we value a few key characteristics more highly than others, as we feel that they have the greatest impact in both the short and long term. As such, we believe the best software developers in the world share the following:
Team players
When developing software, a single developer will often form part of a much larger team. That team may consist of multiple junior, intermediate and senior developers as well as UI/UX designers, Project Managers, Project Owners and a whole array of other resources.
A team player is someone who understands their role in the bigger picture. Great software developers don’t simply do the work they are responsible for doing, but rather understand that the success of their team is their own personal success.
Working with people who care deeply about the team and finding success makes it easier to help one another — individuals within a team are more willing to help when they feel that they in turn will be helped by the team.
Take initiative
The power or opportunity to act or take charge before others do.
The best software developers are those that are regularly reflecting on ways things can be improved, and are in constant pursuit of perfection and improvement. They use their down time to improve any areas of the project that they can. This can be code refactoring, improving build processes, improving / creating documentation etc. They don’t wait to be told what to do, rather they use their time effectively to improve the projects that they work on.
Most tasks that require initiative are the ones which don’t seem to have an immediate impact on a project. This is because most developers are too focused on the short-term, rather than thinking about the project’s long-term sustainability. Oftentimes important tasks are overlooked and left to become someone else’s problem because a developer may feel the undertaking is too large or because it is defined as undesirable work.
This is why developers who take initiative stand out so easily from the crowd — they are willing to do the hard work because they understand the importance of doing so as well as the impact it will have in the future.
Ability to problem solve
Software developers who learn to understand the problems they are solving first, and then break them down before attempting to solve them tend to be better than those who don’t. They also have a much deeper understanding of the systems they are working on, and have a much more complete overview of the product in general.
A rare skill in software development is the ability to break down complex problems into smaller pieces, and think about each of those pieces independently and as part of the whole, before diving in. This makes the solution far more robust, and ultimately improves the overall quality of any given product.
Great software developers attempt to solve their own problems because they understand that problem solving is a skill and as such needs to be honed constantly — the more problems that are solved, the better their problem solving will become.
Rapid learning ability
A great software developer is one who is willing to learn, but also form their own opinions and get comfortable in defending them. Software development is an extremely opinionated field, and if a developer is unable to defend those opinions they will quickly be relegated to a position of implementing other’s ideas. However, because of the fluid nature of technology, a software developer should also never be too proud to change previously held beliefs if a better alternative becomes available.
Every single day a new language or tool is released into the ecosystem, and it is crucial that a software developer is able to keep up with the pace of the market. This doesn’t mean that a developer needs to learn a new language regularly (although that does help), but it does mean that they should be keeping abreast with what is happening in their particular niche.
Library updates can sometimes mean that old ways of doing things have been deprecated, or that old tools are no longer available. Being able to learn new ways of doing the same things is incredibly important to keeping a business in a viable state.
If you are looking for a trusted Software Development partner that values these characteristics in their people, or you are a Software Developer that values these characteristics in yourself, please reach out to us at hello@silverstag.io.
