Android is booming, period. Running on over 2 billion devices, this is perhaps the single largest platform for businesses to gain unprecedented access to customers cutting across geographical and demographic boundaries. And the 82 billion app downloads last year (roughly 40 for each Android user) is a true testimony to the deep level of trust and engagement this platform commands. But the picture isn’t so glorious for all. Today, there are almost 3 million apps on the Playstore, out of which a sizable majority are basically lost in oblivion, owing to their sheer lack of quality.
This brings us to a major revelation- as important as it is to hire Android app developers to pursue and propel business objectives, it is even more important to hire only the qualified ones who are capable of handling and meeting your business aspirations. But that is much easier said than done. If you simply type “hire Android app developers” on Google, it will handout 7,120,000 results. And as common sense would suggest, they all can’t possibly have the required resources to make an elegant, successful Android app. So, to help you in the cause, here are the 6 yardsticks upon which you should measure the competence of each developer to take a balanced approach:
Things to look out for:
1. Skill sets
The first thing you need to consider while hiring an Android app developer is the skill and expertise they have in relevant technologies. Developing an Android app is a lengthy and complicated process that involves a range of technologies including graphics, cloud, even AI, and beyond. While the exact skill set you require for your app is a must and will vary depending upon the type of application you need, it is always a plus if they are proficient in other technologies as well. Not only then they can offer valuable insight before the development, but can also lay out your application in way to incorporate other features in subsequent versions.
2. Experience
Expertise without illustrations to prove are mere theoretical claims. Instead of taking the word of developers over the expertise they have, you must look out for their experience in the relevant domain. The experience itself can be judged on two scales- i. Technology; and ii. Industry. The developers who fare well on both of these scales are bound to have first-hand experience to unique challenges that might creep-in during the development and hence can efficiently neutralize them for your project.
3. Collaborative Approach
No matter how simple your app is, chances are it won’t be created only by a team of developers, but will constantly require expertise and feedback from other teams and even clients as well. The applications created without ample consultation and collaboration with others often get hindsighted by the lack of perspective and risks resulting into a half-baked product. Since mobile apps are meant to be used by masses, the more eyeballs it passes through in the initial stage, the more refined it gets and consequently boosts its chances of success.
4. Previous client response
This is possibly the one-stop-solution through which you can judge the overall qualification of Android developers before hiring. Try to get in touch with the maximum number of their previous clients and collect all of their constructive and critical reviews to analyze every aspect of their business practices and take your decision accordingly. That being said, there is always a chance of a review being biased in both positive or negative aspect, and so it is necessary for you to go through a sufficient number before you can truly judge.
What shouldn’t concern you
1. Price
To put it simply, quality doesn’t come cheap. If you want to have an elegant application backing your business, you can’t shy away from paying for what it costs. An application with same basic functionality can cost anywhere between $10,000 to $100,000 and it is necessary for you to understand that you can’t expect the hired Android developer to deliver the quality of $100,000 when you pay them $10,000. That being said, we are here not advocating for you to hire the most expensive developers, but to choose simply on the merit of your project. If you have a simple application to build with little or no user interaction, even the cheapest of Android developers would do the job. But if you are looking for high-end user-experience and extensive features, you must also be willing to pay for the same.
2. Innovation
Yes, contrary to popular perception, innovative approach isn’t necessarily a trait that a developer must have. The task of coding benefits more from sticking to conventional rules and following best practices than with experimentation on their behalf. While a creative or out-of-the-box thinking is essential for designers, marketers, and initial algorithm structuring, there are cases when it can actually do more harm than good for developers. Imagine getting your app created by some developer who was so innovative that they came up with a solution in half the code than usual, but in the process, didn’t follow the coding conventions and neat practices. Now, if at any point in the future you wish to add new features or switch developers, no one else will be able to make sense of the initial code-base, hence limiting your app to the same developer for life.
↧