How to hire remote developers? 

The world of software development has changed dramatically in the last ten years, with remote work becoming more and more common. If you’re working on an app or some other piece of software and you need someone to help you build it, you might be tempted to look at local developers, but there are many benefits to hiring remote developers instead. Figure out how to hire remote developers for your company so that you can get the project done right and meet your deadline. 

Hiring remote developers is becoming more and more common in today’s business environment, with the trend only continuing to grow over time. It’s an attractive option because of the increased flexibility and reduced overhead costs, but it also comes with its fair share of challenges that businesses need to be aware of before beginning their search for top-tier developers. This guide will go over how to find and hire the best remote developers for your company. 

Define what you need 

Before you can even think about hiring, you have to know what exactly it is that you need. Be specific here—you can save yourself time and money by knowing exactly what kind of developer you’re looking for. If your background is in marketing, but your idea requires someone with programming skills, you’ll be setting yourself up for failure if you search for developers. Your search results will be filled with candidates who may or may not be able to handle what you need done; don’t leave it up to chance! By being specific about exactly what role(s) you need filled (and maybe even listing out some qualifications), potential candidates will be able to more easily apply if they feel like they match. 

What makes a good developer? 

When it comes time to actually hire a developer, don’t just look at their technical skills. There are lots of resources online that can help you verify they know what they’re doing; rather, try and get a sense of whether or not they have a real passion for programming. Great programmers are really passionate about coding—they can talk all day about their favorite languages, IDE, frameworks, etc. If you sense that passion in someone during an interview process or simply by asking them some questions online (e.g., via a chat tool like Skype), then you’ve probably found yourself an ideal candidate who will stick around for years and truly become an asset to your team. 

Understand the value of hiring local talent 

If you’re in a technology hub like Silicon Valley, Boston, or Austin, there’s probably no shortage of local talent. However, if you need engineers and designers that reside outside of these regions (or even outside of their home country), locating them can be tough. Luckily, sites like Upwork have opened up a whole new channel of potential hires. Through Upwork, freelancers from all over can list their skills on an online marketplace; companies then bid on individual workers with an expected project budget attached. In addition to providing a near-endless pool of potential hires, using platforms like Upwork can also help businesses scale faster by hiring part-time talent as needed throughout development—instead of having one team working 24/7 until completion. 

If you’re trying to find a top-notch local developer, be aware that they don’t come cheap. Be ready to pay at least $60 an hour if you want some of the best talents in town. They might also require benefits like health insurance and bonuses. These can bring your total cost per hour closer to $70 or $80. Plus, top talent may not take on every project that crosses their desk. This might be for a variety of reasons like it may not interest them enough. Or there might be periods when demand is high, meaning you need a developer immediately. 

What’s the cost difference between local and remote talent? 

Before you run out and start looking for a team, know that there is usually a significant cost difference between on-site hires vs. hire remote developers. The tradeoff between location flexibility, productivity, and talent availability means that if you’re hiring experienced developers, you’ll probably end up spending about 30% more than you would for local talent. If you plan on hiring junior developers, they generally come at much lower salaries in any case. In this case, remote makes even more sense because of reduced overhead costs. This is in terms of office space, equipment like monitors/keyboards/mice/etc., office supplies (especially if things are ordered online), etc. But be sure to factor all those costs into your budget before making decisions based solely on cost savings! 

Hire through freelancing websites 

Finding freelancers with technical skills on freelance websites such as Upwork or Toptal is an easy way to locate a skilled employee without having to waste time. On these platforms, you can browse profiles of skilled professionals in IT, development, design, etc. who are willing to do jobs ranging from small project work to full-time employment. If you have employees in-house but need some extra help on a project, outsourcing projects through freelance sites can be an affordable option that works well in many cases. However, it’s important to note that there are risks involved when hiring remotely. For example, if you’re not able to communicate clearly with your freelancer about expectations and goals, then it might not go so well—and you could end up losing money and wasting time. 

Look for qualified candidates on LinkedIn or in universities 

The first thing you should do when looking for an IT employee is to post a job listing on relevant sites like LinkedIn. You’ll be able to post on multiple pages, so spread it out! If you’re not quite sure what kind of person would work well in your company, a recruiter can help. There are plenty of full-service recruiters who can search through databases at specific colleges and universities. These will include candidates that might be interested in working with you. It’s usually best if they have a strong network or in-depth knowledge of software engineering. If that’s not you, try Googling IT recruiting agencies or something similar. 

Why you should hire a freelance developer in countries with lower average salaries 

If you’re building a software product, chances are you’ll need to hire at least one developer. A lot of entrepreneurs don’t realize how beneficial it can be to hire outside of their immediate area. This is particularly if they want full-time, long-term employees. While hiring a U.S.-based developer will cost you between $30-$60/hour depending on experience, it’s possible to get higher quality work done by outsourcing development overseas. Countries like Russia, India, and Brazil have great talent pools. These cost far less than more established tech hubs in North America and Europe. Not only that, but many of these countries have lower costs of living relative to salaries. 

Determining how much it will cost per hour with no access to competitors’ wage data 

The average developer’s salary is $85,558 per year. Multiply that by an estimated 2,080 hours worked in a year (or 40 hours a week times 52 weeks), and you get $169,524. That’s what a company would have to pay if it wanted its developers working full-time on its project. But if you’re hiring remotely, there are other costs that will factor in the process. These will include computer equipment, software licenses, Internet access fees, etc. This can quickly add up; for example; Amazon Web Services charges $0.10 per hour of computing time plus data transfer fees of 0-5 cents per gigabyte transferred out of AWS. So that makes just one gigabyte could cost as much as $20. 

Test candidate skills and knowledge with a mock project 

For a one-off project, it can be hard to judge a developer’s ability. It’s important to get an idea of how they’ll fit into your team before taking them on full-time. So, if you’re looking to hire remote developers specializing in something specific (and can wait a bit), make sure you spend some time together working on something that matters. This allows you test their abilities and their fit with other team members without fully committing to them. If you’re looking at multiple candidates, give each one a small project or mock-up assignment. This way they can present back on what they’d do differently or better than others. This will also let you see how they communicate in writing. This information is something more established companies may not know too much about until they hire someone full-time. 

Final thoughts on how to hire remote developers 

The most important thing you can do is find people who have a great track record. The next thing is really spending some time interviewing them. And then making sure they’re going to be in your time zone, so you can communicate easily with them, but that’s less of an issue now.

We always want stuff done now! You want something done yesterday or last week because it’s all about innovation speed and iteration speed, but if someone’s never sat down with you at a table or on Skype or whatever video conferencing system you use, how do you know how well they work? That’s one of those things where if you don’t get that face-to-face interaction first, then I wouldn’t recommend hiring them. Just make sure they’ve got a proven track record and that they’re willing to come out and meet with you before you go ahead and give them money. It’s pretty simple.