Another important decision you will have to make is whether to engage a freelancer or full-time remote developer to work on your project.
A freelance developer is someone that you employ on a contractual basis to work on a project for a short period of time. Freelancers link up to marketplace sites like Upwork, Toptal, and Freelancer and validate their abilities through these networks.
You is more aware of the term “full-time staff.” These are employees you’ll hire to stay on indefinitely. In return, they’ll want a respectable wage and comparable perks.
Whether you opt to go with one or the other mostly depends on the scope and complexity of your project. The contrast between freelancing and full-time developers may be starker than you believe.
Pros of Freelance Remote Developers
Not only will freelancers enjoy the flexibility of a malleable work schedule, but you will have some flexibility as well when it comes to how you handle the expectations that you have had for contractors and what they expect from you.
Cost
While freelancers often charge more per hour, businesses might save money by not having to pay for perks like health insurance and social security. You can save some money if you employ a freelance in a lower-cost-of-living country.
Risk Reduction
Freelancers are easy to dismiss if the partnership isn’t working out and do not have the right to collect unemployment insurance or sue for harassment or discrimination. Ofcourse, you want to make sure you employ the appropriate developers in the first place, but it’s smart to plan for the worst scenario.
Quality
Freelancers are responsible for their income, which implies that they are encouraged to produce good work to their clients. While full-time employees could experience highs and lows in their time working with you, freelancers know that a contract is up for renewal and will try to keep that contract.
Cons of Freelance Remote Developers
Freelancers by definition maintain some form of corporate liberties in that they do not have to be entirely dedicated to you or your firm. And that’s their right as freelancers.
Multi-Tasking
Freelance developers tend to handle numerous projects at once. This implies that you’re on the their timetable and must adhere to it.
Depending on the nature of your project, it takes a certain amount of trust to put it in the hands of a freelancer. Freelance markets help create confidence between employers and freelancers via features like rankings and testimonials.
Internal Visibility
Freelance programmers do not have the same level of integration as full-time developers.
For example, freelancers could have problems forging relationships with current team members working full-time. You may avoid this by developing a culture that emphasizes communication and collaboration.
Investment
Your company’s prosperity is not their priority. Freelance developers are generally working on many projects which means there will be clients they enjoy working with more than others.
Overall, their level of devotion to your goal is lesser than a full-time employee. If you are searching for a developer that would emotionally invest in your product, you might want to explore recruiting full-time staff.
Pros of Full-Time Remote Developers
Full-time remote devs are obligated to remain on your side, at least during business hours. You may be easy knowing where they stand.
Investment
In contrast to freelance developers, full-time developers have a higher stake in the organization. Their incomes are, in some respects, related to the success of the product they are producing.
Because full-time developers earn their career working on the one figurative project that is your business, they tend to send their resumes to firms that they believe they will love working at.
Focus
Full-time developers don’t have to balance many projects, and they don’t have to pick favorites amongst clients. Your product is their main focus and how you handle the development process will define the successes and failures of your product.
Organizational Topology
Developers that are in it for the long-haul will form deeper relationships with their teammates and create a distinct mental picture of the product they are building.
This organizational structure makes full-time developers incredibly valuable as they become more efficient over time.
Cons of Full-time Remote Developers
Most of the downsides of having full-time remote developers, ironically, have to do with their permanency. If you’re not careful, the fixed nature of having full-time remote developers on your team can lead to problems down the road.
Cost of Replacement
Replacing personnel costs money.
A 2017 study found that an employee earning a median income of $45,000 will cost roughly $15,000 to replace. Also, when a person works full-time they construct mental maps of your business that help them to become more efficient over the duration of their job.
This cost is harder to calculate, but you’ll feel it when an employee goes. Low turnover should be the goal.
Cost of Training
When you bring on a developer to work on an existing project they will need to be onboarded and given some time to understand the tools that your company utilizes, the work processes your team adheres to, and immerse themselves into the codebase. And time is money.
Cultural Fit
Chances are if you have experience hiring personnel, then you’ve recruited someone who turns out not to be the proper fit culturally. This problem can be challenging to manage considering the permanency of full-time work and the challenges of letting a person go.
Thankfully, you can add team meet and greets into your interviewing process to make sure that your team members approve. While this isn’t a flawless approach, it’s an inclusive one.
Which Type of Remote Developer Is Right for You?
The answer is that it depends on what you are looking for.
If you are a very early startup searching for a developer to construct an MVP, then maybe it’s best to locate a freelance developer.
If you have an existing codebase then a full-time developer will be beneficial in the long-term. Freelancers simply do not offer the amount of investment you need at that time.
Unfortunately, things aren’t all black and white, and you might not have the means to go about developing a remote staff.
You might want the benefits of a freelancer and full-time job without the drawbacks. In that situation, you may want to investigate deeper into alternatives to hiring full-time software developers.
What Does a Good Developer Look Like? 5 Skills To Look For
Before you go into the process of hiring remote engineers, it’s crucial to understand what the ideal candidate looks like both on paper and in action.
There is no shortage of talented and dedicated software developers ready to work remotely, but the key to building a long-term fruitful connection between business and employee is finding the proper fit.
Hiring the wrong developer might not only cost you time and money but do serious damage to the company and its reputation. It’s an uncommon worst-case scenario, but one worth avoiding.
So what does a good developer look like? Aside from recognizing traditional attributes and professional expertise, you should also look for soft talents directly relevant to remote working.
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Discipline
Remote work requires a high level of self-organization and autonomy among employees. Look for software engineers who are self-motivated enough to stay productive without their management peering over their shoulder and reviewing their work all the time.
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Communication
The mark of a great developer lies in their ability to convey their ideas, both vocally and in writing with their team. They should also be conversant in your principal language of business.
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Initiative
Given the nature of remote working, developers that show initiative when working on a project are extremely appreciated. These tend to be senior-level developers who have “been there, done that.”
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Balance
Remote employment offers the unique benefit of allowing developers to manage their life in ways that allows them to be more productive. While it can sound good to recruit the superhuman programmer, it’s generally best to go with someone who has hobbies and interests outside of work. Burnout syndrome can effect your business negatively.
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Maturity
A good developer is mature enough to present their management with a safe timeline estimation for a task or project. Developing software is rarely straightforward, and even seemingly simple jobs can suffer from unforeseen problems and other delays.
One of the signs of a successful developer is to be cautious and produce early rather than to be enthusiastic and deliver late.
It’s easy to get caught up in analyzing a developer’s technical aptitude. And although it’s crucial to verify the developer can code his way out of a paper bag, soft skills will determine how valuable a developer is in the long run.
Also, it goes without saying that developers with bad soft skills typically don’t remain very long on a team. Collaboration is a crucial feature of any remote team.
When it comes to resumes and cover letters. A resume should only be used to judge whether the candidate meets particular abilities.