Assembla Blog | The number one developer qualification: Can build from scratch - The Diigo Meta page

• 11 Nov 07
  

  Joel Liu

  If I ask a candidate "have you ever designed and built a piece of software by yourself", and they respond enthusiastically with a description of the project, then it is very likely they will succeed in a trial. If not, then there is some probability that they lack the ability to design software. However, it is almost certain that they lack the creative joy that comes from laying down whatever kind of code you want to lay down, and the rush that comes from conjuring something out of formless bits.

  developer hr

  • Sometimes I see resumes (often from India) that show a developer has worked for years on a series of team projects that involve five or ten team members.  In this case, you often have to go back to some college project to dig up the evidence.  If you find an individual, from scratch project that the candidate is excited about, no matter how old, that is a good sign.  If not, the probability is very small that the candidate will succeed in a distributed team trial. 
  • I would not argue with you on the achievements described in resumes of potential candidates. However, it is certainly a fact that candidates who are excited about giving a bunch of floating bits some structure have a very big drawvack.

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