About the requirements for novice specialists
Experienced iOS app developers talked about how difficult it is to find a good developer and what are the requirements for novice candidates. As well as the opinion of HR.
About the iOS app development market. The iOS development market is now growing, including due to large companies that create their own applications for business. At the same time, the market is not overheated, there are an average of two people per vacancy. But finding a good developer is not easy. So much so that smart newcomers are taken even to large projects.
About the difficulties of finding a developer. Now the main language of iOS applications is Swift, new projects are written on it and old ones are rewritten. But he appeared only six years ago and is considered young. Experienced old school developers who have worked in Objective C don’t want to switch to it. This creates a problem for employers who are looking for Swift developers.
About the requirements for developers. There are no universal requirements, it all depends on the company. For example, I primarily look at the ability to communicate with the team and only then at the skill set. After all, it will be difficult for the whole team to work with a person who does not know how to build communication.
About hiring specialists without experience. Developers without much experience are hired under two conditions. Firstly, if the company has the opportunity to hire a newcomer and grow him in a team so that the investment pays off in the future. Secondly, if the time for development and delivery of projects is not running out.
Tips for new developers:
– In any business, there are difficulties at the start, so do not give up when something does not work out at first.
– Read books on the Swift language. At one time, I was drawn into the book “Fundamentals of iOS Application Development” by Vasily Usov.
— Never think that you already know everything: keep learning and developing.
Vadim Pustovoitov, iOS app developer of mobile applications at TransTechService
About the iOS development market. I can judge the state of the market by the customers who come to us for the application. Digital transformation is now underway in all industries, and businesses need new work tools – mobile applications.
For example, this year we made an application for a chemical giant so that its sales representatives could demonstrate products and place orders right at the negotiations.
Another is an application for ophthalmologists, with which you can measure the distance between the pupils; application for guests of golf clubs, where you can bet on throws.
On the overheating of the labor market. Good developers are always in short supply, and this is not specific to iOS. But iOS and macOS also have a high barrier to entry – investment in the purchase of Macs and mobile devices, a specific programming language that is not taught in institutes – this greatly limited the influx of personnel. We have grown most of the iOS developers in our ranks, and this is a long and expensive process for business.
About the difficulties of finding a good developer. The number of companies that develop for iOS has grown over the past few years, and the number of specialists has grown accordingly. Now, finding a good iOS app developer for a team is not so much difficult as it is expensive due to the long search process and the need for additional training in the team.
About the requirements for developers. First of all, we look at understanding the specifics of mobile development, attention to detail, knowledge of the basics of programming and architectural patterns. Naturally, we pay attention to knowledge of Swift, Obj-C and technologies, but this is not such a critical moment – the language can always be quickly improved. A big plus for us is the ability to work in a team and the understanding that mobile development is only part of the project.
About hiring specialists without experience. We launched our own academy, where we take talented people with no experience in mobile development, train and employ the best students. But to get an internship, students still need to know OOP, a database, and one of the programming languages (C++, Objective-c, Java, or C#).
If there is a base and a desire, technology can always be improved, and experience can be gained.
Tip for new developers:
Engage in self-education and constantly apply knowledge in practice. Subscribe to professional mailing lists from top developers like Ray Wenderlich and Andy Bargh. And bookmark matteocrippa/awesome-swift.
Mikhail Samolinov, head of mobile development at Mercury Development
About the requirements for developers. There are key points that we are looking closely at:
– Work experience – in general, any and in development specifically.
– Understanding of the tools with which the candidate works.
– Knowledge of Swift.
– Knowledge of standard frameworks.
– Understanding the principles of building good code.
– Basic understanding of multithreading, networking, operating system functions.
About hiring specialists without experience. We will hire a developer without much experience if we see that he is promising and lacks only a good project and a mentor.
Tip for new developers:
If you want to become a good developer, get used to learning. Find a self-study format that suits you best and suits your level. Books, articles, videos, podcasts, courses, documentation – there is a lot of information.
Do not forget about practice, the best thing is to start your project. And at the same time, study the source code of open-source applications and frameworks.
Find a mentor who will help with difficult issues. Just learn to ask the right questions first. A well-formulated question is half the answer.
Ildar Gilfanov, iOS Team Lead in e-Legion