About 50 percent of devs consider themselves back-end developers — this is one of the key takeaways from the 2019 Stack Overflow Developer Survey. It’s a huge number, highlighting how this specialty became the backbone of the IT world.
But with such a huge pool of back-end developers for hire on the market, it might be difficult to pick the right one for your company. Not only might their experience differ, but so might their actual skills, as a website’s back-end can be designed using multiple different technologies.
That’s why we’ve created this guide on how to hire a back-end developer that will surely get the job done.
Main responsibilities of a back-end developer
Assessing a back-end developer starts with checking whether they are able to handle all the main responsibilities they would have at your company. The tasks of a back-end developer might be slightly different depending on the business they are working for — for example, a young start-up might want to hire a back-end developer who is a generalist and is able to tackle most of the issues and maintenance by themselves, while a large enterprise often has a group of more specialized devs, each of them focusing on a different part of the back-end.
Most often, however, you will be looking to hire back-end developers who are able to handle the following tasks...
- Building and maintaining the server infrastructure of your web product.
- Creating and managing databases and data flow.
- Improving the web product’s performance from the back-end side.
- Reviewing and improving security measures.
- Developing the company’s CMS (content management system).
- Taking care of data back-ups.
- Integrating the web product with the cloud.
- Troubleshooting and fixing bugs.
- Delivering reports and extensive analytics (e.g. on the website’s performance or popularity).
- Working with front-end developers on integrating their solutions with the back-end.
Crucial back-end developer hard skills
The technical skills your project requires from a back-end developer might differ from what other companies are looking for. This is because there are multiple technologies that IT businesses use to build their web product’s back-ends. You might want to discuss the specifics with an IT project manager or a software consultant. However, there are a few key hard skills to consider every time you hire a back-end developer. We have listed those most important ones below:
- Proficiency in relevant back-end languages
Depending on your specific web product, you will need to hire back-end developers with knowledge of a different programming language. Popular choices for a website’s back-end include technologies like Java, Ruby, PHP and Python.
- Experience with the language’s frameworks and libraries
Frameworks and libraries allow us to significantly speed up the development process and deliver results faster. Depending on your programming language choice, your team will most likely use a different framework. For example, the most popular solution for Ruby back-end development is Ruby on Rails, while Java devs will use tools like Spring or Play.
- Experience with server and database tools
Maintaining reliable server infrastructure and administering databases is one of the most important parts of a back-end developer’s job, so knowledge of specific tools for these tasks is crucial. For database management, MySQL, MongoDB and/or Oracle are recommended. When it comes to servers, Apache and Nginx are some of the most popular choices.
- Knowledge of front-end technologies
Although back-end developers don’t primarily focus on the front-end side of a web product, they still do have some contact with it. Because of this, it’s highly advisable to hire a back-end developer who has experience and knowledge of the front-end tech used at your company. When it comes to languages, it will most likely be the standard combination of HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Different frameworks are used by different businesses though, and the list includes solutions like Angular, React, Vue and more.
The most useful soft skills for a back-end developer
A set of valuable soft skills will have a positive impact on not only the developer themselves, but also on other people within the company, fueling innovation and cooperation. And what are the most important soft skills to consider when you plan to hire back-end developers?
- Expert time management
With so many different responsibilities on the plate of a back-end developer, this soft skill is crucial. Keep it in mind when you run a young startup with a small tech team whose members have to manage themselves.
- Being approachable
Being the person responsible for the backbone of a web product, a back-end developer is often approached by colleagues — both with suggestions as well as calls for help. Being able to handle these requests with a smile and a positive attitude is a soft skill desired in every company.
- Researcher attitude
A huge part of a back-end developer’s job relates to research — both internal (e.g., reviewing server’s behavior) as well as external (e.g., exploring online forums to find new ways of improving the site’s performance). That’s why finding a dev who is keen to expand their knowledge is one of the best things that can happen to your company.
Top back-end developer job interview questions
To really assess the skills of your back-end developer candidate, running a technical job interview is highly recommended. If you’re not proficient in back-end technologies yourself, you should consider asking another back-end dev, a software consultant or an IT project manager to join you as an interviewer.
What questions should be asked during such an interview? Here are some of our favorites:
- How would you approach finding the most expensive queries in a web app?
- What is eventual consistency?
- What is concurrency and why do we need it?
- What are the differences between SOA and microservices?
- What is lazy loading? How is it achieved and what is it used for?
- [Java] StringBuilder vs. StringBuffer — what are the differences between these two?
- [Java] HashSet, TreeSet, LinkedHashSet — what are they and what are the differences between them?
- [Python] What is MRO?
- [Python] What is your opinion on monkey patching?
- [Rails] What is Rake and what is it used for in Rails?
Hiring back-end developer? Remember company fit!
The more your new colleague matches your company, the more positive of an impact they will have on the whole company. These are the three areas of a company fit that you should consider when hiring a back-end developer:
- Industry fit
Previous experience in your industry means a better understanding of the specifics of your target group. This is crucial for developing solutions that really answer the market’s needs.
- Product fit
Even if the product you are developing is a truly unique one, you should think of your potential competitors and their offering. List the features and other things that you find similar between your own and other products, and look for developers who already have experience working on such solutions. These devs will already have the necessary know-how and deliver results faster.
- Company culture fit
Teammates who share similar values cooperate better with each other and, therefore, deliver better, more reliable products. Think of your company's values and the vision behind your product and hire back-end developers who are enthusiastic about them.
Beyond back-end development
Back-end is surely the backbone of your web product, but it’s not enough to build an appealing product. You need experienced front-end developers and web designers to create stunning visuals, an IT project manager to take care of budgeting and deadlines, and maybe even a mobile developer who can transfer your product into an app tailored for phones and tablets.
We can supply whatever talent you might need to build an awesome product. At Ideamotive, we operate a best-in-class network of IT professionals looking for new job opportunities. With us, you always get connected with the candidates who fit perfectly, matched with your company based on your exact requirements and project specification.
Reach out to us today — let’s take your team to another level.
