The Value of a Good Developer
In every interview I’ve ever given for software development jobs I’ve made it clear that the value of a good developer isn’t that they know Java, PHP, [insert language here]. Their value is learning the business and being a whiz with technology…even if they don’t know all the technologies used on a project. This is why only a small fraction of my interviews are about technical knowledge.
Does that mean there isn’t a place for people who want to code only in Java, PHP, [insert language here]? Clearly the answer is no, but I can tell you that as long as I have any responsibilities hiring software developers I personally refuse to hire someone who feels their value is in their deep knowledge of any single language. I can honestly say I’d stick to that even if I managed a shop whose core competency was in only one language. Why?
For me it is a culture issue. I want to work with real Geeks…people that just get it. After having worked in this line of business for over a decade, I’ve noticed how every project looks the same on the surface. Requirements…check. Design document…check. Database…check. Code…check. Test plan…check. Sure that is an over simplification but on the not-so-good days that’s essentially what it all boils down to. Luckily I’m not naive enough to succumb to my thoughts on those not-so-good days. See, what keeps me in this line of work is wealth of knowledge I pick up learning about how different businesses operate and the people I meet along the way. Sure I occasionally get some quality geek time to actually bust out some code but that’s not the value to my customers or my coworkers. Ask me questions about global positioning system (GPS), agriculture, insurance, fulfillment and government and we can have a long talk abut the great things going on in those industries. Similarly I can talk to you about .NET, PHP, Java, continuous integration, MySQL, DB2, etc. It’s called perspective.
Even if you code for a business who has invested only into Microsoft’s .NET or IBM’s Java you’ll find that having that perspective will make you better technically and by focusing on the business and your work relationships that instead of being "…that one Java guy that use to work here" you’ll be "that really cool guy that can solve any problem and was a lot of fun to work with". After all, none of us can have too many of those kind of people at work!