Even relatively small companies need to hire frontend developers to sustain a competitive advantage. Need to know where to hire these talent? This article will help you.
The challenges of building an online presence are becoming increasingly complex for businesses of every size. And looking for frontend developers for hire is a tough journey. Plus, Web development is an ever-changing industry that adds to that dilemma, especially to non-technical startup owners.
With the increasing number of tools for frontend development, most talented developers prefer to keep up with the basics. Hire frontend developers that are experts in HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. Additionally, the passion for robust design and accessibility should be part of the requirements. Above all, they must be adept with frontend frameworks as well.
For example, if you want your online business to scale, hire frontend web developers that know how to use CSS frameworks. It is an advantage if they know and can recommend a CSS preprocessor (e.g., SASS, SCSS, LESS, and Stylus) to build clean and reusable CSS.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, read further to know more about finding the top frontend developers.
Why hire Frontend Developers?
Frontend development is a complex process, especially for some non-technical startup owners. To simplify things, let’s use the restaurant analogy to explain frontend development.
When you enter a restaurant, you are looking into the ambiance, the setting, and of course, the food. You order your food from an attendant, which relays it to the kitchen, and you wait. You are oblivious to the process inside the kitchen, and after a few minutes, the attendant brings your well-prepared food.
This is the same with frontend development. When you visit a website, your interactions and experience are the same with the restaurant. When you click on a specific element on the frontend (attendant), it sends the request to the backend (kitchen). The backend fulfills your request (e.g., food) and sends the information back to the frontend (attendant). Simply, the frontend and the backend are working together to provide that excellent user experience.
To learn more, here is an in-depth comparison of frontend and backend development.
Your website is part of your brand identity. Building one pays off when you get it right, but costs you a lot if you get it wrong. There are inevitable struggles along the way, but the solution is to hire frontend developers.
Find talent that are competent and can understand the features needed on your website.
How to Hire Frontend Developers
Find frontend developers with superb skills. This is imperative as it assists in building robust and custom-oriented websites. So, here are the hard skills needed to hire front end web developers:
Hard Skills
HTML/CSS
These are the most basic building blocks of website development. HTML creates documents, and CSS provides the styles.
JavaScript
Aside from HTML and CSS, hire frontend developers with JavaScript expertise. This is the bonafide programming language between the three core technologies of frontend development. JavaScript is responsible for the interactive features of the website, such as audio and video, page animations, and others
CSS and JavaScript frameworks
Every framework has its strengths and weaknesses. Thus, hire frontend developers that know these frameworks and their usability. This is crucial, especially with building complex user interfaces.
CSS Preprocessors
Let’s say you’re an online grocery startup company. So, you expect a dominant color associated with groceries on your website. However, you want slight changes in terms of the hues of the color. Frontend developers can easily tweak the shade of the color using CSS preprocessors. That is how CSS preprocessors work.
Version Control
Software development undergoes lots of revisions. A tool is very important to track those changes. This is where version control software expertise comes in. Hire frontend developers with knowledge of Git and repositories like Github and Bitbucket.
Responsive Design
Hire frontend developers with a strong background in implementing responsive design principles. CSS framework like Bootstrap is a highly recommended skill to develop responsive websites
Testing/Debugging
It offers a huge library for developers for easy reference and development blocks for software projects. Plus, a runtime system with a library of classes helps developers deal with complex application architecture.
Also, it has a set of languages to promote interoperability. It enables each language to use any code from other languages, thereby adding a dynamic practice of development.
Robust Development Environment
Developers can prevent bugs, but they can’t eliminate them. Hire frontend web developers with knowledge of functional testing and unit testing. Additionally, knowledge of JavaScript testing frameworks (Mocha, Jasmine, and supporting test frameworks) is an advantage to speed up and simplify the testing process.
Browser Developer Tools
Hire frontend developers that are knowledgeable with browser developer tools. Generally, it consists of an inspector and a JavaScript console. It allows faster development as developers edit HTML and CSS and see the changes live as they happen. Also, the JS console allows viewing any errors that occur as the browser tries to execute the JS code.
Building and Automation Tools or Web Performance
Robust performance is the primary requirement of a web application these days, expertise in CSS and JS minifying and automation in image optimization are highly commendable. Find developers with knowledge of tools such as Grunt, Gulp, and others.
Command Line
A mastery of the command line is still essential despite the dominance of GUIs.
Soft Skills
Nevertheless, there are some skills that startup owners shouldn’t overlook. While technical skills are crucial, having the right soft skills are just as vital. A frontend developer should:
- Show respect and admiration of the culture, process, and craft of Web development.
- Understands the client’s experience, its background, and appreciating what it takes to form long-term client relationships.
- Work across diverse teams.
- Excel in written and verbal communications to relay technical information effectively.
- Manage time efficiently.
Where to hire Frontend Developers
You can either go local or global.
If you go local, look for connections via social media, and ask for recommendations from friends. It takes research and time, but it plays a big part in your decision-making.
Hire frontend developers locally as they might have contacts to help you promote your website in the long run. Also, these local developers have connections with online business directory listings, which can help boost your online presence.
On the contrary, there are two methods to consider when hiring globally. Either you outsource, or you go into offshoring. There’s a big difference between the two. As a startup owner, make sure that you’re dealing with the right people if you choose to go global. Social media platforms such as LinkedIn are the best platforms to look for cost-effective and quality frontend development services.
However, startup businesses must exercise due diligence in order not to get ripped off those hard-earned dollars. Good research on the cost of hiring frontend developers should be one of the priorities.
Hire Frontend Developers with Us!
Frontend development helps businesses succeed. A robust and well-designed website is essential to establish your business online. Thus, you need to partner with a trustworthy frontend development company.
Full Scale is an offshore software development company—building robust solutions for clients with complicated challenges in niche industries. Our Guided Development strategy will help you hire the right remote frontend developers.
With our fully remote team of software developers, content writers, and project managers, we will help you build that strong online presence. Contact us today, and together let’s carve that healthy and steady business relationship!
