In a nutshell
Technical skills are only part of what makes a great software developer. At Alphero, teamwork, empathy, communication and adaptability are critical to building high-performing development teams. These human skills help developers collaborate across disciplines, understand users, navigate change and apply their technical expertise effectively.
What makes a great developer?
What do you truly look for when interviewing someone to join your team? In the fast-paced world of software development, it is easy to get lost in the technicalities, but the secret to a high-performing team often lies elsewhere.
The 'hard' skills focus
When we evaluate developers, we often default to a checklist of technical proficiencies. We treat these as the primary measure of talent, asking questions like:
- How good is their code?
- What is the depth of their understanding of software design?
- Have they worked with the same or similar frameworks to the ones we use?
- Do they write unit tests and documentation?
- Have they worked in an agile practice?
We consider knowledge of a particular language, architectural pattern, or framework as the gold standard for developer quality. These are frequently referred to as "hard skills," distinct from the "soft skills" that govern how we actually interact.
The origins of 'soft' skills
The terminology we use has a surprising history. The terms "hard" and "soft" skills originated within the US Military between 1968 and 1972. While the military excelled at training troops to operate machinery, they noticed a critical gap: victory often depended on how a group was led and how they cooperated.
Beyond the label
The term "soft skills" has lost favour in recent years because it fails to describe the immense effort required to develop them. In a development context, these skills are the literal glue of the team. Let's look at the pillars that support a successful collaborative environment.
Teamwork
It is exceptionally rare to work in total isolation. At Alphero, developers are part of a diverse ecosystem that includes:
- Fellow Developers
- Designers and Testers
- Project and Delivery Managers
- Clients and Partners
We don’t all need to agree on every technical detail, but we must work together. Bringing together different views is exactly what allows us to deliver something great.
Empathy
Empathy is vital. It’s the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes. Within a team, it builds the confidence needed to ask questions and think outside the box, knowing the environment is supportive rather than critical.
Beyond the team, empathy extends to our users. We must consider accessibility, vision impairment, and potential biases (gender, race, or orientation) in the products we build. Empathy ensures better outcomes for everyone.
Communication
Communication isn't just about delivering a message; it's about how you listen. Your body language, the types of questions you ask, and your willingness to understand others are what truly define a great communicator.
Adaptability
We work in an industry defined by change. My own journey started with Pascal, moving through Logic Programming, C, Java, Swift, and beyond. When you combine a thirst for learning with the tenacity to try until you succeed, you can apply your knowledge to any new industry or technology.
If we hire an incredible coder who cannot work with others, lacks empathy, and struggles to communicate, then does that actually make the team better or worse? What do you look for when you interview someone to join your team?