Entellects

There’s no question that mobile app developers are in high demand. The expected growth rate for software developers is 30 percent over the next eight years, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Mobile developers released more than half a million iPhone apps worldwide, nearly 200,000 iPad apps, and a little more than 300,000 apps for Android as highlighted in this Mashable article.

Before investing in a mobile development team or a contracted mobile developer, it’s important to consider how much the candidate knows about emerging technologies, mobile information architecture, and responsive web design.

To make the process a little bit easier, we’ve outlined three questions CIOs and business leaders should ask themselves before hiring a mobile app developer:

1. How much do they know about emerging technology?

Many professionals in the IT world recognize that most of the talent pool is proficient in Web and Java development. CIOs and business owners should seek out talent that’s ahead of the game and knows how to create apps for new platforms like the iPhone 5 which is rumored to have a much larger screen.

When speaking to an interviewee, feel free to ask them what operation systems they are familiar with. Inquire as to what they know about iOS 6, Apple’s new operating system for smart phones which releases in the fall of 2012.

It’s important for any developer you hire to be informed on changes taking place within mobile app development. This particular change is important because iOS 6 features more than 200 updates and improvements when compared to iOS 5. Some of those changes are directly related to mobile applications.

2. What role does mobile information architecture play in their work?

Quality iPhone applications usually have a well–thought-out information architecture (IA). Mobile architecture impacts how your information is structured as well as the user experience (UX), how people interact with the information. Each device has different capabilities and unique interaction models. Good mobile information architecture is based on context. Sometime it’s hard to judge a how much a developer knows about mobile information architecture. Throughout the interview process, simply ask them specific questions about IA such as:

• When developing a mobile app, how do you prioritize the user experience?
• What role does mobile information architecture play in the development and design process?
• How important is context in relation to mobile information architecture?

These are important questions to ask the developer, because he or she has a hand in shaping the user experience for mobile applications.

3. Is responsive web design important to them?

Responsive Web Design (RWD) indicates that a website is created to use CSS with proportion grids and this adapts to various mobile environments, utilizing flexible images. This allows users across a number of browsers and devices to access a single source of content. Adobe Dreamweaver CS6 supports flexible layouts. Basic mobile phone browsers don’t recognize media queries or JavaScript. So some professionals suggest creating a basic website and enhancing it for tablets and mobile devices.

If developers keep RWD in mind throughout the development process, they can create better mobile applications for users. Say, for example, you administer a test to developers during the interview process. Make sure to include at least a few questions about RWD, because it can potentially impact a mobile application’s usability.

If you are you looking to hire mobile app developers and don’t know where to begin, then please contact us any time.

Image Courtesy of ditaditamargarita via Flickr