Top skills to look for in software developers

Hiring software developers can be challenging. While there aren’t many of these professionals in certain parts of the globe, they are expensive and have very specific skills. 

However, software developers are crucial for many businesses. They are responsible for creating codes that solve many problems and makeup innovative products. Your organization can greatly benefit from a team of skilled software developers. 

Saigon Technology is among your top choices if you’re looking for a place to start. 

The company has spent over ten years providing offshore software developers to international enterprises and would gladly partner with you.  

What does a software developer do? 

Software developers, also called programmers, software engineers, or systems analysts, design and build computer programs. They create business solutions with software, programming languages, and algorithms.  

Software developers come up with solutions to problems and develop them into applications or systems that work efficiently and effectively. 

Software developer skills are involved in all stages of the development process. Their main tasks may include:

• Designing and improving new software systems
• Planning software design and construction
• Writing code in different programming languages
• Making sure code works through testing
• Debugging coding problems
• Writing specified code to develop new programs
• Documentation of program applications
• Investigating reports of existing systems 
• Modifying existing software to correct errors or update features 

Top software developer skills 

If you’re looking to hire top software developers, we’ve compiled a list of skills you should look for:

Data structures and algorithms 

Data structures and algorithms form the foundation of many programming languages. Capability in them is one of the top software developer skills you should look for. 

Data structures store data so it can be used efficiently. Algorithms are sets of steps that complete tasks. Together, this skill lets you build flexible, efficient, and powerful programs easily. 

Integrated Development Environments (IDEs)

IDEs are programs that make it easier to write, test, and debug code. They usually contain additional features that provide suggestions and highlight code. 

Source control

Source control tracks changes made to a software developer’s code. It’s an essential part of the toolkit and a top software developer skill for those that work in teams. 

Source control tools let software developers see when a file was modified, who made the change, and why. It also allows the reversion of code to earlier forms. 

Text editors

Text editors are an essential software developer skill and a powerful feature of any programming language. 

Text editors can edit any text file, not just code. Software developers use them to store their code in a plain text format that the computer can easily read. 

Most text editors can read and write data in multiple formats. They also offer features such as search and replace, spell-checking, and syntax highlighting. 

Database knowledge

Database knowledge is a top software developer skill, as programmers should know how databases work and what type of data they can manage. This is especially critical for web development. 

Databases store data for easy access and retrieval. They’re used in almost every software application and website. 

Testing procedures

Testing is one of the most critical and complex tasks for software developers. Its main purpose is to verify that all parts of an application work as expected. 

Testing also helps detect errors that arise during software development. Software developers can correct mistakes before users report them. 

Aside from full-cycle product development, companies like Saigon Technology also offer software quality assurance testing. 

Operating systems 

Software developers use different operating systems, like Windows, Mac OS, and Linux, varying by platform. A top software developer skill is the ability to work with multiple platforms and operating systems. 

Operating systems manage the hardware resources needed for a program to run.  

Cryptography

Cryptography is a top software developer skill used to protect information. It’s used to encrypt data, converting it from plain text into an unreadable format called ciphertext. 

With cryptography, software developers use mathematical algorithms that are impossible to reverse-engineer. This secures their data and gives them a better understanding of how to break encryptions. 

Partner with leading software developers

A viable solution companies have found to partner with first-rate software developers is offshoring. You can fill difficult roles and integrate them with your in-house team through offshoring. 

Saigon Technology is ready to empower you with talented Agile offshore software developers through their mature development process. Its team prioritizes the most effective outsourcing software development and consulting strategies. 

Contact Saigon Technology to elevate your software development!