By: MassLight Team

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Can non-tech founders create successful startups? Is it necessary to have technical skills to dominate the technological world? These are common questions that non-tech founders often grapple with. Despite a prevalent belief that only technical-background entrepreneurs can create innovative tech products, non-tech founders and CEOs are increasingly shaping the world of technology.

Regardless of their academic expertise or technical experience, non-tech founders invest significant time and effort into learning, upskilling, and finding the right talent. They have successfully created and led many well-known companies.

However, the success of these companies was not just due to the founders' insights, knowledge, and determination, but also the right kind of talent. Hiring developers for startups can be challenging, but finding the right developers who understand and can implement the founder's vision is crucial for success.

In this article, we will explore how non-tech founders can create successful startups and hire the right developers for their company. Finding the right talent is essential to conquer the entrepreneurial ecosystem and create a thriving business.

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The process of discovering suitable personnel for your startup can be quite daunting.

Entrepreneurs may not be able to eliminate all obstacles, but they can alleviate the pressure by hiring the right talent or outsourcing agency for their startup. Establishing a solid team that can take their idea and transform it into a fully-functioning business venture from scratch is crucial.

One of the primary difficulties of hiring the appropriate talent for a startup is quickly finding the best match. Non-tech founders must employ developers who are a good fit for their startups to ensure that business processes are effectively managed and aligned with business goals. Additionally, entrepreneurs must search for app developers who can function as the ideal team for their project, providing guidance on technology workflows and effective collaboration.

This article aims to provide insights into hiring developers for startups or engaging an agency, as well as the various factors that influence the process. We will also guide you through the process of finding and attracting the right developers and how to reduce obstacles as a new entrepreneur entering the business world.

Before delving into the specifics of hiring developers for startups or bringing on a development agency for a startup, lets first examine which option may be best for your business.

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As a non-tech founder, which option would be more beneficial: hiring in-house or onboarding an agency?

While having in-house developers is the ideal choice, it can be a daunting task for non-tech entrepreneurs due to their lack of technical expertise.

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Here are some challenges you may encounter while hiring in-house developers:

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High Expenses

Bringing on board in-house developers for a startup can be quite expensive. Apart from paying their salaries, the company also needs to bear additional expenses such as infrastructure, office space, tools, and software, which add up to the overall overhead cost.

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Limited skill set and experience

If you don't hire several startup app developers, the expenses will increase, and your in-house developer will probably only have expertise in a couple of programming languages. Consequently, your product's potential will be constrained by the developer's skill set. Conversely, a committed outsourcing firm can provide you with a web developer for your startup, along with project managers, graphic designers, quality analysts, and other professionals who can expedite your app development project while enhancing its efficiency and scalability. Additionally, they have multiple types of developers working in various domains.

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Limited scalability

The development process can be slowed down, even with shorter sprints, when you have a limited number of in-house developers and cannot work on multiple projects simultaneously.

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Limited capability to manage extensive or complicated projects

Compared to developers in specialized agencies, in-house developers often lack the necessary mindset and experience to handle large-scale projects. To overcome these challenges, it may be beneficial to hire a software development agency to meet your needs. For more information on why non-technical founders should consider outsourcing to a mobile app development company, read our article on the advantages of outsourcing. However, if you still prefer to hire in-house developers for your startup, here's how to do it. Look for candidates with a diverse set of skills who can comprehend your product's primary codebase and possess specific knowledge of how certain technologies will interact with your product. During interviews, consider their peripheral views on development. Additionally, determine if they specialize in front-end, back-end development, or both, and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses while communicating your business vision to them to ensure a cohesive product development pathway. Nevertheless, outsourcing your development needs to a reliable agency can still be cost-effective and advantageous for your startup. To assist you in selecting the best development agency, check out our guide.

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Here's a guide that outlines the step-by-step process for choosing the optimal agency that aligns with your business needs.

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To determine the expertise and experience of a software development company before outsourcing developers for your startup, you should consider a few critical aspects.

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Quality of Previous Work

To ascertain whether a development agency is suitable for your project, review their portfolio of completed projects and the clients they have served. If you are seeking to hire the top full-stack developer for your startup, evaluating their portfolio can provide insight into their critical skills. Additionally, examining the product outcomes of an agency specializing in dedicated software development services for startups can help you assess their overall capabilities.

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Specialty Areas

It's important to note that not all software development agencies specialize in cutting-edge technologies and methods. Therefore, it's crucial to ascertain the area in which the agency has expertise and is well-known for. Once you have a clear understanding of the agency's focus area, you can find the one that best matches the type of product you want to develop.

To evaluate the expertise of mobile app developers for startups, there are several skills you should consider:

• Assess their proficiency in programming languages, including top languages in the industry.
• Evaluate their knowledge of databases and their ability to work with system updates.
• Determine if they have a strong foundation in data structures and algorithms.
• Verify if they can use various tools and technologies to test and debug before deploying the project.

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Testimonials

When looking for software developers for your startup, it's important to consider the testimonials of the agency's past clients. These testimonials can help you assess the quality of work the organization delivers, including aspects such as meeting deadlines and staying within budget. By reviewing client success stories, you can gain valuable insights into the agency's expertise and effectiveness in software development.

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Bespoke Work

When hiring developers for your startup, it's important to ensure that they can develop a product tailored to your specific business requirements. While it's easy to choose off-the-shelf software, finding an agency that can create a customized plan can be challenging.

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Providing guidance and support throughout the idea generation process as well as after the launch for maintenance purposes.

To find suitable developers for your startup, it's essential to choose an outsourcing agency that offers guidance and support throughout the entire software development process. The agency should be capable of assisting you from the ideation phase to post-deployment maintenance of the product. They should also provide regular updates and integrate modern technologies to meet changing market requirements, which will increase the chances of your product's success.

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Project Management

To ensure that the team is accountable and capable of delivering the project on time, it is essential that the selected agency is able to break down the development process into a series of sprints. This will enable you to monitor the progress of the project and evaluate the team's ability to meet deadlines.

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Ready to bring your startup to the next level? Apply to MassLight’s next batch. MassLight supplies capital and a dedicated tech team. We take equity in return. Have questions? Refer to our FAQ page.