How to Hire Ruby Developers?

If you are looking to launch your project with the help of Ruby on Rails, you have just hit the bull’s eye as this is indeed a perfect choice. Not only does it allow you to build web applications within a short period of time, but it also lets you maintain these apps quite easily.

Since this programming framework is easy to scale and apply for a variety of projects, it has been widely used by many renowned companies such as Airbnb, Shopify, Bloomberg, CrunchBase, GitHub, and Zendesk. Still, if you want to use all the advantages of Ruby on Rails, you need to have the right talents.

Where to Find the Best Ruby on Rails Developers?

To find the best programmers, you can choose one of 3 reliable ways of hiring Ruby on Rails professionals – outsourcing, freelance, and employment. All these options have their advantages and disadvantages. Take a closer look at the picture below to see what option fits you and your project.

Due to the growing popularity of the framework, there are plenty of platforms where you can look for experienced and skilled Ruby on Rails developers. Sometimes a wide variety of choices might hamper your searching process. That’s why we have selected the best ways to hire Ruby on Rails developers quickly and efficiently for your business project.

1. Outsourcing or Outstaffing Services

If you need to hire Ruby on Rails developers that definitely have sound experience with the framework, try checking different outsourcing or outstaffing companies, including our company. Not only the most experienced professionals on the market are available to you, but such a partnership can be quite fruitful – you can significantly cut costs or spend much less time on finding
and hiring the right fit. Everything is done by a service provider.

For example, have a look at Mangosoft. The company provides developers with considerable hands-on Ruby on Rails development experience. It means you get a well-developed product as a result. Have more questions about our services? You can always contact us.

Additionally, you can also check such a platform as Clutch to find more outsourcing companies and check their ratings and read reviews.

2. Freelancing

In fact, it isn’t hard today to find specialists who specialize in Ruby on Rails development. Luckily, freelancing services exists and you can apply to freelancers whenever you need. Consider such platforms as Upwork, Freelancer, Toptal, PeoplePerHour, CodementorX, and HireCoder. Don’t forget to weigh up all possible benefits and risks of such collaboration. You can benefit from freedom of choice, staff availability, and flexibility, but you can be plagued by delays or other problems.  So, pay attention to the qualifications of a freelancer you’re going to work with.

For example, to check the freelancer’s competence in Ruby on Rails, it is better to conduct thorough interviews, give specific tests or look at the previous projects (if any available). This form of collaboration is beneficial as well – no extra expenses (only some bonuses if you want to give for a great job), flexibility, direct communication, and readiness to meet all your demands (on most freelancing platforms, money is usually paid after the work is done).

3. Employment of Office Workers

For permanent employment, you can look for Ruby on Rails developers on job searching platforms and social media websites: RubyNow, Ruby on Rails Jobs, GitHub Jobs, CyberCoders, AngelList, Glassdoor, Dice, Indeed, Monster, LinkedIn, and Xing.

And just to make it more successful, do not forget to post job ads on your corporate website and your company’s social media pages. Try to attract the attention of experts providing a detailed job description. A well-prepared job ad increases your chances to find the right candidate for an open position – a Ruby on Rails developer.

How Much Does a Ruby on Rails Developer Cost?

Before following one of the possible ways to hire an RoR developer, you should realize how they are paid on the market. Everyone would like to be well-paid for a job, but there are certain factors affecting the final cost for work. What are they? Firstly, it depends on the developers’ expertise and experience you require – be it junior, middle or senior. Secondly, the overall scope of work may affect the cost. If you run a large online store, be ready to pay accordingly. Thirdly, the rates of Ruby on Rails developers vary based on the hiring models – outsourcing, freelancing or in-house employment. Look at the numbers and plan your budget for a project including the charge for work of an RoR developer.

• Outsourcing

Outsourcing companies charge differently for Ruby on Rails developers. They can be hired either internationally (in offshore areas) or domestically (in nearshore areas) to take care of your business operations.

For example, be ready to spend from $15 to $80 per hour for RoR programmers. Most of the time, pricing can go higher. In any case, the hourly rate for such professionals is totally justified – as a rule, outsourcing companies have several years of experience, they care about their talents, and they know how to address customer’s pain points.

• Freelancing

A freelance Ruby on Rails developer can be paid from $20 up to $60 per hour depending on the level of competence. Many freelancing platforms are full of specialists available to work on various projects. You can choose anyone from freelancers online based on your budget and demands. Due to filters, it is possible to make up your mind quickly.

• Full-Time Employment

Different countries and even IT companies in these countries offer different salaries to Ruby on Rails developers. Primarily, the economic conditions, market demand and financial means of each particular company.

Average Ruby Developers’ Salaries per Year

What Skills a Ruby on Rails Developer Must Have?

Every company can have its own requirements for junior, middle, and senior Ruby on Rails developers. Below, we will show you some general skills that these developers are supposed to have.

Junior Ruby on Rails Developers

• A bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering or any other related field;
• Up to 1 year of experience in Ruby on Rails development;
• Experience of working with SQL Server, MySQL, and MongoDB.
• Basic knowledge of HTML & CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, and some experience with GIT.

Middle Ruby on Rails Developers

• A degree in Engineering, Computer Science or/and in related field;
• Up to 3 years of experience in software and web development;
• Solid knowledge and first-hand experience with Ruby on Rails, SQL;
• A profound understanding of HTML & CSS and working in GIT;
• Practical knowledge of which tools would be better to meet project requirements (that’s why a high level of independence and accountability is highly appreciated).

Senior Ruby on Rails Developers

• A degree in Engineering, Computer Science or/and in related field;
• 5+ years of object-oriented software development;
• 2+ years of experience with Ruby on Rails;
• Practical experience of using methodologies (Agile, Scrum and others);
• Solid knowledge of HTML & CSS, JavaScript, and React;
• Experience of using GitHub and Git to communicate in a team environment.

It would be perfect if a candidate for a position could provide you with a completed open-source project to showcase (if any). Thus, you can evaluate technical skills in coding and see if he or she has real potential in programming. Keep in mind that junior RoR developers might be recent graduates, or they might be undergraduates who want to work in the IT industry. That’s why most of them are looking for a part-time job. However, they may have some experience to help you with web development.

Besides, many employers want to hire specialists with good soft skills – Ruby on Rails developers is no exception. They should be resilient and open-minded, have a willingness to learn, and passion for technology, communicate clearly and make decisions effectively. If you are looking for a developer abroad, it is vital for them to have a good command of English or any other language so that you could understand each other.

What Is the Best Ruby on Rails Job Description?

If you want to post a job description on your website, company social media profiles or other platforms, you should assess your project and understand what kind of development skills and experience you expect from a successful
candidate.

Once you’ve done that, you are ready to write a job ad. You can state some information about your company first. For example, tell your candidates who you are and what you do. You can tell them a bit more about your successful projects or/and clients.

Then you can proceed with the main job requirements, specifically with:

• The job title with the level of expertise (for example, a junior Ruby on Rails developer);
• A job type (full-time, part-time, remote, contract or any other);
• Years of experience required for this position;
• Technical skills and so on.

Be specific as possible about the key technical skills and requirements – what technologies are needed to meet job duties and job requirements. Otherwise, time will be wasted on further communication with a potential candidate. In addition to the given information, you can also state the salary, location, and other perks for a candidate if any (it is quite desirable to have to attract most experienced RoR developers).

Once the above is done, specify the responsibilities – what an RoR developer is going to do at your company. After everything is determined and arranged, you are ready to post your job description.

How to Evaluate a Ruby on Rails Developer?

The best way to assess Ruby on Rails developer’s skills is to set up a one-on-one interview with a candidate. But before that, make sure that you pass through CV screening every point attentively. It means that you have to check all the necessary information, like years of experience, relevant technology skills before inviting a candidate to an interview. However, if the pre-screening process goes okay, feel free to invite him or her to the interview. During this meeting (be it online or face-to-face), you can fully evaluate hard and soft skills. For better results, the active engagement of tech leads and other developers is highly desirable. They have all the necessary knowledge to evaluate an applicant and provide an exhaustive evaluation of their skills.

You can do it in several ways:

Ask theoretical questions. These questions are aimed at assessing the basic knowledge of Ruby on Rails and relevant technologies. You can ask questions like:

• What is a class and module and what is the difference between them?
• What’s the difference between Rails 4 and Rails 5?
• What is RubyGems and the way it works?
• What is ORM (object-relationship-model)?
• What are the advantages of RoR?

Give a technical assignment. What could be more revealing and significant than seeing code itself written by a candidate? That’s why you should prepare a technical task for your RoR candidate in advance. During the interview, state the task details and timeframes needed to complete the assignment. Make sure you have eliminated all the ways the programmers can use to cheat. Thus, you can check how they code and complete assignments within a certain period of time as the ability to work under pressure of time is highly appreciated in web development – every penny counts. Also, it helps evaluate their logical reasoning as most of the time you can ask them why they are doing this or that.

Ask general questions. The questions, a kind of “Why did you choose Ruby on Rails?” or/and “Why do you want to work for this project?”, should not be neglected under any circumstances. They will help you understand the motivation of RoR developers and their interest in the framework. And their response to the latter questions will give you a perfect chance to realize that the developer isn’t just looking for a random job opportunity but is really interested in working for your company or project.

You can find more information on evaluating Ruby on Rails developers here with examples of questions and tasks:

• How to screen Ruby on Rails developer skills – a guide for IT recruitment
• Top 53 Ruby on Rails Interview Questions & Answers
• Ruby on rails interview questions and answers
• Ruby On Rails Developer Interview Questions

Now you are equipped with all the necessary information on how to hire the best Ruby on Rails talents, to assess them appropriately, and what skills junior, middle, senior developers must have. Also, you know what salaries are offered to RoR programmers.

If you have any questions or you need to hire the best Ruby on Rails developers, or you don’t know how to proceed with your project, contact us. We would be delighted to assist you in any of your business endeavors.