Where are the Good Programmers?

Frank Wiles discusses hiring programmers.

• Finding good programmers is hard in any language. And that a good programmer can be as effective as 5-10 average programmers. …- You don’t need to hire an expert in language X, you can and should look for expert programmers that are willing to learn language X. An expert can easily cross over from being a novice in any language in a matter of a few weeks.

More:

What is an expert programmer?

Experience is key, but not necessarily in ways you might imagine. Time in the saddle, with a particular language is not as important as diversity of experience. Someone who has worked in several disparate industries, a generalist, is often a much better developer than one who has spent years in the same industry. There are exceptions to this, but in general I have found this to be the case.

If hiring and managing software developers is something you do, the article is well worth the read.

Via Slashdot