7 Key Considerations While Hiring React Developers

There are plenty of options to choose from when selecting a programming language for backend web app development. Among the many, JavaScript is the most popular one and has been sitting at the top for almost a decade now. For this reason, it’s often tagged as the “king” of web development. Do you know 97.9% of websites on the web use JavaScript?

Related: Choosing the Best JavaScript Framework Between Vue and React

Nonetheless, the focus of today’s post won’t be on JavaScript but on React.js, which is one of the widely used JavaScript frameworks. React is an open-source JavaScript library owned by Meta (Facebook) that helps SMEs and large enterprises build modern, user-friendly, and optimal web applications. Netflix and Amazon are some of the famous apps built using React.

Also Read: React vs Angular: Which is better and Why?

As per Stack Overflow’s 2021 survey, React.js is the most commonly used web framework among developers. The reason behind its massive popularity is its simplicity, flexibility, fast rendering, and ability to build interactive user interfaces.

React is a great option for your app development project but we feel it is always a good idea to take a few points into consideration before you hire React Developers or a related app development company. Finding the best React developers that suit your requirements and understand your vision can often be an arduous task, especially if you aren’t technically sound. So, in this blog post, we would discuss some key points or questions that you should pay attention to when hiring React developers for your next project.

1. Do They Possess the Required Technical Skills?

Before hiring any React.js developer, check whether they possess the required technical skills to build the project effectively. In general, a react.js developer must be well-familiar with HTML/CSS and JavaScript obviously. He/she should have a strong hold on React core concepts such as React hooks, JSX, props, virtual DOM, and component lifecycle methods as these are important as far as programming a reliable react application is concerned. Also, ask what testing tools they have used in the past to eliminate bugs and other issues in a project. It would be nice if they have hands-on experience with Redux, Sentry, or ESLint.

2. Proficiency in JavaScript and ECMA Script

Since React is a JavaScript library, it is a must for a React.js developer to have a strong command over JavaScript features, syntax, and operations. Additionally, developers must have an understanding of JS scopes, prototypal inheritance, hoisting, DOM manipulation, event bubbling, and functions.

Besides JavaScript, check how proficient they are with ECMA script. ECMA script lets developers write single-line code and simplify the JS code using the Destructuring feature. Developers who are well-versed with JavaScript and ECMA script would be a great addition to your team.

3. Knowledge of Other Compatible Languages

If the React.js developer is extremely good at only one particular framework or related technology, it won’t suffice. They should have knowledge and experience of working with other technologies as well that are compatible with react.js. You would know or not but a backend framework or platform is a prerequisite to host a react application. For this matter, knowledge of technologies like Django, Laravel, and Ruby on Rails becomes essential as they go hand-in-hand with React. So, among two developers, one who is aware of the adjacent technologies and the other who isn’t, you’d know who to choose.

Not only this, a react developer should have a good command over the MERN stack (where MERN is abbreviated for MongoDB, ExpressJS, React JS, and Node JS). This is because the MERN stack is highly preferred for creating full-stack JS applications and are the most well-suited backend technologies to use with React.

Long story short, you should look for a react developer that has extensive knowledge of adjacent technologies.

4. Experience in Working With Version Control Systems

If the project (you are hiring react developers for) possesses complexities and calls for collaboration of multiple developers and frequent code changes, there will be the need for a version control system to streamline the development process and manage the code effectively.

When hiring react developers, give your first preference to those who possess experience in working with version control systems. Through this, they would be able to keep a track of changes in a specific development project. Furthermore, it simplifies and speeds up the process of reviewing old codes, comparing them with new codes, and undoing mistakes in the latest changes.

There are several version control systems that developers use such as Git, TFS, SFN, etc. though the most preferred one is Git to store projects on code hosting platforms like GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket.

5. Experience Working With Reactjs Workflows

A major challenge that front-end developers face is state management in large-scale React applications. Hire the ones who have or who can manage the state across the application components. Find out if they possess the skills, experience, and knowledge of popular state management libraries and structures such as Redux, Mobx, and Context API as these are the ones used to sync the state of applications across all components.

6. Find Someone Who Can Plan Tasks and Sprints

In most cases, the developers you hire would be working under a project supervisor but it is expected that the individual team members are capable of planning their own tasks and can stick to the deadline.

Put simply, the team should be competent in sprint planning and should be aware of the know-how of the task management software to measure and share the progress of sprints.

7. Understanding of Testing Tools and Frameworks

Testing has become one of the important skills for React developers, thanks to the rising quick deployment needs during the development stage. So, look out for the ones who have at least a basic understanding of the testing tools and frameworks. There are different tools and frameworks available to perform different types of testing such as-

Jest, Sinon, Chai, Enzyme, Mocha (for unit testing)

Selenium, Cypress, Webdriver (for end-to-end testing), and

Karma (for integration testing)

Jest, Enzyme, Selenium, and Karma are the widely used ones to perform tests on React components.

Reactjs developers who are aware of these testing tools and frameworks would be able to prevent mistakes and write better code.

Summing Up

Reactjs is undoubtedly one of the best (if not the best) web development frameworks out there and has got huge community support. It is leveraged by scads of startups and enterprises around the world. If you choose Reactjs for your next web development project, make sure to address the above-mentioned questions or points for a better decision and a successful project.