From Airbnb to Bloomberg to GitHub, many companies large and small are using Ruby on Rails to build powerful, scalable, and easily maintainable web applications, taking advantage of its cost-effective nature that provides fantastic quality and speed to market.
If your company relies on a Ruby on Rails application and has a full team to support the product, then you’ve got your bases covered. However, if you rely on a Ruby on Rails application, either built it in-house or through a contractor, but don’t have a full team you will be faced with the decision whether or not to hire a full-time Ruby on Rails developer to support your product.
Ruby on Rails developers are in high demand and hiring on full time doesn't always make sense for a number of reasons besides cost. Before considering if it makes sense, there’s a few key factors that are important to keep in mind as you’re weighing the decision.
Access
When you need them do they have bandwidth to prioritize your work?
Hiring a full-time Ruby on Rails developer gives you clear access to the developer, in some cases even the ability to walk up to them in a physical office setting. When you decide to implement a new feature or spot a bug that needs urgent fixing, you have someone whose job is to report to you to get the job done.
24/7/365 coverage
What is your crisis management plan?
Ruby on Rails products, like any application, will go down. It’s the nature of the technology ecosystem and even the Amazons of the world have downtime. To mitigate the damage from downtime, best practices include setting up automated alert systems and a method for notifying man power than can resolve the issue quickly. Finding Ruby on Rails developers who agree to be “on-call” 24 hours of the day, seven days a week, everyday of the year significantly narrows the talent pool.
Replaceability
If your Ruby on Rails developer is suddenly unexpectedly no longer available, how fast can you get a replacement up to speed?
What happens if the developer suddenly can’t show up to work? We like to consider the hit-by-the-bus scenario to ensure we understand the extent of recovery. Hiring takes time. Getting someone ramped up on a new code base also takes time. The combination is not trivial, in terms of time and money.
Autonomy
Does your developer have the skills needed to deliver product?
A Ruby on Rails developer who is only able to backend developer can put you in a bind if you don’t have a broader team surrounding that developer. Products typically require visual design, user experience design, front end development, backend development, and systems management. Sometimes you can find a developer that is “full stack”, meaning they can do both backend and frontend. Maybe they also know enough design to be dangerous. These are the unicorns of the developer world and you need a special kind of bait to catch one.
Pricing
Do you have enough ongoing work to support the budget required for a FTE?
It can be difficult to find the right developers in your area, especially if your budget is tight. Because Ruby on Rails is a relatively young web application framework, and it’s often used by venture-backed startups, there is significant supply pressure for Ruby on Rails developers - more demand than availability. Developers who know Ruby, the language in which Ruby on Rails is written, command the highest salary of all developers. If you have a large amount of work ahead of you, for feature builds and ongoing support, the budget requirements may justify the needs.
In many cases, hiring a full-time Ruby on Rails developer makes sense. There are other options for supporting a Ruby on Rails application.
Other Options for Supporting a Ruby on Rails Application
Not every company can justify hiring a full-time Ruby on Rails developer, but every company can support its Ruby on Rails application by hiring a freelancer or agency.
Option 1: Hire a Freelancer
Thanks to online marketplaces for freelance services and various online job boards, it has become easy to find talented freelance Ruby on Rails developers.
The risks to working with freelancers come in many flavors. They will not work exclusively for you and so prioritizing your work over others may not always be welcomed, even in emergencies. Because of the high demand, it is very difficult to find freelancers who are interested in providing 24/7/365 coverage. Similar to hiring a full-time Ruby on Rails developer, freelancers are costly to replace and it is difficult to find the unicorns. Freelance developers typically charge an hourly rate, but it’s also possible to negotiate a fixed price, and because you don’t have to hire them for a full time workload, you can budget far less.
Option 2: Hire an Agency
By partnering with a software development agency, you get instant access to a talented team of Ruby on Rails developers–essentially outsourcing the risks encountered when you have a shallow depth in your team.
Agencies manage the hiring and replacement of team members, and are adept at bringing in the right resources at the right time. Their promise is to be accessible and they also tend to have years of experience in re-balancing priorities in emergency situations. Some agencies can offer 24/7/365 support, offloading a critical business need to a partner with resources and experience in navigating unclear waters. Compared with freelancers, the average hourly rate of software development agencies tends to be higher, as they have management layers in place to ensure the quality of the work they deliver is consistent.
About Breakwater
Hiring a full-time Ruby on Rails developer has its pros as well as cons. Many companies look to freelancers or partnering with a software development agency to support their Ruby on Rails product.
Breakwater is a software service company focused on supporting and expanding Ruby on Rails products for companies who need ongoing help maintaining them.
Our team of US-based Ruby on Rails experts has a longstanding track record of delivering business value and asset protection.