Business-focused custom software

When you are sponsoring a custom software development project, a lot of things can go wrong. And they will. You may not need super human strength, but there are certainly programmer super powers that will help to save your project from death and destruction.

Laser vision

Some programmers can be easily distracted by cool, shiny technical “stuff”. The developer with laser vision can focus on the task at hand and the ultimate objective: completing the project. Laser vision can also help them to see and anticipate what’s coming because it can see through obstacles.

Nerves of steel

There are risks on every project, most of which directly affect the programmer. Many programmers hide their eyes, refusing to think about challenges or how to deal with them. For example, I once knew a lead programmer who told everyone for months that he only needed a couple more weeks to complete the project. Problem: his architecture/design was flawed, and he couldn’t face it. The project was only saved when someone else took the reins and faced the hard, cold truth.

Shape-shifting / Elasticity

A project in trouble needs people who can respond in flexible ways. Often this can mean thinking in a unique way to find solutions to problems. It can also mean working in a different way or becoming quickly proficient in a new technique. Programmers without this super power attempt to solve problems in the same old ways, even when those ways have proven flawed. Eventually they simply give up. But a shape-shifting programmer will learn something new, or take on a task outside their responsibilities because it needs to get done and no one else can do it.

Programmers with super powers don’t always show up at the last minute like Batman. So watch for them and hire them before your project starts heading for the cliff.