You hired a developer. Or an agency. Or a freelancer off Upwork. They seem competent. They use the right words. They send updates on Fridays.

But how do you actually know if they are any good?

This is one of the most common things non-technical founders struggle with, and understandably so. You are paying for something you cannot fully evaluate. That is uncomfortable. And it leaves you vulnerable to people who are either genuinely not very good, or who are good but not right for what you are building.

Here is what I look for. Not in the code, but in everything around it.

They ask about your users, not just your requirements

A developer who opens with “what do you want it to do?” is thinking about features. A developer who opens with “who is this for and what are they trying to accomplish?” is thinking about product.

The best developers I have worked with are naturally curious about the person using the thing they are building. They ask uncomfortable questions like “why does it need to work this way?” or “have users actually asked for this?” Those questions feel slow in the moment. They save weeks later.

If your developer just takes the brief and starts building, that is a yellow flag. Not a dealbreaker. But pay attention.

They push back when something does not make sense

Good developers say no. Or at least, “are you sure?”

If your developer agrees with everything you say, one of two things is happening. Either you are a genius and every idea you have is perfect (unlikely), or they are not engaged enough to challenge you.

Healthy pushback sounds like: “I can build that, but here is what I think will happen” or “this feature will add two weeks and I do not think it changes the outcome.” That is a developer who is thinking about your product, not just their invoice.

You understand what they are doing without asking

You should not have to chase updates. And when updates arrive, they should make sense.

A developer who explains their progress in clear, plain English, not jargon or GitHub links, is a developer who understands what they are building and who they are building it for. If you find yourself nodding along without really understanding, ask them to explain it differently. Once. If they cannot, that is a problem.

Communication is a skill. It is undervalued in technical hiring. It matters enormously when you are the one making product decisions.

Their previous clients talk about the relationship, not just the output

References are useful, but only if you ask the right questions. Do not ask “were you happy with the work?” Ask: “How did they handle it when something went wrong?” and “Would you give them ambiguous problems to solve, or only clearly defined tasks?”

The answer to the second question tells you a lot. Developers who can only execute well-defined specs are useful for a certain type of project. If you are building something early-stage and evolving, you need someone who can think.

They can explain a technical decision in one sentence

Try this. Pick something they built or decided. Ask them why.

The answer should be simple. “We chose this approach because it is faster to iterate on” or “this is more reliable at the scale you are likely to hit in the next 12 months.” If the answer is five minutes of technical terminology, either they do not understand it themselves, or they are not trying to help you understand it.

You are the founder. You need to be able to make decisions. That requires understanding the tradeoffs, even at a high level. A developer who keeps you in the dark, intentionally or not, is making your job harder.

A final thought

None of this requires you to read code. It requires you to pay attention, ask questions, and trust your instincts when something feels off.

The relationship between a founder and a developer is a working partnership. If it feels like a transaction where you pay, they build, and you hope for the best, something is already wrong.

If you are unsure about the team you have, or looking to hire and want to know what to look for, I am happy to take a look. Book a free 30-minute call and we can work through it together.