When evaluating potential candidates for an iOS developer position, it’s crucial to prioritize the following essential skills. Possessing these capabilities ensures that the candidate can proficiently design and develop functional iOS mobile apps tailored for Apple devices and macOS computers, aligning seamlessly with your business objectives.
iOS developer technical skills to look out for:
Swift 3.0
Swift 3.0 stands as an intuitive, versatile, and multiparadigm open-source programming language crafted by Apple, specifically tailored for native iOS and macOS development. Proficiency in Swift 3.0 is crucial, as lacking this proficiency suggests that the iOS developer candidate may not fully harness the language’s capabilities.
At a minimum, an adept iOS programmer should possess a solid understanding or substantial experience in the following areas:
- Basic syntax
- Switch statements
- Control flow
- Inheritance, classes, and initialization
- Error handling
- SwiftUI
These foundational elements ensure that the developer is equipped to navigate the intricacies of Swift 3.0 and apply its features effectively in developing robust and efficient applications for the iOS and macOS platforms.
Xcode IDE
The Xcode IDE, short for Integrated Development Environment, stands out as a crucial skill for any iOS developer you’re considering for hire.
An IDE encompasses a suite of tools and programming essentials designed for automation, debugging, programming, interpretation, and compiling, streamlining the software and mobile app creation process. Its comprehensive resources simplify both the development and deployment phases, benefiting both newly developed applications and existing ones.
The incorporation of Xcode IDE not only enhances the overall user experience, but also contributes to the efficiency of iOS app development. It plays a pivotal role in reducing development time and costs. When searching for iOS developers to add to your team, prioritize those with Xcode IDE in their skill set, ensuring a seamless and proficient development process.
Objective-C
Objective-C stands as a versatile and object-oriented programming language extensively utilized in developing iOS software solutions. As a superset of the C programming language, it not only inherits C’s capabilities, but also offers a dynamic runtime environment. Despite the prevalence of Swift in iOS app development, a significant portion of documentation remains in Objective-C.
Compared to Swift, mastering Objective-C may seem a bit more daunting due to its syntax intricacies. Nevertheless, understanding this language holds paramount importance, considering that a majority, if not all, of today’s iOS applications, rely on its runtime for the development of apps across iPhones and iPads.
Core Data
Core Data serves as a framework that streamlines the development of data-driven applications by simplifying the management of model objects and their relationships. This framework alleviates developers from the routine tasks associated with object life cycle and graph management.
By leveraging Core Data, iOS developers significantly reduce the volume of code required to support the model layer, contributing to more efficient and concise application development. Core Data facilitates the storage of application data for offline use, enables the caching of temporary data, and seamlessly incorporates undo functionality within an app on a single device.
Moreover, Core Data extends its capabilities to synchronize data across multiple devices within a single iCloud account. It automatically mirrors the schema to a CloudKit container during synchronization, ensuring a consistent and synchronized experience for users.
For companies aiming to create customer-centric applications, it is imperative to hire iOS developer well-versed in utilizing Core Data. Their proficiency in harnessing the capabilities of Core Data can significantly enhance the development process and contribute to the creation of robust and user-friendly applications.
Experience in memory management
For iPhones and iPads, this memory is called RAM, and it’s used to temporarily store data. The system decides how much of this memory each task or app gets, and it can change dynamically. Because iOS devices don’t have unlimited memory, it’s really important to manage it well.
Apps are given a specific limit on how much memory they can use. If they use more than that limit, they might start running slower, and in some cases, they may even crash.
For a senior iOS developer, understanding that if an app uses too much memory, it can stop working is crucial. They need to know how to handle memory properly to ensure the app runs smoothly without any issues.
Skilled in source control
Source control is a vital system management strategy employed to monitor changes in the source code, playing a crucial role in app development. This technique is instrumental in averting conflicts among developers collaborating on the same application. iOS developers with practical experience in source control are adept at fostering collaboration and optimizing the iOS development workflow. When seeking iPhone app developers, prioritize those with proven skills in team management and collaboration.
Experience in unit testing
A unit test serves as a function that assesses the app’s functionality. Effective unit tests are concise, swift, and self-contained, focusing on evaluating a single aspect independently. For instance, in the scenario of developing a calculator app with a new feature for computing total activity time, a unit test would scrutinize this specific functionality. Running such tests immediately after implementing code changes is crucial to promptly identify any issues.
To ensure the accuracy and functionality of the app, hire remote iOS developers who are well-versed in these essential testing skills. Their proficiency in conducting thorough unit tests helps guarantee the reliability and robustness of the application.
Grand Central Dispatch
iOS applications carry out numerous tasks concurrently, such as retrieving data from the network, presenting information on the screen, and responding to touch inputs. These simultaneous operations can exert considerable pressure on the device’s hardware.
Grand Central Dispatch (GCD) is employed within the iOS ecosystem to incorporate concurrency and parallelism into the operating system, enabling the execution of resource-intensive computing tasks in the background without compromising the user experience.
It is imperative to engage iOS developers who possess proficiency in GCD to mitigate the risk of crashes and guarantee optimal performance. Hiring developers skilled in utilizing GCD ensures the efficient management of concurrent tasks, contributing to a smoother and more responsive user experience.
UI/UX design experience
Both UI (User Interface) and UX (User Experience) play pivotal roles in app design. While UI focuses on visual presentation, UX encompasses aspects such as navigation, branding, and usability. When seeking iOS developers, prioritize those with a solid understanding of design concepts to ensure the creation of visually appealing and user-friendly applications. Opting for developers with this design acumen is key to achieving attractive and well-designed iOS applications.
Knowledge of storyboards
These storyboards offer a visual representation, aiding in envisioning the layout and navigation of your application’s user interface. Utilizing storyboards is highly recommended, as they provide a comprehensive overview of your app’s behavior and appearance.
While technical skills are crucial factors when companies seek to hire remote iOS developers, it’s equally vital to consider soft skills. Hiring a competent and imaginative iOS developer necessitates consideration of both technical expertise and softer skills, ensuring a well-rounded and creative addition to the team.
Here’s a table outlining the skills of iOS developers at different experience levels:
Skills | Junior iOS Developer | Mid-Level iOS Developer | Senior iOS Developer |
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Core iOS Skills | | | |
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Understanding of Swift and iOS development basics | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Proficiency in Swift and advanced iOS development concepts | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Knowledge of UIKit, Foundation | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Experience with CoreData, Core Animation | No | Yes | Yes |
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Familiarity with RESTful APIs | No | Yes | Yes |
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Experience with architectural patterns (MVVM, VIPER) | No | No | Yes |
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Performance optimization skills | No | No | Yes |
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Code review and mentoring capabilities | No | No | Yes |
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TypeScript and JavaScript Skills | | | |
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Proficiency in Swift | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Understanding of functional programming principles | No | Yes | Yes |
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Front-end Web Development Skills | | | |
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Knowledge of HTML and CSS | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Understanding of responsive design | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Back-end Web Development Skills | | | |
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Familiarity with RESTful APIs | No | Yes | Yes |
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Other Skills | | | |
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Familiarity with Git and version control | Yes | Yes | Yes |
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Experience with testing frameworks | No | Yes | Yes |
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