Ten Android App Developer Skills to Consider When Hiring
Smartphones have permanently altered our access to services and information by placing them at our fingertips. They are present in virtually every facet of our life. As Android apps seamlessly link people around the globe and enable users to participate in increasingly creative and engaging activities, the global need for Android app developers is rising.
The creation of Android applications demands a comprehensive grasp of programming and design. To design and launch effective apps, a seasoned Android app developer must understand several related ideas’ complexities.
This article highlights the top ten Android developer talents that hiring managers should seek. But before we go into these abilities, let’s examine Android application development and the duties of Android application developers.
Let’s get started.
Android app development entails what?
Android, an open-source platform for smartphones and tablets, is generating significant buzz in the mobile industry. Android is a Google-developed platform based on the Linux kernel. Android has been the most popular operating system in the past decade. Android now serves more users than any other mobile operating system (4 billion in 2023).
The Android Wear operating system may access the open platform with various smartphones, tablets, and wearables. Today, all organizations and brands require creative Android applications to expand their reach, popularity, and innovation.
Some versions of Android include innovations or modifications throughout time. These versions include:
• Android 1.0 and 1.1
• Android 1.5: Cupcake
• Android 1.6 is Donut; Android 2.0 to 2.1 is Éclair
• Android 2.2 is Froyo
• Android 2.3 is Gingerbread
• Android 3.0 to 3.2 is Honeycomb
• Android 4.0 is Ice Cream Sandwich
• Android 4.1 to 4.3 are Jelly Bean
• Android 4.4 is KitKat
• Android 5.0 and 5.1 are Lollipop
• Android 6.0 is Marshmallow
• Android versions 7.0 and 7.1: Nougat
• Android version 8.0 and 8.1: Oreo
• Android version 9: Pie
• Android version 10
• Android version 11
• Android version 12 (latest version)
Android development is the process of planning, building, and delivering mobile apps using the Android Development Kit or Android Software Development Kit (SDK) in Android Studio.
Android apps have traditionally been created in the Java programming language, a crucial part of the Android application ecosystem. However, they may also be developed using Google’s relatively new programming language Kotlin. The Android Software Development Kit (SDK) may create Android applications in Kotlin, Java, and C ++. Other languages are also available.
Android app developers’ responsibilities
Android developers have various duties, including app development, debugging, and deployment. They must consider several factors to make their applications more intuitive and user-friendly.
Therefore, before beginning the recruiting process, recruiters must be aware of the obligations of Android app developers. Which includes:
• Design and build innovative Android applications.
• Utilize Github, which allows developers to collaborate quickly, download new software versions, make modifications, and post the most recent version.
• Design, build, and deploy new application features in collaboration with cross-functional teams.
• Analyze and comprehend the operation of databases (MySQL, MongoDB).
• Implement external data sources and APIs (application programming interfaces).
• Locate and troubleshoot application issues in new and current software.
• Identify, analyze, and constantly integrate novel application performance-enhancing technology.
Skills to seek while recruiting Android application developers:
You must assess many Android app development talents to recruit the most qualified workers. Therefore, developers may implement them at the optimal time and location to deliver the most significant user experience possible.
Here are the top ten abilities required by Android application developers:
Android basics
Understanding the principles is an essential ability. Kotlin and Java are the most often utilized languages for developing Android applications. These languages can be used individually or in combination to create Android applications.
Therefore, Android app developers must have programming expertise with either Java or Kotlin and a solid grasp of their fundamental principles. In addition, a thorough comprehension of the collection architecture, concurrency, and multithreading would be an asset. You must also be familiar with the following Java fundamentals:
• Knowledge of the most recent version: Currently, Java 8 is more popular (up to 54.6%) than Java 7 (40.8%) and Java 6 (4.6%). Therefore, developers must have a thorough comprehension of Java 8.
• Experience with the syntax: Knowing the most recent version is just as important as learning the precise syntax. Syntax is a collection of rules regulating the creation and interpretation of Java applications. Therefore, the developer must have a firm grasp of the syntax.
• Expertise with the newest Java structures: By knowing the fundamentals of program structure, developers may create Android applications more quickly and with fewer mistakes.
Due to the similarities between Java and Kotlin, the functions mentioned above are the same in both languages. Therefore, developers must have a firm grasp of the fundamental ideas in order to construct programs efficiently.
Integrating interactivity
The interaction between users and Android applications should be a top priority since it considerably enhances the user experience. Users can benefit significantly from appropriate motions such as drag-and-drop, keyboard usage, and pan-and-zoom in the proper location. These are small details, yet they may substantially enhance the user experience. Activity is the Android component responsible for the majority of this user interaction.
Consequently, while analyzing Android app developer talents, check that they understand how to make an app interactive to improve its usability and provide a fantastic user experience.
Android User Interface (UI)
An application is incomplete and doomed to fail if it lacks a modern user interface, even if it includes outstanding and valuable functionality. Most app users nowadays need intuitive, interactive, and responsive applications. Consequently, the need for intuitive UX and UI is increasing. According to research, more than half of app users rate apps based on their initial impressions.
In today’s industry, developers must have a solid grasp of Android app design needs and customer preferences. Every Android developer must adhere to a few fundamental standards to create applications that adhere to material design principles. These include creating lists and grids using Recycler View, developing complicated layouts with Constraint Layout, adding animations to enhance the user experience, utilizing suitable menus, and employing vector drawable instead of raster images.
Implementing navigation
The interactions that allow users to travel across, into, and out of displays or content inside a mobile application constitute UI navigation. Various features, such as toolbars and tab bars, can be utilized for user interface navigation.
The most fundamental is the application bar, sometimes known as the toolbar. You may add pop-up menus, menu icons, and navigation bar icons on the taskbar. This navigation bar symbol allows you to open and shut the navigation bar, which is another part of exemplary navigation implementation. Using the navigation bar, you may add menu items that assist you trade pieces and other activities connected to the current action.
Bottom Navigation View is an additional navigation element that allows you to navigate between fragments inside the same activity by utilizing the tabs at the bottom of the screen. Select View Pager if you need to switch fragments (different pages) using the tabs attached to the toolbar.
User intent is the most crucial factor in developing effective Android app navigation. An intent enables users to share information and initiate new actions inside the same app or transition to a different app. Developers of Android must choose whether to build an explicit or implicit purpose.
Therefore, implementing navigation in an Android application is an essential skill.
Android Testing
The ultimate objective of developing and launching a mobile application is to grow its user base. Your team’s efforts will only be helpful if the app is reliable, scalable, and user-friendly. Before launching an Android app on the market, it is essential to do thorough testing.
Always remember, while developing an Android application, users can perform different activities, such as tapping the Submit button or downloading information to their phones.
Consequently, before evaluating Android developer abilities, you must ensure that the developer understands how to test various use cases and interactions to guarantee that the app performs as expected. Expresso, Junit, Mockito, Robolectrio, and UI Automator are the most often used testing libraries for Android apps.
Cross-platform software engineering
Cross-platform mobile application development is the process of creating applications that are compatible with many platforms. This indicates that the same code or programming language is utilized to develop apps compatible with several platforms. Mobile apps should be created and built to operate flawlessly on all smart devices without causing the users any difficulty.
With this functionality, Android developers can concurrently design apps for various platforms, publish them to numerous app stores, and reach their audiences on Android, iOS, and Windows more quickly. In addition, with cross-platform app development, there is just one code to concentrate on. This implies simple bug correction, fewer tests, and straightforward deployment.
Consequently, before assessing an Android developer, confirm that the developer can create apps compatible with the three major mobile operating systems: Windows, iOS, and Android.
Database engineering
Mobile app databases are collections of structured data created to fulfil the needs of mobile apps. Database management systems are controlled, modified, and updated (DBMS).
You must engage an Android app developer who can access and edit the app database using Structured Query Language (SQL). Databases are necessary for the creation of mobile applications for a variety of different reasons, including the capacity to manage massive amounts of data and privacy restrictions.
• Dependable – Application databases contain extremely reliable data since the DBMS checking mechanism highlights problems that must be rectified.
• Safe – Application databases offer protection against theft and hacking. Multiple user logins are accessible in a database management system (DBMS), and any new user must be approved before gaining access to the database.
• Simple updates — DBMS comprises DML (Data Manipulation Languages). These languages facilitate the updating of application databases.
• Accessibility – DBMS’s Data Query Languages or DQL allow developers to search an app’s database in a few seconds.
API integration
API is a set of tools and protocols that enables software programs to connect. APIs are the backbone of a mobile application strategy. They are required to transform enormous volumes of data into a mobile-friendly format. API integration is one of the most critical Android app development abilities.
Almost every mobile app, including social networking and financial apps, leverages APIs. API administration has become a vital role for businesses that wish to make their data accessible to a more significant number of individuals and encourage more interaction.
APIs are a quick way to extend an enterprise’s reach beyond its present constraints since they provide simple integration and speedy delivery. By combining their assets with those of partners and distributing them through the proper mobile applications, businesses may expand their reach to mobile customers.
You must employ an Android app developer familiar with API and third-party services to enable smooth integration and a positive user experience.
Android safety
Android incorporates security technologies that aid in preventing application security concerns. Android developers must preserve their users’ privacy by obtaining permissions when necessary and transferring data securely using signature-based permissions (and other permission options). Similarly, content suppliers must carefully consider the app’s entire security approach.
Knowledge of integrating security is an essential Android app development talent for securing the application and preventing data breaches, which is key to the success of your program.
Git: Version control system
Even the finest programmers occasionally struggle to monitor the modifications made to a project manually. And working in a team of developers exacerbates the issue. Version control solutions can assist in resolving this issue by giving app developers an intuitive interface for modifying their code. Git is the most popular, feature-rich, and publicly accessible project management solution.
Git provides several capabilities for Android app development, including virtual team collaboration via branching and merging, undoing code changes that have caused bugs or performance degradation, and pull requests that facilitate code reviews.
Therefore, it is an essential ability to consider when you hire Android app developers. It enables mobile app developers to experiment with the newest features, coding techniques, and program updates without affecting the existing versions.
Last thoughts
Even if there are more criteria that recruiters must examine before hiring Android or mobile app developers, evaluating Android developer abilities remains a significant component of the recruiting process. Every business, from healthcare to marketing, must develop specialized mobile applications. Thus, it is no longer a secret that the need for mobile app developers is rising. It has become imperative to analyze Android developer talents before engaging them for your project.
It is challenging to find skilled developers, especially those who share your vision and try to make it a reality. And 10Pearls focuses on supplying businesses with experienced Android developers.
10Pearls is an AI-based platform for deep jobs that enables businesses to assemble their excellent engineering staff in 3-5 days. 10Pearls offers Android developers whose technical and non-technical skill on every level has been pre-evaluated to meet standards.