i would really appreciate if i can get advice/tips and what to do from people who have been in my shoes/position before. I'm working on a start up and just bringing together a team of people, there's this new java programmer that wants to join us and seems to be very smart and versatile in programming more than i am, and also older than i am. I would really appreciate any advice, perhaps from people who have had to work with intelligent developers, in their team. Thanks
JorgeM 966
If you create a clear project plan outlining roles, responsibilities, and schedules, it shouldn't matter who on the team is smarter than who. Everyone on your team needs to know exactly what is expected of them. If you proceed "ad hoc", I can almost guarantee the project not meeting deadlines and costs exceeding what you are anticipating.
chrishea 182
You want to hire the best people you can find and that could result in having many people who are technically stronger than you are. If you are used to being the leader of the pack based on being the best developer, that may make you pretty uncomfortable. Strong technical people may not provide a lot of respect to others above them in the chain in the command that they consider to be their technical inferiors (at least initially). People are usually not good at everything so it is usually a case of complementary skills between the manager and the employee. The manager / team leader (in this case you) needs to bring strong people and process skills to the table. Strong technical people are often weaker in these areas. You need to be smart enough and wise enough to know when the technical people need to be challenged on what they are doing and when they should be left alone to get it done.
I've been in that situation and it isn't easy. If your skills are more technical than managerial, the issue won't be so much the people you are hiring as your ability to rise to the demanads of the managerial position. Getting some management training and having an experienced manager that you can go to for advice will probably help.
