How To Hire Hackers: A Realistic Guide For Startups

I disagree with your '2nd class devs' comment. Being a developer is not a calling. It's possible for anyone with sound mind and logic to sit down and contribute to a company should they have the will to make rent. That may sound depressing and unfair to the folks who are putting in 90 hours a week but that's reality.

I don't agree that hometown or relocating developers are second rate. You only get a second rate developer when you settle for one.

The problem is that ONLY considering local and soon-to-be-local developers makes things more difficult for your company to hire. Maybe the developers in your region are happy with their jobs, or they don't have the particular skillset that you need.

Relocating devs are just as hard, since you are competing with other companies that are also willing to spend lavishly on developer relocation and salary. Plus the developer has to weigh in the cost of upending their lives to be near your company. This is thousands of dollars of investment before they even walk in the door, even for a young single 20 something developer, and family members will only multiply that number.

Remote work is an enormously untapped resource that it's silly not to seriously consider it. Not only will you open yourself up to entire populations of developers, but you might even get a better deal salary and benefits wise if you allow them to live where they want. $80k goes much further in other parts of the country than in the Bay or NY, giving you a competitive advantage both in attracting devs and keeping them happy. Think how much you can save on office space if everybody already works from their own home offices?

Of course, there is the persistant fear of keeping devs working, but you should be giving any new dev (and old, for that matter) a set of goals and expectations to be met. However this isn't any different than a local employee in your office anyway. If a new dev doesn't work out, then fire him an move to another more qualified candidate. The most you will be out is the salary during the prohibitionary period.

Remote work isn't as scary as it seems if both parties understand the expectations and prepare themselves accordingly.

I personally avoid any listing which labels developers as such.

Agreed. Its an extension of the Dunning-Kruger Effect. People who truly are good at programming, don't see themselves as 'rock stars'. Its only the shitty developers who would call themselves 'rock stars'.

Especially if they use those terms to describe themself.

Its a code word for young. Does anybody disagree with this?

How do I know if I am a 'ninja' or a 'rock star'? Is it one of those "If you have to ask, you aren't" things?

Do people really call themselves those things? "I'm a rock star developer. I'm a ninja."

Hacker, ok. There's nothing boastful about that term. You could be a really low-skilled but interested hacker.