Judge Without Being a Developer - A non-technical guide for founders, PMs, and team leaders

Let’s be honest:

if you don’t know how to code, assessing a developer’s skills is hard. Painfully hard.

But not impossible.

Whether you’re building a startup, hiring for a small project, or assembling a technical team as a non-technical founder, there are still practical ways to evaluate a developer's ability—without writing a single line of code yourself.

Here’s a no-fluff guide for non-developers on how to cross-validate developer talent in smart, structured, and confidence-building ways.

1. Ask a Developer Friend to Help—But Be Specific

Think of it like buying a used car.
You’d probably take a mechanic friend with you, right?

In the same way, a technically savvy friend can help you spot red flags, verify claims, and offer insights you might miss. But don’t just say,

“Hey, is this person good?”

Instead, guide them with targeted prompts:

• “Can you ask them what role they played in this project?”

• “Can you dig into how they solved a specific problem?”

• “Did they demonstrate ownership or just follow instructions?”

The goal is not just thumbs up or down—it's context: ownership, depth, thought process.

A friend’s insight can be your best filter—if you ask the right questions.

2. Review Their GitHub (with AI’s Help)

GitHub is a goldmine for understanding how someone codes.
You don’t need to read the code yourself—you can ask tools (like ChatGPT or GitHub Copilot) to help review it.

• What to look for:

• - Code readability – Is the code clean, structured, and well-documented?

• - Activity history – Are they active contributors or occasional tinkerers?

• - Pull Requests & Issues – Do they collaborate, comment, and resolve problems?

• - Project ownership – Did they initiate projects or just contribute minor changes?

You can prompt AI with:

“Analyze this GitHub repo for clarity, best practices, and collaboration history.”

This gives you a surprisingly good overview, even if you don’t understand the code yourself.

3. Evaluate Their Adaptability to New Tech

Tech changes fast. A good developer stays curious.

Ask questions that reveal how they respond to evolving tools and frameworks:

• “What’s the last new technology you learned or adopted?”

• “How do you approach learning something entirely new?”

• “Have you ever replaced an old tool or method with a better one?”

You’re looking for flexibility, not perfection.

A dev who embraces learning is much more valuable than one who’s stuck in legacy comfort zones.

4. Ask: What Do You Do When You’re Not Busy?

Not every dev moment is full of sprint tickets and emergencies. What someone does with downtime reveals a lot.

You can ask:

• “When you finish your tasks early, how do you use the extra time?”

• “Do you ever refactor, optimize, or improve parts of the codebase?”

• “Do you explore new tools or experiment with side projects?”

A strong developer often uses quiet time to:

• - Improve system architecture

• - Optimize performance

• - Clean up tech debt

• - Learn something new

If they treat “free time” as growth time—you’ve found someone special.

5. Try a Mini Project Together

Sometimes the best way to know someone’s skills is to build something together—on a small scale.

Design a 2-week task that’s:

• - Focused (e.g., building a login page, API integration, or feature prototype)

• - Practical (something you might actually use)

• - Open to iteration (see how they refine it)

Watch how they:

• - Understand the problem

• - Communicate during the process

• - Solve edge cases

• - Ask questions and suggest improvements

• - Deliver and explain the result

It’s not about the complexity—it’s about the process.

A mini project gives you real-time data on how they work—not just what they say in interviews.

Final Thoughts: You Don't Need to Code, But You Do Need to Care

Hiring developers as a non-coder is tough—but not impossible.
It requires being thoughtful, prepared, and willing to ask the right questions.

You don’t need to become technical overnight.
You just need to be curious, specific, and systematic.

And remember—at the end of the day, you’re not just hiring code.
You’re hiring someone who can solve problems, communicate clearly, and grow with your product.

So yes, it’s hard. But yes—you can do it.