Hiring a Programmer who cant communicate back to me in detail what they'll do?

I have quit using freelance sites altogether. I used to hire out for complex code I didn't want to (couldn't) write, as well as for large amounts of content writers. I find that in the end, the impersonality of the freelance industry and the competition of them makes it a very dangerous game.

While you see excellent feedback scores and history, I see the creation of fake accounts, laundered money, and shoddy scams in waiting. I now hire out locally (and on here) for my content*, and if its code I can't code then I take it up to my neighborhood engineering complex (I live by Kansas State University) and pick up a college kid in their lab to do it for $50.

All that being said, I seem to remember you were looking for advice on how to progress with the UI of a program. Things to look for are his portfolio (if the site has them) and history for your specific needs. If you are having the UI made in C#, look to see if that person has done an actual UI in C# (most of the titles in their history make it generally easy to match jobs).

If any of their previous employers left comments, don't just read them but feel free to follow up on them. Try and contact the previous job hirers and see if they really did match up the design with the finished product, regardless of their English skills.

The problem, as I see it, is that you can get extremely cheap labor from other countries that have great schools that put out extremely bright people that can do awesome stuff. But those same bright people at those great schools should have learned English well enough to at least communicate in the area of expertise they are attempting to work in, if that is where they are marketing their skills. Otherwise they already went into their field half-assed, because learning to drive and getting a license means nothing if you can't get a car to drive.

If someone is that great, but isn't trying to go the extra length to 'get a car' (ie, Google Translate several times if nothing else) you should be wary of what you will end up with. In no way should this be construed as an attack on freelancers (because 1 out of 10 are great!), or people who don't speak English (because most people who speak English as their first language can't speak English), or people who can't afford a car (They can always learn to hot wire!), but rather as a very long way to say: You get what you pay for. At least make sure he's the most expensive guy that can't understand your job :p

Lol, thanks for your reply..

Yea, I hear you....

Trust me bro, when I hire a freelancer now, it's like buying a house.... If it's a serious project, i'll go weeks untill I find someone that feels 1000% right...


I dont just look at their feedback history.. I look at how many people paid for their services, as well as how many reviews the employers had... So, if you have someone with 20 to 30 feedbacks, and all those feedback givers (employers) have hired on 5 to 10 different jobs each, that's almost impossible to fake. Too much time and energy to be worth it...

All that, backed up by extremely detailed description, and escrowing funds...

I think I'll be ok..


Like you said, it's like a crap shoot almost sometimes... I diligently screen the contractor until I feel like it's a marraige.. I'd have to feel as comfortable with them as I would a future wife, before I "tie the knot".


And I will take to your advice... Because, I mean, jeez.. If you cant even tell me what you're doing, how can I know for a fact you understand what you're doing? Makes sense.

yeah the freelance world is becoming overwhelmed with alot of potential employees which is slightly concerning for us freelancers who are real, legit and willing to do what needs to be done to get the job right...

my advice to you is to state exactly what you are looking for, theres nothing stopping you from writing at the top of your advertisement, "must command a high level of the written and spoken english language, that'll kill your problem easy enough.

I wouldnt work with anyone I couldnt communicate with, its hard enough staying on track when discussing coding terms, if you have to deal with language barriers as well your going to create a whole bunch of headaches for yourself and the freelancer

If he cannot communicate it back to you there is no way to be sure he knows what it is you want done. Then if its not what you expected it will cause a ton more issues then it is worth.

Excellent points, I have had to do this more than once, if they cannot tell you how they intend to complete the project, then the chances are very good, that they are not capable of completing the project, (what is likely happening is that you are talking to a broker, a sales person that is usually skilled in the art of persuading you to spend more money, they in turn subcontract your job out to someone else)

The most difficult problem in this situation is that if they do not understand what you want how can they tell someone else what you want, the answer is that they cannot.

I have been outsourcing projects since the late 1990s, finding the right person for the job can be a real difficult thing, the level of service at many of these freelancer websites has gone way down over the last six months, even Odesk is starting to suck,

I spend a lot of time communicating, in order to find out if they understand what I want, sometimes, after even one hour of emailing, and I think Finally they have it, and then Bam, its right back to the beginning.

Sometimes you feel like giving up, and sometimes a project ends up in flames, but if you can get one project out of three to come out right, your way ahead of the playing curve.

Effective Communication is the key...