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How to hire an application development senior specialist

Application development senior specialist hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring application development senior specialists in the United States:

  • HR departments typically spend 15% of their expenses on recruitment.
  • It usually takes about 12 weeks for a new employee to reach full productivity levels.
  • It typically takes 36-42 days to fill a job opening.
  • The median cost to hire an application development senior specialist is $1,633.
  • Small businesses spend an average of $1,105 per application development senior specialist on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
  • There are currently 9,944 application development senior specialists in the US and 150,529 job openings.
  • Chicago, IL, has the highest demand for application development senior specialists, with 4 job openings.
  • Chicago, IL has the highest concentration of application development senior specialists.

How to hire an application development senior specialist, step by step

To hire an application development senior specialist, you should create an ideal candidate profile, determine a budget, and post and promote your job. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a application development senior specialist:

Here's a step-by-step application development senior specialist hiring guide:

  • Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
  • Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
  • Step 3: Make a budget
  • Step 4: Write an application development senior specialist job description
  • Step 5: Post your job
  • Step 6: Interview candidates
  • Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new application development senior specialist
  • Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist
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  1. Identify your hiring needs

    The application development senior specialist hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    An application development senior specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, application development senior specialists from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

    This list presents application development senior specialist salaries for various positions.

    Type of Application Development Senior SpecialistDescriptionHourly rate
    Application Development Senior SpecialistSoftware developers are the creative minds behind computer programs. Some develop the applications that allow people to do specific tasks on a computer or another device... Show more$41-61
    Lead ArchitectA lead architect spearheads architectural operations while maintaining an active communication line with clients. They typically meet with clients to discuss the project's needs and specifications, agree on a budget, provide advice and recommendations, and negotiate contracts... Show more$37-66
    Team Lead And DeveloperA team lead and developer is a person who handles a group of employees in a particular section, geared to accomplish daily specific goals. The team lead and developer ensures that the team works cohesively and efficiently to achieve its goals... Show more$23-73
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Java
    • Application Development
    • JavaScript
    • API
    • Web Application
    • CSS3
    • JSON
    • Web Services
    • JQuery
    • CSS
    • SQL Server
    • C Net
    • PL/SQL
    • J2EE
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Design and manage the LDAP database which, are used by the various applications in the OpenLoop platform for authentication.
    • Perform regression testing using a custom Java application to execute test claims against deploy web services and compare results.
    • Produce complex PL/SQL packages from well-construct cursors or subroutines.
    • Create shell scripts for these Java processes and update the scripts as per requirements.
    • Assist in installation/regression testing of upgrade release of software and rehost to upgrade version of UNIX.
    • Used the ETL to bridge, transform and aggregate corporate data to the data warehouse's central repository.
    More application development senior specialist duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your application development senior specialist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. An application development senior specialist salary can vary based on several factors:
    • Location. For example, application development senior specialists' average salary in south dakota is 33% less than in california.
    • Seniority. Entry-level application development senior specialists earn 31% less than senior-level application development senior specialists.
    • Certifications. An application development senior specialist with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
    • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in an application development senior specialist's salary.

    Average application development senior specialist salary

    $105,266yearly

    $50.61 hourly rate

    Entry-level application development senior specialist salary
    $87,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 13, 2025

    Average application development senior specialist salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1California$127,993$62
    2Arizona$120,992$58
    3New York$119,827$58
    4New Jersey$117,266$56
    5Texas$109,893$53
    6North Carolina$109,049$52
    7Georgia$107,868$52
    8Florida$107,789$52
    9Washington$105,190$51
    10Connecticut$103,857$50
    11Delaware$103,605$50
    12Virginia$102,315$49
    13Pennsylvania$101,834$49
    14Wisconsin$101,098$49
    15Missouri$98,911$48
    16Tennessee$98,819$48
    17Michigan$98,502$47
    18Massachusetts$98,444$47
    19Illinois$97,938$47
    20Minnesota$96,139$46

    Average application development senior specialist salary by company

    RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rateJob openings
    1Citi$134,894$64.8536
    2Citicorp North America, Inc$130,253$62.62
    3Prudential Bank$109,908$52.844
    4QuintilesIMS$108,994$52.4010
    5Adecco$107,815$51.8312
    6Healthspring, Inc.$106,902$51.40
    7Nestlé$106,723$51.3128
    8Hollister Incorporated$104,741$50.361
    9Marsh & McLennan Companies$103,969$49.99140
    10LYCRA brand$103,951$49.98
    11TMG Enterprises, Inc.$103,802$49.90
    12*n/a*$103,748$49.881
    13NewQuest, LLC$103,687$49.85
    14Strategic Staffing Solutions$103,264$49.651
    15Cigna$102,995$49.5212
    16Xavient Information Systems$102,830$49.44
    17HCSC$101,478$48.79
    18Dell$99,416$47.80
    19Deloitte$98,399$47.31564
    20EZEN Computer Services$96,199$46.251
  4. Writing an application development senior specialist job description

    An application development senior specialist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of an application development senior specialist job description:

    Application development senior specialist job description example

    Our Cloud Engineering team focuses on enabling our client's end-to-end journey from On-Premise to Cloud, with opportunities in the areas of: Cloud Strategy & Transformation, Cloud Native & Application Development, API's & Integration, Cloud Migration, Platforms & Infrastructure, and Cloud Managed Services. We help our clients see the transformational capabilities of Cloud as an opportunity for business enablement and competitive advantage.

    Cloud Engineering supports our clients as they improve agility and resilience and identifies opportunities to reduce IT operations spend through automation by enabling Cloud. We accelerate our clients towards a technology-driven future, leveraging vendor solutions and Deloitte-developed software products, tools, and accelerators.

    Deloitte is an industry leader in our client's Digital transformations. We recognize that the backbone enabling our client's highest aspirations for analytics and cognitive solutions is next-gen Cloud infrastructure. From cloud consulting, to implementation, and ongoing managed services we offer a full scope of Cloud services and solutions. We want talent who is ready to innovate cloud services and empower our clients to leap frog forward in their technical capabilities. Building your career at Deloitte offers the opportunity to work with cutting-edge Cloud technologies to deliver next-Gen Cloud solutions. We embrace the tech pioneer mindset and always enable our talent to keep their skills evolving at the speed at which the technology marketplace is evolving.

    Cloud has transformed the way technology enables the business. It represents a radical shift in how IT services are obtained, used, and managed. Companies are navigating through the various cloud options and deciding between private, public, or a combination across different and dynamic provider ecosystems. Our employees are empowered to think outside of the box and provide innovative solutions to our customers.

    Work you'll do:The Azure Developer will be a key member of our project software development teams with responsibility across analysis, design, development, test and deployment phases of the software development lifecycle targeting the Microsoft Azure platform.
    Main Responsibilities:

    + Supports solution architects in problem analysis and solution design, advising teams on appropriate Azure service selection.

    + Designs & develops solution artifacts per technical and functional requirements.

    + Contributes key input to agile sprint cycles and quality reviews.

    + Creates test plans and scripts as required â€" unit, integration, system test.

    + Performs codebase maintenance and quality checks.

    + Originates and maintains solution documentation.

    + Supports the configuration, deployment and execution of CI/CD pipelines in alignment with SDLC methodologies.

    + Contributes to practice development through consistent Azure platform learning.

    + Capture and share best-practice knowledge amongst the public cloud solutions architect community.

    Essential Experience & Qualifications Required:

    + Expert knowledge of foundational application related Azure services â€" containerized compute, storage, identity and access management, integration, mobile & web.

    + 5+ years experience and deep expertise in the Software Development Lifecycle as applied to Azure service deployments including cross cutting concerns such as exception handling, logging and monitoring, DBPaaS, access & identity implementation.

    + Deep expertise in at least one programming language relevant to Azure application development, preferably C#.NET; JAVA considered.

    + Expert knowledge of agile development practices and associated disciplines such as CI/CD, Git, Kanban.

    + Solid working knowledge of SQL and associated database concepts.

    + AZ-900 Fundamentals certification.

    + Ability to travel up to 50%, based on the work you do and the clients and industries/sectors you serve

    Preferred Experience & Skills:

    + Specialty Azure development skills and associated services & languages â€" Python, R, Scala.

    + Additional Azure certifications (Associate, Expert, Specialty)

    + Additional certification across other platforms like AWS and GCP Developer (Associate or Professional level) certification etc.

    + Working knowledge of data modeling, analytics, data mining and machine learning

    + Web development skills JavaScript, Angular, React JS

    Sponsorship:

    + Limited immigration sponsorship may be available.

    All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or protected veteran status, or any other legally protected basis, in accordance with applicable law.
  5. Post your job

    There are a few common ways to find application development senior specialists for your business:

    • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
    • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
    • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.
    To find application development senior specialist candidates, you can consider the following options:
    • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
    • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as dice, engineering.com, stack overflow, it job pro.
    • Post your job on free job posting websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    To successfully recruit application development senior specialists, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

    It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

    Sometimes, it's not enough to interview application development senior specialist candidates, so you can ask them to do a test project. If you are not a technical person and don't know what a test project should be, you can use these websites:

    • TestDome
    • CodeSignal
    • Testlify
    • BarRaiser
    • Coderbyte

    The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new application development senior specialist

    Once you have selected a candidate for the application development senior specialist position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

    It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

    Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new application development senior specialist. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

  8. Go through the hiring process checklist

    • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
    • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
    • Define job responsibilities and requirements
    • Establish budget and timeline
    • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
    • Write job description
    • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
    • Promote the job internally
    • Process applications through applicant tracking system
    • Review resumes and cover letters
    • Shortlist candidates for screening
    • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
    • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
    • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
    • Conduct background checks on top candidates
    • Check references of top candidates
    • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
    • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
    • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
    • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
    • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
    • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire an application development senior specialist?

Hiring an application development senior specialist comes with both the one-time cost per hire and ongoing costs. The cost of recruiting application development senior specialists involves promoting the job and spending time conducting interviews. Ongoing costs include employee salary, training, benefits, insurance, and equipment. It is essential to consider the cost of application development senior specialist recruiting as well the ongoing costs of maintaining the new employee.

The median annual salary for application development senior specialists is $105,266 in the US. However, the cost of application development senior specialist hiring can vary a lot depending on location. Additionally, hiring an application development senior specialist for contract work or on a per-project basis typically costs between $41 and $61 an hour.

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