A young developer who feels comfortable enough to be an entrepreneur who would better understand your business problematics
Characteristics
Short Term Costs
Low but Not Mastered Same as for Junior Dev.
Proof of Concept
Medium Same as for Junior Dev. But they would be more autonomous and might be used to create new projects from scratch. Contrarily to employees, freelancers have to take the initiative to regularly learn new skills. They might be more adaptable than other developers.
Long term costs
High and Not Mastered Same as for Junior Dev.
Risk
High More than for a Junior Dev. A freelancer will more easily be tempted to leave your ship in the middle of a tempest. Especially if the situation is no more satisfying for them (tight budget / hard deadlines / etc..). You will have greater risks to have them head hunted for another project.
Future proof
Weak Same as for Junior Dev.
Ability to pivot
Weak Same as for Junior Dev. Provided they accept to follow you on the pivot.
Reassuring for investors
Weak Less than for a Junior Dev.
Ease to find
Easy
Supplementary Informations
ℹ️ Once a developer has tasted the freelancing world. Chances are that they would never accept a full-time job anymore.
Keep in mind the differences between a freelancer Vs an employee on your management strategy.
Warnings
⚠️ Expect that if this freelancer is not motivated enough to continue on your adventure.
They might leave for another more profitable (or less risky) project. You would then struggle to find another developer accepting the full responsibility of your project. Even if your project has passed the “Ramen Profitable” threshold and you would be able to pay them more. You might lose some precious opportunities. Some projects die too early because of that.
⚠️ Expect that they might be reluctant to continue on the project and maintain it after the Version 1.
A project with bad foundation is hard to maintain and not enjoyable. It will cost you a lot. Therefore you will feel the need to put more pressure on your freelancer. It can then become simpler for a junior freelancer to accept a new project. Expect to negotiate a raise.
Red Flags
🚩 Red flag if your junior CTO wants to use an exotic technology.
You want a technology widely used to simplify the recruitment process. Developers are already scarce. It would be risky to use a technology very few developers are using.
🚩 Red flag if your junior CTO wants to use a technology they have no track record with.
Some just want to add keywords on their resume. A more experienced developer could adapt quickly. But it would be costly/risky to pay someone to learn a new technology. Consequently having the foundations not built by someone experienced enough. Some projects die because of this.