How To Hire Blockchain Developers Remotely: Questions To Ask

1. What is Blockchain? Explain it along with its key
features.

Why ask the question:
This question will help you understand the candidate’s knowledge about
blockchain technology in general and how well they are familiar with the
key features.

Answer:
The candidate needs to explain here that blockchain is a decentralized
digital ledger technology that can be programmed to hold transactional
records or blocks
which are linked together using cryptography. Thus, it is completely
secure with a high focus on transparency.

Blockchain technology comes with a lot of features, and some of the
most significant ones include –

• Security
  – Using Blockchain technology comes with exceptional security
• Decentralized
  – None of the centralized entities or authorities has any control
  over the blockchain 
• Minting
  – Blockchain technology offers coin minting by various methods
• Immutability
  – The data once written in blockchain cannot be altered or
  changed
• Cost-effectiveness
  – The absence of any third party makes blockchain technology
  effective as well as affordable

2. Why does a Blockchain need tokens to operate?

Why ask the question:
This question helps you test the candidate’s experience in collaborating
on blockchain development projects and also their knowledge of token
space or ICO development.

Answer:
The key objective of coins/tokens is to implement changes between
states. When a user does a transaction, this is considered as a change
of state. However, the coins or tokens are moved from one address to
another.

Technically speaking, a blockchain doesn’t need coins or tokens for its
essential operations. However, in their absence, some other way is
required to manage states of the chain and to verify transactions.

3. Explain the concept of mining in the context of
blockchain.

Why ask the question:
The question helps you demonstrate the extent of the developer’s
knowledge and experience in blockchain development, as well as their
ability to collaborate.

Answer:
Mining in blockchain refers to the process of reaching consensus in
blockchain networks. Therefore, the key purpose of mining is to –

• Create new coins in a generated block
• Include transactions in a distributed ledger by giving proof of work
  that the generated block is valid

4. Which are the types of records that can be stored in a
Blockchain? 

Why ask the question:
You can evaluate and assess the developer’s expertise of how blockchain
technology works. In addition to that, ensure that the one you are
hiring for your company is the best blockchain developer out
there.

Answer:
The blockchain supports different types of data and records across
industries. Irrespective of the size and type of your business.
Therefore, if you have supply chain management running in your business,
you can use blockchain technology to store extensive data.

Among the type of records that blockchain supports include –

• Transaction records
• Medical records
• Supply chain management records
• Employee records
• Other documentation

5. Explain the different types of Blockchain. 

Why ask the question:
One of the key expertise you need to look for in blockchain developers
is a broad understanding of blockchain technology and its different
types. The question above allows you to assess this.  

Answer:
Blockchains can be mainly divided into 4 types –

a) Public Blockchain – Public blockchains are the ones that work in an open ecosystem
where anyone can join and make such transactions.

b) Private Blockchain
– Unlike a public blockchain, a private blockchain works in a closed
ecosystem where you require permission to join it and make
transactions. 

c) Consortium Blockchain
– Consortium blockchains are semi-decentralized.

d) Hybrid
– As the name suggests, hybrid blockchains are a combination of public
and private blockchains. 

6. How does the process of encrypting transactions and blocks work in
Bitcoin implementation?

Why ask the question:
Whether the developer has any background experience in encrypting
transactions and blocks is one of the many essentials to search for when
you look to hire blockchain developers remotely, and the above question
helps you assess this.

Answer:
In the case of Bitcoin blocks, every block is public and is not
encrypted in any way. In this case, preventing modifications and
ensuring data integrity is based on a value called the block hash.

During bitcoin implementation, the block content is processed using a
special hash function called SHA256
and the resulting value is included in the blockchain.

7. What do you know about trapdoor function, and why is it needed in
Blockchain Development?

Why ask the question:
Ask this question to a potential blockchain developer to assess their
previous work with blockchain development and make sure that the
developer you employ has the competence you need for your task.

Answer:
Required for public-key encryption, the trapdoor function is commonly
used in blockchain development to represent the ideas of addresses and
private keys.

It primarily refers to a unique function in the blockchain development
function that is easy to compute in one direction. However, it is
difficult to compute in the opposite direction without special
information.

8. Is there any network-specific condition that organizations require
for the use of blockchain technology?

Why ask the question:
The question will help to hire blockchain developers remotely and
evaluate the developer’s knowledge of available resources and their
experience in blockchain development projects.

Answer:
No, there is no such specific condition on using blockchain technology
in an organization. However, the network required should be a
peer-to-peer network under the defined protocols. 

9. What are some of the business benefits of blockchain?

Why ask the question:
It allows you to know if the developer has strong analytical skills and
the ability to work with large codebases.

Answer:
Among the key benefits of blockchain to businesses include –

• Organizations get the benefit of a consolidated dataset with fewer
  errors and great flexibility with the consensus mechanism of
  blockchain. 
• Since the contracts being executed on business networks using
  blockchain technologies are automated. Businesses benefit from
  reduced costs, better speed of execution, and much lesser
  risk.
• Blockchain technologies result in  enhanced trust and integrity in
  the flow of transaction information among the participating
  members.

10. What is Cryptography and what is its main goal?

Why ask the question:
You can ask this question to assess the candidate’s knowledge of
blockchain cryptography and protocols, along with their ability to
ensure secure digital transactions and protect user identities.

Answer:
Cryptography refers to a set of methods used to ensure the
confidentiality of information. The key objective of cryptography is to
protect your data from changes/any kind of unauthorized access during
storage and to seamlessly transfer it from a sender to a
recipient.

Cryptography ensures the maintenance of a strict hierarchy in the block
of chains. Thus maintaining the authenticity of all records and their
protection against unauthorized changes.