I have always been fascinated by how web developers think.
They seem to exist in a parallel dimension where acronyms rule the land, keyboards are an extension of the self, and caffeine is consumed in such industrial quantities that entire rainforests must surely exist just to fuel their endeavours.
But one of the more curious aspects of web development teams is the age mix—or, in some cases, the lack thereof.
The tech world, you see, has a well-documented obsession with youth. Somewhere along the way, a peculiar idea took root: that the ability to write good code is inextricably linked to having the metabolism of a hummingbird and the ability to exist on four hours of sleep. Consequently, there are teams out there where the most senior person has yet to experience the quiet horror of finding a grey hair.
And that is a great shame. Because an age-diverse team is, in fact, a marvellous thing. Here’s why.
First, experience is an invaluable asset. A developer who has been around since the days when the internet made weird screeching noises every time you connected has seen things. They have endured trends that came and went (and sometimes came back again), witnessed technologies rise and fall, and survived countless office debates about the merits of tabs versus spaces. They know, through bitter experience, that the hottest new framework is likely to be replaced by something else next Tuesday. They are, in short, a steadying hand on the wheel.
On the other side of the spectrum, younger developers bring a kind of fearless enthusiasm. They charge into new technologies with the kind of excitement that is both terrifying and essential. They have no memory of the times before broadband, when downloading a single song took longer than an entire Olympic Games. They are unburdened by nostalgia and, as a result, tend to push forward with wild abandon.
Now, imagine the magic that happens when you put these forces together. The seasoned veterans prevent the young upstarts from accidentally rewriting the entire codebase in a brand-new, untested language just because they saw someone tweet about it. The younger developers, meanwhile, ensure that the elders don’t accidentally reject every new idea just because things were “better back in the day.” It is a symbiotic relationship of the highest order.
Of course, there are challenges. The older developers may find themselves baffled by the younger ones’ use of words like “vibe” and “low-key.” The younger ones may, in turn, struggle to understand why their elders insist on printing things out before meetings, or why they use email when there are at least seventeen faster alternatives. But these are minor hurdles, easily overcome by mutual respect and the occasional team lunch.
And so, if you ever find yourself assembling a web development team, do try to avoid the mistake of filling it entirely with people who could pass for university flatmates. A good team, like a good whisky, benefits greatly from a bit of ageing and depth. After all, when the server crashes at 3 a.m., you’ll want someone who’s been through it before—and someone young enough to still have the energy to fix it.
And that, my friends, is the beauty of a mixed-age team.