David Heinemeier Hansson Says He Looks for 2 Key Things When Hiring

A cover letter might not be your top priority if you’re preparing an application for a job in tech — but perhaps it should be.

That’s especially true if your hiring manager happens to be David Heinemeier Hansson, the creator of Ruby on Rails, a well-known framework for building web applications, and the CTO at software firm 37signals.

In a lengthy six-hour interview with podcaster Lex Fridman published Saturday, the exec shared the two key things he looks for when hiring new computer programmers.

“Up until this point, the main pivot point for getting hired was not your résumé, was not the schooling you’ve had, it was not your grades, it was not your pedigree,” Hansson, who is also known as DHH, said, adding that AI could now change things.

It was about how well you do two things: your cover letter and programming, he continued.

“I can only work with people remotely if they’re good writers,” he told Fridman. “If you can’t pen a proper cover letter and can’t bother to put in the effort to write it specifically for us, you’re out.”

He also said you had to be able to program well.

“To the degree that I can look at your code and go like, ‘Yeah, I want to work with that person.’ Not only do I want to work with that person, I want to work on that person’s code when I have to see it again in five years to fix some damn bug.”

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Hansson said that applicants would have to show their skills through a programming test that “simulates the way we work for real.”

“I’ve been surprised time and again where I thought for sure this candidate is a shoo-in, they sound just right, the CV is just right, and then you see the code getting turned in and I’m like, ‘No way. No way are we hiring this person,'” he said. “The capacity to evaluate work product is a superpower when it comes to hiring.”

Writing cover letters has long been a necessary evil for job candidates. Often regarded as time-consuming and repetitive, many are also put off by rumors that hiring managers simply don’t read them.

But even for jobs that don’t specifically ask for one, studies suggest cover letters are still an important part of the application process.

In 2023, a Resume Genius survey of 625 hiring managers across the US found that 83% said they frequently or always read cover letters. And 73% of managers at companies that did not require cover letters also said they frequently read them.

For applicants to the tech industry, the key to a successful cover letter is conveying experience with relevant technology and providing a snapshot of what you’d bring to the specific company, Thomas Vick, a senior regional director at the talent firm Robert Half, previously told Business Insider.

“What return on investment have you created for an organization?” Vick said. “What have you done in your career that has helped save a company time, energy, and money?”