Hiring Only Senior Engineers Is Killing Companies Author: Andrew Churchill Date: September 2025 --- Main Idea The article argues that companies focusing solely on hiring senior engineers are missing out on a large pool of highly capable junior engineers. With the rise of AI tools, juniors can onboard faster and become productive quicker than traditionally believed. Smart companies can gain a competitive edge by hiring juniors, rather than constantly competing for expensive senior engineers. --- Key Insights Why Companies Avoid Juniors Small startups: Claim no time for mentoring juniors; need productivity from day one. Medium companies: Need engineers with experience handling rapid growth and scale. Large companies: Infrastructure complexity makes ramp-up long for juniors. This leads to many graduates struggling to find jobs, while experienced hires command premium salaries, though their productivity gains over juniors aren’t always clear-cut. What Companies Miss Old onboarding assumptions: Juniors, especially AI-savvy ones, can ramp up more quickly using AI tools for understanding code and generating code. Outdated interviews: Traditional tech interviews focus on algorithm memorization, now less relevant with AI assistance. Recruitment blind spots: Companies tend to recruit from the same pools and miss motivated juniors (e.g., applicants to Y Combinator who didn't get in). Benefits of Hiring Juniors No ingrained biases: Juniors are not stuck in习惯 or legacy ways, making them easier to train on new approaches. Fast learners: Eager for feedback and improvement. Loyalty: Junior engineers trained in-depth tend to stay longer and eventually mentor others. High potential: Juniors have a higher growth ceiling versus seniors who are mid-career or later. Fresh energy: Motivated juniors can invigorate teams and inspire existing seniors. Important Note The article doesn’t argue to forgo senior hires; seniors are still necessary for mentorship, code review, and tackling complex challenges. --- Recommended Hiring Process for Juniors (5 Steps) Filter for mindset: Discuss projects in-depth to gauge curiosity and passion. Avoid those who are defensive or lack deep understanding. Home assignment (with AI allowed): Small realistic coding challenge with freedom to use tools like AI. Follow-up 30-minute interview to dive into design decisions and understanding. Problem solving without AI: ~40-minute interview on system design, architecture, reasoning trade-offs. Tests fundamental engineer thinking beyond using AI. Live implementation with AI: 20-minute live coding showcasing how candidates work with AI tools, prompting, and iteration. Evaluate AI strategy: Candidates explain workflow when to use AI vs manual coding. Look for balance: not over-reliant on AI but comfortable leveraging it. --- Post-Hire Success Tips Invest in mentoring: Provide time, pairing, structured learning for juniors; AI is not a complete substitute for human mentorship. Be patient: Juniors need proper time to learn company-specific systems despite being AI-native. Measure right metrics: Track ramp-up speed, retention, blockers. Use benchmarks for objective evaluation. Communicate frequently: Ask juniors about their experience, listen to suggestions, and provide encouragement. Start small: Hire a few juniors first to refine the process before scaling. --- Why This is Critical Today Avoiding juniors means missing out on AI-native engineers who learn faster and adapt well. The inefficiency in the market won’t last; companies like Shopify are already heavily investing in interns, seeing great value. Companies that master hiring and developing juniors will build stronger, more