You can master tools like Postman and GitHub, stack your resume with certifications, and still get passed over for job opportunities. With 63% of workers reporting wasted time due to communication issues, technical proficiency alone won’t cut it for devs seeking API career opportunities. What actually sets candidates apart is how they work with others, especially in remote work environments where open roles are even more competitive.
We asked three Postman product leaders: Noah Schwartz (API Network), Jean Yang (Observability), and Rodric Rabbah (Flows) what separates standout collaborators from developers who just know how to use collaboration tools.
What hiring managers actually value
When candidates applying for open positions have similar technical experience, hiring managers dig deeper. They’re really evaluating how well someone will function on a team.
Curiosity and adaptability
The API landscape changes rapidly, making the ability to learn even more valuable than current knowledge. “Are they interested in learning new things? This matters for everyone, regardless of skill level,” says Noah. “Change is constant, so you need to always be learning.”
Ownership and ambiguity
Remote API teams face constant uncertainty about requirements and implementation approaches. “If someone can’t deal with ambiguity, it’s hard for them to own the solution, which means they can’t really own the outcomes,” Noah explains. The best developers don’t just complete tasks. They take responsibility for the result, even when there’s no clear playbook.
Impact awareness
Technical implementation is only part of the story. “I look for engineers to be able to explain what they worked on, why they worked on it, and the ultimate impact to the customer and business,” says Jean. Candidates who can’t speak to that are often missing the bigger picture.
Agency and coachability
Hiring managers expect everyone to have room for growth, and they prioritize candidates who actively seek and apply feedback. “I almost never look for skill with a specific technology or stack. My expectation is that you can learn and adapt,” says Rodric. “Being coachable, open-minded, and curious can mitigate most functional risks," adds Noah.
Why brilliant developers get rejected
Even strong engineers get turned away when they lack certain non-technical traits. Hiring managers called out a few red flags that signal deeper issues, especially in remote, async teams.
Closed-mindedness
“We make decisions all day. In my opinion, the smartest people are the ones who change their minds the most because it means they’re forming new opinions based on new information,” says Noah. In API development, requirements change, new information emerges, and the best solutions often come from reconsidering initial assumptions. When someone refuses to rethink their assumptions or consider new input, it’s a sign they won’t adapt when the work inevitably shifts.
Lack of self-reflection
“I always ask candidates about disagreements with colleagues and how they got resolved. You can tell a lot by how a person tells a story about a conflict they were in,” explains Noah. Strong candidates can talk openly about what went wrong and what they’d do differently next time.
Lack of agency
Remote API teams need people who can make progress independently and keep projects moving forward. “Do they need to be told what to do?” asks Rodric. “Do they look for permission before getting things done?” When candidates can’t define what success looks like, it signals that they’ll struggle with the autonomous decision-making that async collaboration requires. “How do they think about and define winning?” Rodric asks. “If they can’t answer that, they’ll struggle to align with team goals.”
Soft skills matter, even in technical interviews
Every hiring manager we spoke with said they’ve hired people with less technical experience because their collaboration skills made them stronger teammates. “You can teach and train for skill gaps, but these traits are far harder to change,” explains Rodric. Jean adds, “It’s easier to learn a technology than it is to change your personality.”
That doesn’t mean technical depth doesn’t matter, but it’s a minimum bar, not a differentiator. Collaborating effectively with team members makes a tremendous impact: a Deloitte study found that employees who collaborate work 15% faster, and 73% do better work.
Where collaboration breaks down in remote API teams
Communication can be more of a bottleneck than code quality issues in async API teams. The biggest collaboration mistakes in async environments often come down to what’s not said.
“Async environments involve over-communicating,” says Jean. This means writing clear notes, documenting decisions, and making next steps obvious, especially when teammates are spread across time zones and demographics. Time zone coordination requires compromise and creativity from everyone involved. Jean recalls an example of a team member who delayed an important conversation for weeks by refusing to bend their schedule. In async collaboration, occasional flexibility is part of the job.
Great collaborators “look around corners,” meaning they explain the why behind changes, flag downstream impacts, and share relevant metrics to reduce back-and-forth. “When something takes too long async, it’s because one or more of the people aren’t thinking critically about what the other person needs to hear,” explains Noah.
Work habits that make you stand out
Understanding what not to do is only the beginning. Hiring managers also look for specific behaviors that show you’re ready to contribute immediately. Standout collaborators demonstrate growth over time by absorbing feedback and applying it quickly. “Everybody has stuff we’re working on,” says Jean. “The more someone can improve based on feedback, the faster they’ll contribute more as a team member.”
They also make intentional tradeoffs rather than defaulting to either perfectionism or speed. “I like it when people care about the details,” says Noah, “but I like to see people consider the tradeoffs and make intentional decisions.” That means balancing detail with delivery, shipping value early, and explaining your reasoning clearly.
Finally, hiring managers value people who can navigate the product, culture, and collaboration style they’re stepping into. “Tech changes often,” says Rodric. “I look for hires that can survive the particular product and team they’re hired into.” Technical skills may get you in the door, but adaptability determines whether or not you’ll thrive.
The bottom line: Tools are easy, mindsets aren’t
With software developer job listings down 35% from pre-pandemic levels according to Federal Reserve data, the competition for full-time career opportunities has only intensified. Collaboration skills have become even more critical as a differentiator in a tighter market. Teams need developers who can adapt, communicate, and make smart decisions in uncertain environments.
API careers continue growing as organizations adopt API-first strategies and integrate AI systems that depend on robust APIs. But the developers who will thrive in this expanding market are those who combine technical competence with the collaboration skills that make remote, async teams successful.
If you want to stand out, don’t just show what you’ve built. Show how you worked with others through setbacks and toward something bigger than the code.
Rate yourself on these three traits: ownership, impact, and growth mindset. Which one will you focus on next? Share your biggest collaboration challenge in the comments.