A good programmer, or good at programming?

When I was a programmer, I worked with a developer who had perfect command of the language: clean code, well-chosen design patterns. In short, he was very good at programming.

But there was a “but”:

• he produced many bugs in production;
• he did little analysis;
• he refused to write any documentation;
• his attitude was borderline acceptable.

Competence is broader than technique

Being good at programming isn’t enough to be competent. Competence demands much more: people skills, a real desire to do things well, and the willingness to work as a team.

A good programmer combines technical mastery with analysis, communication, rigor and collaboration. It’s that combination — not raw technical talent alone — that makes the difference in a team.