Lessons from a Startup: Tech Stack Choices, Development Experience, and Team Management

Background – In June 2022 the author joined a tiny startup with a non‑technical founder who wanted a fast, low‑cost Android + iOS app to launch quickly, but the company later faced cash flow problems and eventually dissolved.

Initial technology selection – With only a fresh front‑end developer and a UI designer, the team chose a stack based on the author’s front‑end and Node.js experience: uni-app for cross‑platform app development, egg.js + MySQL for the backend (later migratable to midway.js ), and antd‑vue for the admin console to keep the front‑end stack unified.

App development options – The author compared pure native iOS/Android, Flutter, and React‑Native/Taro‑like solutions, concluding that uni-app offered the best balance of familiarity, speed, and multi‑platform compatibility for the team’s skill set.

Why egg.js for the backend – Although Java, PHP, or Go would be more robust, the founder demanded the cheapest solution; egg.js met functional needs, was easy to learn for JavaScript developers, and allowed rapid delivery.

Mid‑project turbulence – After an initial successful release, the founder repeatedly brought in unrelated experts, demanded UI redesigns, and considered hiring native and Java developers despite no clear justification, leading to constant scope changes and morale issues.

Later technical adjustments – The team refined the app packaging, introduced midway.js for new services while leveraging existing egg.js expertise, created internal npm packages, and standardized code and development processes.

Hiring and team management – Recruiting for a small startup proved difficult; the chosen stack allowed developers with solid JavaScript skills to handle both front‑end and back‑end tasks, reducing resource waste. The author recommends a full‑stack approach, clear coding standards, disciplined workflow (product evaluation → task allocation → technical assessment → development → testing → code review → release → monitoring), measurable performance metrics, knowledge sharing, and timely communication.

Final advice – Choose a reliable founder, focus on revenue generation, prioritize core business problems over tooling, maintain transparent communication, and treat each experience as a learning opportunity.