I'm a senior developer, and my best developer got hired because she obviously knew how to get things done. Having the ability to program was a requirement, but we actually made room in our budget for an additional programmer because it was so obvious she was going to do a good job because of her attitude and other skills.

Had she applied at the same time as everyone else (she was a week later, IIRC) she would have gotten the job instead of the other person, and we wouldn't have made room in the budget for anyone.