Abstract
Today big tech companies understand the value of offering a technical career path and supporting employees to choose those instead of the classical management career. However, when I started, more than 20 years ago, this path was not yet visible in the career jungle. Knowing my strengths and what made me happy, I pursued and successfully managed to have a solid technical career, becoming a well known expert in my field.
In this session, I would like to share a few lessons I learnt in this journey, discussing what you can do to advance in a technical career based on real world experience. I'll show how you can be a lifelong software developer, having your technical expertise valued by the industry and the role you will play in mentoring the next generation.
Topics
QCon London 2023 is a three day conference for senior software engineers, architects and team leads. An international program committee of working engineers selects every session. Patterns and practices, not products and pitches.
Part of the track
Staff+ Engineering in Practice Hosted by Fabiane Nardon Data Expert, Java Champion & Data Platform Director @totvsFrom the same track
Monday 27 March
10:35 Whittle (3rd Fl.) Session staff+ Staff+ Engineering Beyond Big Techs: How to Succeed in the Technical Path on Non Tech Companies Loiane Groner Director of Engineering @BNY, Java Champion, Google Developer Expert in Angular, Microsoft MVP, Oracle ACE, Published Author As a software engineer with over 15 years of experience, you witness the constant evolution of technology and the impact it has on businesses and industries. 11:50 Whittle (3rd Fl.) Session psychological safety Psychological Safety for Staff+ Engineers Jitesh Gosai Principal Tester @BBC Psychological safety is fundamental for successful teams as it allows people to take risks and feel confident that no one on the team would embarrass or punish anyone else for admitting mistakes, asking questions or offering new ideas. 13:40 Fleming (3rd Fl.) Session staff+ Why Technical Experience Matters: How To Build a Lifelong Career in Software Development Sven Reimers System Engineer @Airbus Defence & Space Today big tech companies understand the value of offering a technical career path and supporting employees to choose those instead of the classical management career. However, when I started, more than 20 years ago, this path was not yet visible in the career jungle. 14:55 Windsor (5th Fl.) Session staff+ Panel: Staff+ Engineering in Practice Sven Reimers, Loiane Groner, Jitesh Gosai, Erin Schnabel What are the skills you need to develop if you want to stay on the technical track to technical lead, staff, or principal? What will it take to thrive in this type of role? 16:10 Whittle (3rd Fl.) Session staff+ You Can Go Your Own Way: Navigating Your Own Career Path Erin Schnabel Distinguished Engineer @RedHat Career paths seem obvious at the beginning: start your job, climb the ladder, retire. When we apply this pattern to a technical career, however, that general pattern raises some questions: Do I have to become an architect or a manager to make it to the next level? Do I have to stop coding? 17:25 Rutherford (4th Fl.) Unconference Unconference: Staff+ Engineering in Practice Shane Hastie Global Delivery Lead @SoftEd, Lead Editor for Culture & Methods @InfoQ What is an unconference? An unconference is a participant-driven meeting. Attendees come together, bringing their challenges and relying on the experience and know-how of their peers for solutions.