Have you ever wondered to yourself how you can get into the tech industry? Or how can you maximize your developer potential? Here is what our Senior Developer and Software Engineer Lead Raven Duran has to say about what it’s like being in the tech industry and his advice on how to grow as a developer, coming from his own start as an entrepreneur to coincidentally becoming a Senior Full stack developer today.
Prior to joining Symph, he was a former Software Engineer at Microsoft Bizspark for Startups, a Tech consultant for various organizations, and a technopreneur who founded a startup, which he described the journey as “ a roller coaster — but a very fun one!”.
What is being a senior developer and lead engineer like?
As a lead engineer in Symph, what makes his day exciting is the daily fresh challenges and learnings.
“This is what excites me the most, going on for the day’s work and getting thrilled about what I can learn next and what I can build next to make the world a better place in my own way.”
This work is an honor for him, as he works with people who are also building the future. He mentions that being a senior developer does not only mean you have the highest number of certificates, codes produced or even being in the industry the longest.
“I see being a Senior Dev as becoming mature, responsible, and taking full ownership of what you are working on. Putting that extra mile effort in development decisions and work. Putting the extra mile effort to learn things outside of your scope”
Raven with one of our full stack developers Sean in a bi-weekly checkin.
As a junior developer, how can you grow as a mid-level and senior-level developer?
“By taking ownership. What this means is taking your job with full responsibility in and out of tech requirements. This means having a higher-level understanding of what you are doing and why you are doing it in the first place. This means becoming not just a developer but a solution maker.
Being a developer, we sometimes blur the lines between technology/engineering vs business domains and needs - becoming senior means being able to connect the dots between the both by understanding both equally. Here in Symph, we encourage our team to take ownership and have the autonomy to make decisions.
Being a senior developer does not always mean you have the highest number of certificates, or you have the highest number of codes produced, or you have the highest number of years in the industry. I see being a Senior Dev as becoming mature, responsible, and taking full ownership of what you are working on. Putting that extra mile effort in development decisions and work. Putting the extra mile effort to learn things outside of your scope.”
Raven facilitating a learning club with full stack developers and interns.
When it comes to his personal aspirations, it is to Love, Change and Hack (which is our Symph Ethos). He shares “This is what I have been doing already in almost all the years of my career so far. From building products to becoming a tech consultant, to volunteering and organizing multiple developer activities - I love to make an impact, especially in the way I am most passionate about: technology.”
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Here at Symph you’ll be working with people with vision, skill and passion like Raven, our Engineering Lead and Senior Dev. We’re constantly looking for awesome mid-level and senior-level full stack developers to join us and create impact!
Story by Venny, Copywriting Intern :)
