At some point in the not-too-distant future, a software developer who has been coding their way up the ranks will have to make a major career decision, advises recruiting experts Hays.
Do they continue on the technical path or do they shift their focus to managing technical people instead?
“For some software developers faced with this decision the answer may be obvious, but for others it will be the hardest career decision they will ever make” says Adam Shapley, Managing Director of Hays Information Technology.
“Figuring out where your skills lie and what you actually enjoy doing will help you choose what the most suitable career path is for you.”
Hays shares the following tips to help you decide which road to take:
1. Assess where you true skills lie
Regardless of which career path you take, a solid technical foundation is essential. But, ask yourself this – are you a good people person who just happens to have technical skills or are you a tech wiz who acknowledges there are aspects of the business that will inevitably draw you away from your computer?
Figuring out what you’re truly good at is the best way to begin charting the next steps in your career path.
2. Evaluate how important coding is to you
When considering your options, reflect on how important coding really is to you. If you’re happiest spending your days coding and always on the look-out for the next big development trend, then you may want to focus on the technical path. In a managerial position, you’ll have far less time to actually write code – so think about whether or not your heart lies in coding. If it does, this could be a deal breaker for you.
3. Consider your long-term career goals
When you’re trying to decide between a technical or management career path, don’t forget to also look at your long-term career ambitions. Do you have your sights set on one day becoming a CIO or do you aspire to be the most senior technical expert in your field? Knowing where you want to be in the long-term will help you work backwards to determine the right career track for you.
If you see yourself in an executive leadership role in the future, you’ll likely need some prior experience managing others. Alternatively, if you see your future in a head engineer role, you may want to focus on projects that will boost and broaden your technical skills.
4. Validate your decision
Once you have completed your career analysis, take steps to validate your decision to ensure it’s the right one for you:
- Join an online community: The Workplace Stack Exchange is a community for developers to learn, share their knowledge and build their careers. Members can ask for career advice from other developers or share their experiences in navigating the workforce.
- Connect at a meet-up: This will give you the opportunity to talk with other engineers to find out how they decided which career path to take.
- Find yourself a mentor: Choose someone you feel sure you can learn from who has followed a career path you would like to emulate. They can be either within your organisation or someone from your wider professional network.