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Advice for building a career in Software and DevOps

Advice For Dev Ops And Software

Article posted by Mandy Kettle

Uniting Cloud asked a host of leaders and senior professionals across the Cloud space what their top tips are for succeeding in Software and DevOps. We've compiled some of the highlights below in an effort to support and inspire our wonderful community.


First up, Google is your friend. All the information is out there to fill the skills gaps you have. Your ability to use Google to find the right answer and ingest the information will define your career in IT from the first day until you're the CTO/CIO. 

Second up, keep checking you like what you're doing. If you don't, change. If you like what you're doing, you'll be interested to learn more of it, you'll perform exceptionally, you'll impress those around you and you'll climb the ladder fast.

CTO

Communication, empathy and patience are far more valuable skills for your overall career than adding a new certification or learning the latest tech. 

Be open to the idea that you might be wrong. 

Having a general idea of where you want to go is really useful. An over detailed plan won't be helpful because life isn't like that, but knowing what you want helps decide what trade-offs you are happy with. 

Some of the best places to work feel like families. Some of the worst places to work exploit that feeling to exploit you. It can be hard to tell the difference. 

Don't work a job that makes you miserable, no matter the prestige of the job or the company. It's fine to do things you find difficult and to work harder than you should for a short period of time, but don't let systemic problems become your personal problems. 

Head of Software

Focus on what you know you like: be it code, security, cloud, data. It is easier to get started when you are genuinely engaged in the subject matter.

CTO

Be fussy. Find a business that fully understands and values the importance of IT in delivering its successes.

Work hard, always. Set your own bar, then raise it. There are still so many clichés and biases working against IT in all levels of business. Break them wherever and whenever you can by hard work, dedication and continuous improvement.

Never be afraid to ask for help. This career path can be insular, but someone around you will have faced your struggles and overcome them. Talk, compare notes, share knowledge. Collaboration is king.

Good coffee is important.

Finally though, don't be afraid to walk away and start again if something doesn't quite fit. Your skillset is adaptable and transferable to almost any business or sector in the world. Find one that fits you.

IT Manager

Sometimes, you are the wrong person, at the wrong time, in the wrong team and when that happens it isn't your fault. At other times you will be the right person in the right team at the right time and again that isn't your fault.

If something doesn't work out, learn from it. Be honest with yourself, identify what was wrong and think about what you need to do to be better next time.

Cloud Architect