Career-changing while the norm is remote? Totally possible!
Saw an article going around about companies being reluctant to hire Junior developers since, under the current pandemic circumstances, the whole onboarding and training process would have to be done remotely. They believe it to be tricky to onboard someone new while not in the same room.
The author also posts the question: the need for developers is bigger than ever and Juniors seem to struggle entering the market — how to help fix this gap while remote remains the norm?
Here’s where my two cents come in: I’ve gone through a career change right in the middle of corona. From doing a coding bootcamp, to jobhunting and onboarding, the whole process has been remote, yet here I am, about to complete my first 6 months working as a developer.
I would like to share some thoughts and what tools made doing this jump fully behind a screen smoother.
My bootcamp education was all done from home: we were supposed to have some monthly IRL code alongs, but even those had to be remote instead. Alas, even my graduation ceremony was done via Zoom!
Coming from a Restaurant background, this was a big adaptation process (adaptation being the key word here). I had to go from working face to face with my kitchen colleagues, to do everything behind a screen, not only the coding and learning, but even the socializing bit.
This brings me to my first and probably most important recommendation: Get comfortable with the “remote stack”. I mean the whole bunch: Zoom, Google Meets, Slack, Whereby, Microsoft Teams, Discord… and become a PRO at sharing your screen in every single one of these platforms.
I remember joking with my brother while preparing for interviews: “Why don’t companies just pick the one Video Call platform to rule them all?”. Every interview I had was on a different platform, so I took the time to get familiar with it before the interview. Do test calls with a friend, check how to share your screen, know the tool before the time to use it comes.
Bootcamp done: the job-hunt starts.
The interview cycle for me went like this: first interview was usually with Talent Acquisition (Human Resources). I would get a link to an online meeting room and a short brief about what this meeting would be about.
Sure, nothing beats face to face first impression, but I remember having some super pleasant conversations where I felt being behind a screen did not prevent my personality from coming through.
Important point here as well: try and get comfortable being on camera. In my experience, having your webcam on was rarely mandatory, but talking to someone remotely and at least being able to see their face makes a world of a difference.
Again, have test calls with close friends or family members you feel comfortable with. I had group calls with my siblings just to get used to Microsoft Teams, they would give me tips on how to blur out my background, etc.
A platform I really like is Whereby, it’s free and you’ll get your own room. I remember using it for test runs before interview calls to check that everything was in place and the lighting in the room looked okay.
Second in the interview cycle came the Technical tests. I can see why companies would think that especially this step can be tricky, but no worries, screen-sharing tech has your back!
I did live coding tests and also interviews where we would discuss a project I’d built before. On both of these cases, two remote skills are key: screen sharing, which I mentioned before, and knowing how to technically explain yourself.
Learn how to talk code: study the right terminology and practice explaining your though process; recruiters are evaluating your problem-solving skills.
This definitely counts for IRL situations as well, but when on a remote environment, it becomes even more valuable. Clear wording and communication is key: probably easier when doing a video call, but if you need to explain yourself by writing an email or message, you must be as clear as it can get.
Set up some test meetings with peers and have a go at explaining a project or solving a problem together, you’ll notice that the more you do it, the better you become at making tech talk smoother and clearer.
Landed the job, yay! Moving on to the onboarding part. Luckily I could do my first week from the office and get my setup working, but the rest of the process has all been remote.
Key skill comes into play: Pair-programming becomes so vital.
A Junior needs some time to watch and learn before being able to work on their own. I was assigned a mentor, with whom I was pair-programming for a couple of weeks before I started taking tasks on my own.
Having a mentor is incredibly helpful and the way to go: the opportunity to look at how the team finds their way around the project, what conventions they are following and keep the discussion and thought process open, helped me get familiar with how they work so I can do the same when by myself.
This was all achieved via Slack: calls and screen-sharing, sometimes we would be on call almost the whole day.
On a lighter note: companies worry about culture. Get creative and don’t give up on hosting some remote after works, they are a good way to keep the connection going. We have Scribble everyday and I was even given a VR headset to join company Friday breakfasts and conferences in virtual reality.
I truly hope companies are not discouraged to hire Juniors only because they’re hesitant to bring them in remotely. If there’s anyone eager to learn and adapt, that’s a Junior.
Take the time to adapt the onboarding so it can be done remotely: with the collaboration tools we have nowadays, it is definitely possible.
I haven’t met around 90% of my colleagues and most of them I only know as a VR avatar, but by following some of the practices I mentioned above I do feel part of the team and that my work matters.
Nevertheless, I super look forward to the moment when I can shake hands with everyone. Wonder if the avatars will match the real person, huh?~
