The field of software development is one that boasts rapid iteration. Releasing new software on a yearly basis is now expected (and in some cases, too slow). One of the drawbacks of the massive pace of development is the constantly shifting goalposts. Because knowledge is compounding in nature, future software engineers may have to learn (and do) more than is currently necessary in order to break into the tech industry.

There is growing sentiment that developers need to worry less about their portfolio and more about the quality of their knowledge, as well as the nature and impact of any project they choose to take on in an attempt to break into the tech industry. It's not enough to build something and store it in your repository, actual users have to interact with the application in order to show value.

While this growing sentiment can be a huge letdown for aspiring developers, there is an opportunity to leverage the power of collaboration in rapidly learning things that are useful in the market aside from software development. Working on a project(s) you plan to deploy to the greater internet will eventually require you to collaborate with others and learn teamwork and communication skills.

Also, by participating in live projects, you will most likely end up learning a thing or two about the business of technology (something most developers don't really think about as we mostly obsess over the science of technology). To drive home my point, I'll be using a personal case study.

The Quote That Triggered A Change Of Mindset

Inclusion in technology has become a widely discussed topic, with several proofs online that technology can be biased; ranging from websites that require your surname to be a minimum number of characters during registration (thus restricting people of Asian origin with shorter surnames from leveraging these platforms), to taps that discriminate against black people, to AI that is also discriminatory.

It has become clear that technology needs to have people from diverse backgrounds involved in the process of development in order to democratize access to the said technology. Being African, I can also bear witness to the negative stereotype I've had to interface with on the internet as even documentaries that feature somewhat "inclusive" feedback still choose to select African samples that reemphasize the stereotype of illiteracy and poverty in Africa.

For the longest time, I thought to roll with the punches and I didn't think I could do anything about it. The African proverb "Until the lion learns how to write, every story will glorify the hunter" helped change my perspective as it awakened me to the reality of the situation. I found out that my friend Zainab Olaitain was working on a platform for Africans, by Africans where our stories, history, and culture can be shared, documented, and preserved for posterity. That platform is Afrotada.

Value-Based Development

I joined the team as the only software developer, I was tasked with rebuilding the website in line with some of the suggestions I made to the original website. By accepting the challenge, I'm able to collaborate with other African professionals like Simotwo, Opeyemi, Jacqueline, Zainab Olaowo, Gift among others. These are people who come from different African backgrounds, and we are able to collaborate remotely despite being separated by timezones, with some members of the team residing outside of Africa.

By having to migrate the platform from a static website to a more dynamic web application using ASP.Net MVC, I have stretched my software development skills, I have learned more about hosting websites, deployments, communication with hosting platforms, deciding on hosting plans, and involved myself with the selection process for hosting platforms. I have worked with a product manager, UI/UX developer, and digital marketer on the various aspects of Afrotada, as well as the value of the problem we're trying to solve from a business perspective.

A lot of what I learned while working with the team couldn't have been learned from working alone on a project that will probably never see the outside of a GitHub repository, these things are just as important as software development itself but are hardly talked about by developers because we seem to live in a bubble that makes us feel like software development happens in a vacuum.

Senior developers are more in touch with the business of software development due to their interactions with the management, however, junior developers must also cultivate the habit of looking at the business of development too, and this is why portfolio projects that are live hold more weight than those that were built for the sake of showing just software development skills.

Finally...

I still work with the Afrotada team, and while development is a bit slower than it should be (because I work alone for now 😅), I can however encourage aspiring developers to also pick up a pet project and collaborate with other professionals within and outside of core tech in creating something you can talk about passionately. It may not be perfect, but it will shine in an interview especially if the interviewer connects with the cause. Happy coding 🥂.