For many experienced developers and architects, becoming a tech lead is a natural career path. With experience comes opportunities to take on mentoring roles and develop leadership and business skills.
Our technical leaders at Clearcode have a very unique and varied scope of responsibilities and today we are going to show you what three of them really appreciate about their work and what they have learned in their roles.
What do you value the most as a tech lead?
Grzesiek Śliwiński — experienced backend developer, ex-project manager, tech lead for more than 3 years
The most important benefit and most satisfying part of my role is cooperating with the team. It’s as simple as that! Every day I look for a compromise between the business needs and technical ambitions of the team.
Together we are trying to choose the right technologies and solutions to the problems we face that also meet the customer’s needs. There are a lot of discussions behind our decisions, which are always very inspiring, despite some brief digressions ;)
Paweł Wacławczyk, experienced software engineer, tech lead since 2016
Being a technical leader allows me to get the bigger picture of the whole software development process. I am truly satisfied with making an impact on the companies we cooperate with. I can shape their product’s vision and help them with expanding their business, which is great.
What’s more, at Clearcode we work in permanent teams and this creates a big opportunity for a tech leader to play a part in the team members’ learning and development process. I can introduce new technologies, solutions, good practices and different approaches to creating quality software to the team.
Michał Klich, experienced backend developer, tech lead in two Python teams
I think Paweł is right. I’ve got the greatest enthusiasm for sharing knowledge and teaching other people and myself. I like the idea of continuous learning, but I am also involved in an initiative called Coding Dojo Silesia, which is a meetup for developers and also a good networking opportunity.
The autonomy matters as well. Every day we make decisions that impact the quality of our work. I do research and explore new technologies that we can test in practice.
What have you learned in your role?
Michał Klich, experienced backend developer, tech lead in two Python teams
Communication, communication, communication. We can no longer live with the stereotype of a loner programmer. The modern IT world requires soft skills such as communication and collaboration, and being a tech lead calls for going even one step further.
Secondly, diagrams. I have learned firsthand that a picture is worth a thousand words, but a good diagram with a precise description is worth even more.
And finally, transparency. I am not coding full time and my work can sometimes be imperceptible. That’s why I’ve started writing my daily journal on Slack to share my tasks with the team.
Paweł Wacławczyk, experienced software engineer, tech lead since 2016
I agree with Michał. Being a technical leader requires being a big-picture thinker and having interdisciplinary skills. What I have learnt is how to build a full picture of the project, connect the dots and balance the big picture and the details. I see myself as a bridge between engineering and business, and this fits my current interests quite nicely.
However, sometimes it is difficult to combine those worlds, and that is why I feel that I’ve gained a lot of patience and time management skills.
Grzesiek Śliwiński, experienced backend developer, ex-project manager, tech lead for more than 3 years
Being a tech leader is a chance to fight FOMO (and win!) and learn how to successfully delegate tasks and responsibilities to the team members.
As Michał and Paweł said, we are somewhere between the tech side and the customers, where there are often disparate ideas, so we always have to seek compromises.
Want to be a tech lead?
We are hiring! If you are a senior Python developer looking for your next challenge or a tech leader with Python skills looking for a change, click on the links below to apply.
Senior Software Engineer
Tech Lead – Python
About the authors:
Paweł Wacławczyk
Experienced software engineer, tech lead since 2016.
Michał Klich
Experienced backend developer, tech lead in two Python teams.
Creator of Coding Dojo Silesia. Marathonist, cyclist, and economist.
Grzesiek Śliwiński
Experienced backend developer, ex-project manager, tech lead for more than 3 years. Father of 2, dreamcatcher, and sleep seeker.
