Developers unite blog

In the Bronze Age, the “Other Interests” section of the resume was supposed to be the (designated) place for highlighting how well-rounded and creative you are. You know, like saying “I like cooking, horses, and long walks on the beach” was supposed to impress someone. Honestly, I’ve never even understood why people bothered with that section.

The trouble with the resume is that it attempts to “quantify” a human being - which is difficult if not impossible. Marks in school aren’t a great indicator either. Frankly, anyone in the “middle class” of development can ace courses and exams without too much trouble. You want better than that.I think the best measures available today are:

1. Passion for creating: if someone is a hobbyist from way back, they have a couple of advantages over others. First, they probably have more experience because they’ve just spent more aggregate time honing their skills. Second, passion tends to breed quality. To the passionate, “good enough” isn’t - they want to make it the best. Not because they have to, but because it’s who they are.

2. Getting involved: getting involved with other hobbyists or developers on projects outside of their normal duties is a great indicator of potential value. It demonstrates a couple of key qualities. People that go out of their way to get involved (volunteer) with projects (open source stuff is a good example of this) are typically go-getters. They’re not just going to sit around waiting to be told what to do. They are typically self-motivated. Getting involved with a group also demonstrates the desire to work with other people (a team) and hints at the kind of social skills you’re looking for - you don’t want someone that’s just going to be stuck in a dark closet somewhere pumping out code like so much processed meat.

The resume is useful for one thing: it’s a set of speaking notes for a candidate to walk a prospective employer through their history without forgetting anything big. I think the portfolio is to today, what the resume was to yesterday. From now on, that’s what I want to see from prospective employees. Show me what you’ve done outside your regular gig (outside school if you’re a new grad, or outside work if you’re on the clock). Show me the things you played with as a hobby. If you haven’t done any of this, start now. Put some notes down about some of the design work you’ve done and walk me through it. Show me how you solve problems. That’s what I want to see.

Think of it like an architect’s portfolio. Highlight the work you’re most proud of. Show me where you did something over and above the call of duty to better the product. Another bonus with the portfolio route is that candidates get to show off their presentation skills.

If you’re a specialist developer in some niche, and are thinking, “Well, I’ve been an ‘X’ specialist for years and it’s served me well”, you’re probably right. But recognize that times are changing and you’re better off adapting and looking forward than merely looking back at where you’ve come from. Figure that in every organization, there may be room for one or two specialists and dozens of the renaissance types. More and more, companies are looking for the well-rounded types.