How I transitioned from a developer to a manager role
Hey!
I’m writing again. It feels like a long time. Please bear with me as you read the rest of this blog. Any life update since my last entry?
Well, COVID-19 happened, and I know you also have exciting stories and realizations that significantly shaped who you are as a person today.
For me, I took one of the most significant steps in my career: I moved jobs in the middle of the pandemic!
Here’s a summary of that story and some lessons I’ve learned at the start of my journey.
Story time.
I was a Software Engineer for 5 years (almost 6) in a big corporation. I moved from Bacolod City (the city of smiles ~ we just celebrated the Masskara festival, by the way!) to Cebu to pursue my dream of being a highly-paid, successful developer.
You know by now that it didn’t happen, insert sad and laughing sound effects, but I had a memorable stay in my first company :)
I was given opportunities to work with different teams and cultures, work and operate with the exact products we build, and work in Japan for a business trip within my first 5 months in the company.
I also learned the value of discipline, camaraderie, and problem-solving at work. I have my fair share of dev horror stories about build errors, degrades, and overnight OTs, but this blog won’t be talking about that (but let me know if you want me to share about those as well!).
So instead, I’ll be sharing what made my transition from a software engineer role to a technical project manager possible!
Even before I was still in college, I had big hopes and dreams when I reached 25. After graduating at 19, I knew I had X amount of years to get my life on track.
I thought I was going to be this big-shot developer at the top of her graduating class, offered a job with the first company she interviewed, and unfortunately, it got into my head. I thought I was destined for greatness!
Then when I started to work, though I was pretty good (I got promoted at the same time as the rest of my workmates), my expectations of greatness, being in love with what I do aka passion weren’t met. I began reconsidering my life choices. I felt pressured to get my career together before I’m 25 because it will disrupt my life plan! It didn’t help that I was not feeling this giddy and happy excitement thinking that I get to code the next day.
At first, I thought it was because of the tech stack (I code using HTML/CSS/Knockoutjs & C, C++) I was in, the nature of the products that I was building, or even the policies, processes, and politics that I’m exposed to.
But, as I got to know myself as a developer, I knew that I wasn’t interested in coding about the different libraries, trying out new functions of specific languages, and waiting for releases of what you can do with this new plug-in. I compared my interests to friends on the same track as me. I learned that they allocated time to study and improve their skills to be a developer.
I had a realization: It wasn’t part of my priority to study more to be a great developer.
So maybe that’s the solution! I just need to learn more and try harder!
To remedy this, I allocated time for learning and pushed to learn this and that for the next years. C, C++ basically server-side code was not my favorite to code. I am not ashamed to admit that I borderline hate getting assigned tasks with server-side heavy functions because I always spend a lot of time on them. So I took tutorials and returned to my fundamentals to build my foundation. I need to have a conscious effort to be better as a developer.
Unfortunately, even with my endeavors, the passion was not there.
I started to lose interest in my work. I didn’t move on and find other companies because I didn’t think I was good enough or with the fear that I would still have the same dreadful feeling about a developer regardless of the company. What do I do now?
It would have been easier if I didn’t think about it anymore.
I should be grateful that I have a job right? Though it’s not fulfilling all the boxes in my career checklist, I should just stop stressing myself about this and not search for that “passion” in work.
After all, that’s part of being an adult.
But there’s this part of me that wants more. I appreciate how competitive I was because even though I get tired, I always try to find where I belong.
What’s my perfect match for jobs?
I looked into my other skills and really examined what else I was good at. Then I realized that I was happy with community building.
I volunteer my time with tech communities because I’m ecstatic to meet people from various walks of life coming together to learn about tech and get informed about the latest technologies and how they can affect their projects, work, and careers. I have met many incredible people and made good friends at these events.
That’s when I realized the skills I used in hosting and organizing 1000 in-person events can be used in tech jobs. Now the question is what job is that?
I searched and inquired what other roles were available. I almost went back to school to be a teacher when I got a government scholarship to teach senior high.
In the end, it didn’t work for me because aside from fulfilling what my heart wanted, I also had to consider my family responsibilities in my career choice.
I read about Ikigai one time. Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means your ‘reason for being. ‘ ‘Iki’ in Japanese means ‘life,’ and ‘gai’ describes value or worth. Your ikigai is your life purpose or your bliss. It’s what brings you joy and inspires you to get out of bed every day.
So, I brought up the Venn diagram.
Where can I use my current skills that can make me happy, that can pay for my and my family’s needs, and that can also have an impact? Wow! That’s a big ask, right? But that’s what I felt for 2 years as I was trying to find where do I belong.
As I was approaching my 5th year in the company, I was excited to receive my loyalty award. Only another 5 years more until I get tenure. But with my family’s bills increasing, I knew that what I earned now was not enough. I can try getting another dev job or apply to be a mid-level/senior developer, but it was a long shot, and I still wasn’t happy.
I returned to the Venn diagram earlier and then discovered project management. In my first company, you can have 2 tracks, one as a lead developer or manager. I had my eyes set to be part of the management side.
For projects, I welcome any experience I can get in leading a team.
It was stressful in the first part because you acted as a dev and managed the project’s timelines and resources. I also had to learn how to delegate and find the best version for the task given the feature and deadline we have. I led 3 projects in my team before I embarked to look for open roles in management.
After becoming confident about being a project manager, I tried applying to companies. I checked the job descriptions to see if I was qualified.
Most, if not all, require that I have at least 5 years of management experience.
I thought maybe my community manager experience counted; there was one company that gave me an interview, and we talked for about 30 mins.
Safe to say I didn’t get in because they wanted more experience from me and exposure to actually leading more people.
So I’m back to square one.
Either I wait it out, get experience in my first company (that would take a lot of time to get promoted to management), or try to hack it as a dev and resign.
I didn’t know what to do.
But I knew I had to let out my creative energy somewhere. I realized this is hard; how did other people do this? I always get inspired after a community event because I get to meet amazing people who share their tips and tricks on how to survive and thrive in the field that they’re in. How can we share this information with a greater audience? I know I can get inspiration from them. I’m compelled to let others get motivated as well.
Back in 2019, I started a podcast called Tech IT or Leave It. I asked established people I meet in the community and hear their journey, crossroads, and stories to success. It’s inactive now. We’ll see if I can revive it soon. ❤
Before I paused the podcast, Ms. Laurice from Qavalo was one of my guests. We talked about her incredible journey and startup. Check out our conversation here.
On one of our breaks, she asked me, “Ikaw Frances, what are you working on?” then, I didn’t know what came over me; I told her that I was on the fence if I should stay and wait for my tenure or try my luck and find people who are willing to bet that I can be a good manager.
She advised me to continue learning, and I’ll find what I’m looking for soon.
We left, and I continued with my work the next day. In the evening of that day, I got a chat from Albert from Symph, asking if I was interested in a PM role.
Internally I was like, What, how, what, how again, and why this happened? He mentioned that Ms. Laurice shared with Albert that I was looking for a job in project management. I was hesitant to accept the job at first.
What if I’m not good at this? What if I’m making a huge mistake? What if I can’t fulfill what’s expected of me? I didn’t know if project management was going to be my calling.
A lot of what-ifs went through my mind. I talked with my friend John one night and he advised me to go for it. I would never be 100% prepared to do anything, but I can be dedicated to polishing my craft and learning what it’s about. I read about Agile, Project Management, and Management styles. I also completed the last project I led in my previous company before leaving.
I ended up taking a year before I went full-time at Symph. I appreciate Symph for waiting and taking a shot with me.
I talked with the Founders, especially Dave, and Albert; they gave me feedback on what I should improve on and shared knowledge and tidbits on what we should do and what we should learn as we become leaders.
My first project was in a totally different tech stack that I’m not familiar with, but it was an interesting experience starting from scratch and getting these patches of knowledge I had as a developer and applying it to my work.
If you ask me if I still get stressed at work? I do.
Problems and setbacks at work will always be there.
But every day I wake up excited about my various tasks, talking to multiple clients and working with different developers. I’m still in my 2nd year of project management, this will definitely change as we go along.
I also appreciate that in Symph, we have mentorship and coaching sessions. I love talking to Jarrhey and the other members of the Production team sharing our struggles and learnings in our projects. I’m also in awe of the team at Symph!
I love working with developers and seeing them passionate about their jobs and pursuing additional learning to be better in their stack and projects.
Let us know if you’re looking for a team for your product or startup! Our vision is to drive positive global impact by building startups for every problem affecting human life.
To close this entry, thank you for staying and reading until the end!
With battling my anxiety and impostor syndrome, being afraid of risks and failures, and looking for stability to provide for my family, I know it took me a while to get here, but it was all worth it ❤
My next goal is to become better in whatever role I am assigned. Onwards!
If ever you find yourself in the same boat as me, here is a TLDR; of my story:
- You’ll never have it all figured out so quickly.
- Your plans will change, and life will teach you more about yourself and your paths, and you will go through it.
- It’s okay to want assurance in your career. Do note that it takes a bit more time.
- Talk to people and make genuine connections. I owe a lot to the community.
- Your skills can be used anywhere. Know your strengths and weaknesses. Bank on your assets and those areas you want to improve on.
- If they won’t give you opportunities, find one or make one.
- Find safe people to take to. There can be a lot of noise, if you can’t filter it out alone, try to listen to those who matter. Believe it or not, I didn’t tell my family about my career change unless I was sure of my decision. In the end, it was my choice.
- Be grateful for every step and every person you encounter. They are a part of your journey.
- Never give up on yourself. It takes time.
