What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#1

Post by willhslade » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 1:24 PM UTC

What makes a great software engineer [pdf]
microsoft.com

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#2

Post by alexfromapex » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 1:58 PM UTC

The problem is for upper management there is usually a much shorter list of expectations, consisting of things like "propensity to work as much as needed to meet deadlines".

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#3

Post by spenrose » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:00 PM UTC

This is an appendix to a PhD dissertation of interview of Microsoft software engineers: https://digital.lib.washington.edu/researchworks/bitstream/h...

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#4

Post by throwitaway298 » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:09 PM UTC

alexfromapex wrote: post #2

The problem is for upper management there is usually a much shorter list of expectations, consisting of things like "propensity to work as much as needed to meet deadlines".

Can you leetcode? Can you design stuff on a whiteboard to scale to 18 billion users? Can you do it very fast? You're hired.

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#5

Post by mykowebhn » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:09 PM UTC

First, someone who is smart and doesn't mind sweating the small stuff. Second, even more importantly, someone who wants to change the world, but isn't honest enough with themselves to realize that they're not really going to change the world; they're just going to make rich people richer. Either that, or they just don't care and just want a paycheck.

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#6

Post by darkwater » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:10 PM UTC

Would be more interesting and "real-word" seeing what - across the industry - are the usual trade-offs taken on the BAD traits of a SWE, and how they are related to the good ones.

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#7

Post by efsavage » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:11 PM UTC

Many of these things (E.G. "hardworking") apply to almost any career, or can be trained, but to me curiosity and patience/persistence are the things I think have an outsized effect on whether someone is a great software engineer.

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#8

Post by ysofunny » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:15 PM UTC

throwitaway298 wrote: post #4

alexfromapex wrote: post #2

The problem is for upper management there is usually a much shorter list of expectations, consisting of things like "propensity to work as much as needed to meet deadlines".

Can you leetcode? Can you design stuff on a whiteboard to scale to 18 billion users? Can you do it very fast? You're hired.

I'd expect that somebody that can do that is doing the hiring, possibly as a founder?

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#9

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:16 PM UTC

mykowebhn wrote: post #5

First, someone who is smart and doesn't mind sweating the small stuff. Second, even more importantly, someone who wants to change the world, but isn't honest enough with themselves to realize that they're not really going to change the world; they're just going to make rich people richer. Either that, or they just don't care and just want a paycheck.

[deleted]

Re: What makes a great software engineer [pdf]

#10

Post by mp05 » Tue, Apr 09, 2024, 2:16 PM UTC

alexfromapex wrote: post #2

The problem is for upper management there is usually a much shorter list of expectations, consisting of things like "propensity to work as much as needed to meet deadlines".

Everyone has a price. If you want upward of 60 - 70 hours a week from me at any given point, great. We're gonna double that comp package right? There will still be some boundaries, but we'll get that in the contract.

Believe me, I understand as well as anyone how being a salaried employee can turn into abuse, but it shouldn't be a crime for someone to need the unicorn, rockstar, 10x leetcode ninja to really crank for months on end.... so long as they're appropriately compensated! That said, I'll never, ever do that again UNLESS it's my company.