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Unless we're talking about COBOL -> Haskell here, I think any decent company would be wary of overvaluing skills with a particular language or framework and undervaluing fundamentals.
I did this back in 2009. Here's how to do it. Pick a technology stack that you want to get a job in and build a side project in your spare time. Attend meetups with experts in your local community and learn how to make it awesome. Build relationships with them along the way. Use those relationships to get some part-time contract work in said technology stack with someone local. Document this experience and build up a…
Do companies really try to pigeonhole developers into "tech stacks" so much that you'll be forced to revert to junior status to change? Unless we're talking about COBOL -> Haskell here, I think any decent company would be wary of overvaluing skills with a particular language or framework and undervaluing fundamentals.
Yes, they do. Moreover, you don't even get a junior position because you don't have adequate education and/or experience.
I think you should sell yourself as an experienced technologist who's looking to learn. You should also demonstrate a willingness and ability to learn new things; maybe by making something and putting it up on github.
Here are the steps:
a. find employment at a company that requires your niche skillset but also has projects in your desired tech stack (hopefully this is your current employer)
b. learn enough of the desired tech stack on your own to be a useful contributor
c. ask to switch over to a project using your new stack, or volunteer to write tests or help in some other way to get your foot in the door (this may require some persistence and relationship-building)
d. once you have some experience you are ready to add it to your resume and seek your dream job
Do companies really try to pigeonhole developers into "tech stacks" so much that you'll be forced to revert to junior status to change? Unless we're talking about COBOL -> Haskell here, I think any decent company would be wary of overvaluing skills with a particular language or framework and undervaluing fundamentals.
> Do companies really try to pigeonhole developers into "tech stacks" so much that you'll be forced to revert to junior status to change? Yes, they do. Moreover, you don't even get a junior position because you don't have adequate education and/or experience.
This sounds more like a way to hire a contractor, not an engineer you will invest in who will be a full member of the team for potentially a very long time.
You do not need side projects or to train yourself. Just the ability to project confidence.
I did this back in 2009. Here's how to do it. Pick a technology stack that you want to get a job in and build a side project in your spare time. Attend meetups with experts in your local community and learn how to make it awesome. Build relationships with them along the way. Use those relationships to get some part-time contract work in said technology stack with someone local. Document this experience and build up a…
Taking a less-senior position for less-senior pay in the new tech stack is probably going to be more money per unit work, and my experience has been that you can get people to work with you on titles and that nobody actually knows what you got paid at your old jobs.
I mean, sure, if you really are that good and actually get things done regardless, your way might be better. My experience has been that good contractors going direct get a little more money than you can get through a body shop or as an employee. But... I'm talking like top 5%. Most of us aren't there. If you are mediocre... if you are merely 'good enough' - being a "real" contractor is difficult and under-remunerated. (to be clear, it's under-remunerated for the top 5%, too... but those people work like crazy all the time, so it's not like the customer is expecting more out of them.)
I did this back in 2009. Here's how to do it. Pick a technology stack that you want to get a job in and build a side project in your spare time. Attend meetups with experts in your local community and learn how to make it awesome. Build relationships with them along the way. Use those relationships to get some part-time contract work in said technology stack with someone local. Document this experience and build up a…
If the antiquated tech you have experience in is more complex than the new stack (antiquated tech usually is), it sometimes works as a positive: you have a perspective 'native' users of the stack don't.
As someone who does a lot of hiring for a startup, I will say I'm agnostic with regards to languages and frameworks. We've hired folks with all sorts of disparate backgrounds including embedded C (we mostly use Java and JavaScript). I think you should sell yourself as an experienced technologist who's looking to learn. You should also demonstrate a willingness and ability to learn new things; maybe by making somethin…