After navigating the challenges of becoming a developer and enduring many years of frustration, you finally earned the title of senior developer! The experience has probably already taught you that the title doesn’t mean things will be easier from now on. Many responsibilities come with it, such as dealing with problems alone, usually issues that will take most of your time. And there's the new expectation of mentoring people and leading teams.
At this point, you might choose to stay focused on technical work, which is perfectly fine. Not every senior professional enjoys mentoring. However, if you are open to accepting the challenge, offering guidance is a great opportunity to help others navigate the difficulties you once faced, which can be absolutely rewarding!
Open-source projects like Web Dev Path provide an excellent environment for experiencing what leading a team means. Here, people who have completed their degrees or certificates come to learn the practicalities of the job from experienced and active professionals. This setup allows you to practice leadership skills, guiding juniors through real-world projects and helping them grow while honing your communication, problem-solving, and project management abilities. Below, I will tell you how.
Why was the project created?
In 2020, a friend and I, as relatively inexperienced developers, agreed that working in team environments with version control and learning to communicate to get and offer proper help was crucial and not covered in most programs. This means that juniors might be unprepared for basic tasks like submitting a pull request when they receive a rare opportunity to start their career. That, combined with the expected lack of technical knowledge and communication issues, may lead to unnecessary struggles and even people giving up on the field.
Our idea was simple: let’s come together, create a repository from a README, and decide from that moment which design concepts and technologies we’d use to develop the project website. Four years later, after helping six people directly get their first opportunities in the field, we’re ready to move to the next step: selecting preferably non-profit organizations that need help with web projects. Our team of volunteers will then have the opportunity to build their portfolios while helping a good cause.
As we gear up for the next phase of Web Dev Path, we're looking for volunteer mentors in UI/UX design, project management (particularly a scrum master), and front-end and full-stack development. Additionally, we are seeking career mentors who can offer guidance on professional development, workplace dynamics, and soft skills such as conflict resolution and effective communication. These mentors will guide our volunteers in designing, implementing, and managing projects, especially as we collaborate with non-profit organizations.
How can the project help you develop your leadership skills?
Leadership is about service and kindness, not just a title or a checkpoint to tick off in your career. If you feel the calling to make an impact on others' lives, this project offers a supportive environment:
- A safe and a structured Slack space for communication, simulating a remote agency.
- Access to senior members who provide insights into mentorship principles.
- A group of entry-level tech professionals eager to learn and already trained in version control and remote communication via Slack.
In 2020, I didn’t know how to select and manage a remote group of people from everywhere interested in learning web development. By observing the struggles and listening carefully to our member's needs, we developed a process with guidelines that enabled our success. That learning journey made me realize the possibilities of managing tech teams since having an internal vision of the design and development process can help with better estimation. Being in touch with management took me from front-end development to product management as a Head of Product. Today, I can use that broader vision to help the business define the best product strategies and resources to make them real.
What are we expecting from mentors?
As a designer or developer mentor, we expect you to:
- Dedicate a maximum of two hours per week to guiding entry-level designers or web developers when they need assistance completing a task.
- Provide feedback, especially by reviewing pull requests submitted by our members.
- Participate in future weekly sprint checkpoints.
As a project manager/scrum master, we need your help to:
- Structure and maintain the project boards on GitHub.
- Define the tasks by following the user story (issues) format, letting the team know they’re available, and following up with them.
As a career mentor, we look for you to:
- Offer guidance on professional development and navigating workplace dynamics.
- Help members develop soft skills, including conflict resolution and effective communication
Conclusion
Mentoring offers invaluable benefits for broadening your perspective as a technical professional. By engaging with projects like Web Dev Path, mentors help shape the next generation of tech talent and develop their leadership and management skills. This experience can be transformative, providing insights into team dynamics, project management, and strategic decision-making. Please reach out if you're ready to mentor and grow with us.
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