One way to stay updated on industry trends is to actively participate in various events, from hackathons to professional conferences and competitions.

New Delhi: According to a report published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job of software developer offers a great growth outlook in the coming decade. Despite recent news of layoffs at enterprise software companies, the general trend of growth in the US and globally continues.

Total employment of software developers, quality assurance analysts, and testers is projected to grow by 25% from 2022 to 2032. Along with decent wages, this makes the sector attractive to many young professionals. However, with the industry becoming highly competitive over the years and new technologies emerging, building a career can be harder than it seems.

Prokarma and Nice Inc. A seasoned software developer with over 10 years of experience in similar companies, Nikhil Badwaik has a deep understanding of the current state of the industry and its most prominent trends.

“The IT industry is really lucrative, but one has to be willing to work hard to build a successful career,” says Badwaik. He emphasizes that young professionals should start small by learning new programming languages, methodologies and approaches and steadily develop their skills. Badwaik started his career at Sunil Hi-Tech as a QA Engineer after graduating with a BS in Information Technology from Amravati University, India in 2008. Over the years, he has held various positions, constantly expanding his skills and keeping pace with the rapidly evolving industry.

From his experience, Badwaik believes that the core principles of professional development remain consistent, even amid significant changes in the industry. “Nobody should overestimate the impact of new technologies like AI and machine learning,” he stresses.

“While they introduce new methods and approaches, they cannot replace human input, and the demand for business skills is as strong as ever.” Although some tasks can be automated using AI-based tools, ensuring the quality of AI-generated content requires human supervision, which requires deep technical knowledge.

To truly succeed in the software developer industry, one can focus on a narrow area of ​​expertise, while one needs to establish a solid understanding of various disciplines and skills. “Flexibility and the ability to adapt to accomplish a variety of tasks is key to building a successful career,” explains Nikhil Badwaik. “A professional who has a wide range of tools and understands the operation of his company exhibits a better ability to find optimal solutions.”

He cites the example of his current position at Nike Inc. As a senior software engineer there, he faces a wide range of tasks, planning team work on short- and long-term schedules, creating and maintaining test environments, and working under the DevOps model. Similarly, in his previous role as a technical product manager, he used his technical knowledge to efficiently manage team resources and apply data capture analytics and attribution to make informed decisions.

They emphasize that working in such a position requires a broad understanding of processes and technology to be of value to their company, regardless of their role.

A natural corollary of the above principle is the need for lifelong learning and professional improvement, which Nikhil Badwaik implements throughout his career. “While higher education provided a solid foundation for my career path,” he comments, “software developers must constantly work to improve their skills through self-education and stay on top of new developments.”

One way to stay updated on industry trends is to actively participate in various events, from hackathons to professional conferences and competitions. Badwaik notes that these activities significantly helped him establish his career, providing opportunities to showcase skills, exchange ideas, network and find unexpected solutions. They help increase one's technical knowledge and develop soft skills, such as teamwork and collaboration.

For example, Nike Inc. While in, Badwaik won hackathons among several development teams and was selected as the kickoff speaker for the Nike Engineering Forum. He adds that inspiring others and learning from them is always his focus at such events.

Currently, Nikhil Badwaik is working on a monograph, “DevOps in Development Processes: Practical Experience and Benefits”, summarizing his over a decade of experience in software development.

The monograph covers the theoretical and practical aspects of the DevOps methodology and its integration into the development process, paying special attention to automation tools and technologies, advanced practices, and future trends that developers need to consider. With numerous practical examples and extensive coverage of relevant topics, the book aims to provide valuable insights for both experienced developers and those just starting their careers.

Finally, here are the main ways to help aspiring developers build their careers: start with a narrow field and continuously learn to expand your skills, participate in professional events of various scales and keep a high note of new developments in your industry. Professional standards.