The Latest From Pipeline: Your Data Engineering ResourceHi past, present or future data professional! I hope you’ll indulge my sharing of an important career milestone; unfortunately, I’m not retiring with a gold Rolex snug on my wrist. Instead, this week marks 3 years in data engineering. I’m excited about this work-iversary because it marks a period of time in which I’ve been working in data engineering longer than my prior non-data job. If you’ve read my work you know I’ve taken an unconventional path to break into data engineering and to advance to a senior role. Ideating, writing and publishing code, projects and stories has been central to my success in standing out as a candidate with nearly zero pre-job experience. Additionally, here are 3 lessons that have helped me break in, gain proficiency and advance in a competitive and complex role.
To understand how I learned and put these lessons into practice, read the latest here. And if you want to know one of the most surprising lessons I’ve learned in 3 years, read this. Until next time–thanks for ingesting, -Zach Quinn |
Reaching 20k+ readers on Medium and over 3k learners by email, I draw on my 4 years of experience as a Senior Data Engineer to demystify data science, cloud and programming concepts while sharing job hunt strategies so you can land and excel in data-driven roles. Subscribe for 500 words of actionable advice every Thursday.
Hi fellow data professional! Big news from my home base of Orlando: Disney hired a new CEO with a pay package of nearly $40 million. If you read beyond the headline you’ll see that his base salary is “only” 2.5 million with the possibility of up to a 250% target incentive and some $26-ish million in stock options. This is why you, the job seeker, need to think beyond base salary and look at TC. Total compensation. Thanks to labor transparency laws passed in hiring hubs like New York and...
Hi fellow data professional! Once, during a virtual interview, I had to nod politely as my interviewer apologized for coughing after their cigarette. Oh, and to make this situation even more cringe—they were driving. Some industries design stressful interview processes to psychologically test a candidate’s poise under pressure. Luckily (for the most part) the software engineering field is not included in this basket of high-stress tests. Sure, we are subjected to moderate stress in the form...
Hi fellow data professional! On a recent holiday, a family member and I were strolling along a beach, talking about AI disruption (relaxing, I know). He, an attorney, assured me his job was AI-proof and jokingly offered to hire me when AI takes my data engineering job. If you ask executives at most companies, they’d find several flaws in that argument. Over 80% of technical executives, including Chief Data Officers and Chief AI Officers, consider data engineering to be an essential role...