Book Image

Developer, Advocate!

By : Geertjan Wielenga
Book Image

Developer, Advocate!

By: Geertjan Wielenga

Overview of this book

What exactly is a developer advocate, and how do they connect developers and companies around the world? Why is the area of developer relations set to explode? Can anybody with a passion for tech become a developer advocate? What are the keys to success on a global scale? How does a developer advocate maintain authenticity when balancing the needs of their company and their tech community? What are the hot topics in areas including Java, JavaScript, "tech for good," artificial intelligence, blockchain, the cloud, and open source? These are just a few of the questions addressed by developer advocate and author Geertjan Wielenga in Developer, Advocate!. 32 of the industry's most prominent developer advocates, from companies including Oracle, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, open up about what it's like to turn a lifelong passion for knowledge sharing about tech into a rewarding career. These advocates run the gamut from working at large software vendors to small start-ups, along with independent developer advocates who work within organizations or for themselves. In Developer, Advocate!, readers will see how developer advocates are actively changing the world, not only for developers, but for individuals and companies navigating the fast-changing tech landscape. More importantly, Developer, Advocate! serves as a rallying cry to inspire and motivate tech enthusiasts and burgeoning developer advocates to get started and take their first steps within their tech community.
Table of Contents (36 chapters)
34
Other Books You May Enjoy
35
Index
36
Packt

Career development

Patrick McFadin: There aren't many options at the moment. In the industry, we're having discussions about what the path should be for individual contributors. Do we send them down a management path or an executive track?

If you're just starting out in developer advocacy, you can move up into more senior roles where you're managing groups of advocates, doing more substantial projects, and creating programs. Many people end up moving out of developer advocacy into pure engineering. I think there are many distinguished engineers who it could easily be said are developer advocates.

Geertjan Wielenga: How do you stay updated on the latest tech developments?

Patrick McFadin: Twitter is always a good channel. I have a pretty healthy diet of online sources, including TechCrunch and Hacker News. Hacker News is the bleeding edge of the bleeding edge. I just see what people are talking about, along with going to conferences and meetups. It's about paying attention...