In the world of software, being a developer for a long time is not enough to call yourself a senior developer. It is about the experience and skills you have gained throughout those years that makes the difference. Some developers can be mid-level their entire career, while others quickly rise to senior level in a few years.
Although it’s impossible to have a single persona to represent a senior-level software developer they do exhibit certain traits that set them apart from junior or mid-level. Those traits are what I am going to talk about. This is completely based on my own experience so it’s entirely based off my observations from working with other software developers.
1. Great Communication Skills
Senior-level developers have a talent in explaining things to others. Whether it is explaining a complex technical topic to technical people or non-technical people they all can understand them. They understand their audience and use verbiage that the other person can understand.
For example, when speaking to other developers they might be more technical while speaking to business-oriented people they’ll use more business-like language. Now if this comes off as common sense to you well it’s not. People tend to speak a certain way and it is only when they become self-aware would they be able to change the way they speak depending on the audience.
2. Great Time and Task Management
Senior-level developers are the high-level individual contributors of a team. They are trusted and have a proven track record of delivering on time. To deliver on time they demonstrate good time and task management skills. For example, they block out a few hours of uninterrupted time per day to focus on deep work. They also break down problems into smaller tasks so they are manageable.
3. Continuously Learning
Senior-level developers have a continuous learning mindset. They realize that they don’t know everything and that there is always something new to learn. They spend some time learning new things — it doesn’t have to be technical or related to their work. Since they are always learning it helps them expand their breadth and also allows them to pick things up quickly.
4. Team Player
Building software is a team sport, which means teamwork is necessary to reach success. Although a senior-level developer is an individual contributor they still get along with the team and is there to offer a helping hand. They can collaborate with their peers to reach success.
5. Mentor Others
Senior-level developers can mentor others. They are able to teach others which demonstrates they have a good mastery of their craft. To be able to communicate ideas to others mean they have a strong understanding of the topic.
6. Great Problem Solving Skills
Senior-level developers have incredible problem-solving skills. They are able to take something complex and turn it into a simple solution. The skill to turn something complex to something simple takes a long time to do since it requires a lot of practice.
7. Understand the Big Picture
Senior-level developers tend to be able to see the big picture. They understand at the high-level how everything is working and how it is layout. When there are new changes they know which part will get affected or needs modifications even before a single line of code.
I hope this post was helpful to you. If you found this post helpful, share it with others so they can benefit too.
What traits do you see senior-level developers possess? What skills do you think a senior-level developer should have?
To get in touch, follow me on Twitter, leave a comment, or send me an email at steven@brightdevelopers.com.