Android Developer Relations is hiring
Help us grow the next generation of developers
Apps are essential to making Android a platform people love — whether it’s on their phones, cars, TVs, or watches. As a popular mobile platform, Android is thriving with 1 in 4 developers — worldwide — building for Android according to Stack Overflow’s 2020 developer survey.
In Android Developer Relations (or Android DevRel for short), our mission is to help people build great apps with the latest Android and Play features, empower anyone to get a great career as an Android developer, and advocate for developers as Android and Play evolve. It’s truly rewarding because we get to see the future of apps — every day — and help our fellow developers achieve great things. With such a big mission, we’re hiring engineers, technical writers, and program managers — and if this gets you inspired, we’d love to talk! Check out the links at the end of this blog and apply to join our team.
But first, what does Android DevRel actually do? Our team writes code, creates content, launches careers, grows communities, runs conferences — and more. Read on to learn more.
Code
At its core, DevRel is about helping developers, and a big part of that is through code. In fact, code is the foundation of nearly everything we create — be it tutorials, videos, blogs, or entire multi-unit educational courses. We produce everything from simple code snippets that explain how to perform a specific function, to sample apps like Jet* or the Google I/O app that demonstrate how everything comes together. In the process of creating sample code, you may be the first developer to ever build something with a new API! We call this being the “zeroth customer” and it’s an important role where you can directly influence the direction of a product through feedback (and yes, some trial and error!)
Content
In helping developers, we end up producing a ton of content — documentation, tutorials, screencasts, talks, blog posts, podcasts, and more. There is an art to breaking down complex subjects into a learning path — to help both beginner and advanced developers alike — and it is something we do every day. From introducing new concepts, to distilling best practices, to thoroughly documenting the functionality of a new API — our role is to help developers understand and thrive on Android. While our output is the content itself, it’s important to note that engineering is at the heart of this. In order to teach developers how to use these technologies, we first have to understand them deeply ourselves.
Careers
Apps connect you to the people in your life, help you do things more easily, or even help you learn new skills. In the past year many of us have had to find new ways of doing things, and this has seen us reach for apps more often than ever before, while growing the demand for app developers. In fact, developer jobs are growing 5.5x faster than other professions (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). In Android DevRel, it is our privilege to build curriculum and work with universities and student groups around the world to skill-up the next generation of developers.
Community
Many of us were Android developers (and fans!) before we joined DevRel, and one of the most gratifying aspects of our role is meeting and connecting with developers around the world. Working together with Google’s Developer Ecosystems team, we interact with Google Developer Experts for Android (GDEs), Google Developer Groups, and of course individual community members on a regular basis through events, social media, and Slack. We love to hear what people are working on, lend a hand where we can, and create connections across the community so people can learn from each other.
Conferences
One of the places the community comes together is at conferences — and Android has a lot of them! While you can pick up a skill or learn about the latest software design pattern (Hey MVC, the 90s called and wants its pattern back), people always say the most valuable thing they get from conferences is connecting with fellow developers. Meeting people in person (side note: can’t wait until we can do that again!) is such an important part of building a network of people you can count on for help — whether you get stuck in your next project, or are looking for career advice. While many of these conferences are run by the community themselves, we participate in these events around the world and look forward to engaging with this community wherever they are. We also organize the Android Developer Summit and the Android track at Google I/O.
Come join us
Want to join Android DevRel? Take a look at some of the roles below. Google often uses a single listing to make it easier for people to apply — so if it doesn’t say Android DevRel in the title of the role just tell them you’re interested in joining our team in your cover letter.
Read on to see the roles that are available today (current as of Aug 26, 2021):
DevRel engineering
Engineers in:
- Warsaw, PL
- Bangalore, IN
- Singapore
- London, UK (link tbd)
Engineering Managers in:
DevRel program managers
Tech writing
- Writers in Mountain View, CA or Bellevue, WA and in London, UK
- Managers in Mountain View, CA and in London, UK