Career Spotlight: Principal Android Engineer
Ronan Doyle joined Distilled SCH in 2014 as an Android Developer for DoneDeal and has since progressed to Principal Android Engineer. We chatted to Ronan about life, career, and the advice he would give people starting out on the same career path as him.
Tell us about your career before Distilled
Growing up I wanted to be everything from a professional martial artist to a race car driver, but it was my older brothers that sparked my interest in computers and computer science. Seeing them getting to work on circuit boards and write software during their college courses ultimately led me to entering into a computer science degree in Waterford Institute of Technology after I finished secondary school. It was during this degree that I found my passion for mobile app development and started working on a few small side projects outside of college life. This led to me building a telepresence robot (a smartphone controlled robot, that has audio and video capabilities, that allows someone to remotely interact with people) which solidified my future career goals.
After graduating from my four year degree I spent a brief stint living in Dublin, working as a telecommunications software engineer. Although this was a great role, I missed the excitement of the app development world and sought out a role which would allow me to dive back into it.
I was lucky enough to find a role as a junior Android engineer at DoneDeal.ie, in the sunny south east, which has since become a brand of Distilled SCH.
Why did you choose Distilled at the time you joined?
When I originally applied for a role at DoneDeal, I did so because I’d heard it was a really great place to work, and that it had a fun and family like atmosphere. Distilled SCH has this same atmosphere, where everyone looks out for each other and does their best to make the products the absolute best they can be, which is a very desirable feature in a company in my opinion.
What was your first role in Distilled? How have you progressed since first joining the company?
My first role was as a junior Android engineer. I then progressed through the following roles; a mid-level engineer, senior engineer and now a principal Android engineer. Along with my engineering roles I also spent some time as a scrum master, helping to facilitate the mobile team in following the scrum framework. As well as being a principal engineer, I’m also the chapter lead for the Android team, which involves helping to identify any potential technical improvements across our Android apps and encourage technical growth amongst the team.
One of the great things about working here is the opportunity to try out different roles and responsibilities. To be able to do this is a fantastic opportunity for both career and personal development as a two week stint in another role could lead to a whole career change.
What would be your advice to graduates just starting out their career in this field?
The tech world is simply booming at the moment, and there’s no signs of it slowing down anytime soon. My advice to anyone starting out a career in tech is to find something that excites them and gives them that “get out of bed” factor. There are so many different roles available in tech, with new areas being created all the time. I really think there’s a role out there for everyone if they want it.
I also think that it’s important to be comfortable with not getting that dream job right away. More often than not you need to spend time working in roles that you don’t overly like, but sticking with them and giving it your best can open any number of doors and lead you to that perfect job.
What is the best piece of advice that you’ve received that has helped you get to where you are today?
It really sounds cliché but the best thing I’ve learned over the years is that it’s ok to fail. No one can get through their lives without failing at some point so it’s important to accept that failure can and will happen. I think this particularly applies to the tech world as there are probably more failed tech companies than successful ones, but the key thing is to learn from this experience and use it to help better yourself.
