3 Ways Junior Data Engineers Can Make An Impact In Their First Year
Subtle initiatives to positively impact your team and credibility.
When I began as a data engineer I developed a misconception that I had to be involved in high-visibility, revenue-generating projects to properly contribute.
Reading about how companies salivate at the thought of hiring, (or, after mass layoffs) poaching, data engineering talent and then not being immediately assigned to a project that will generate millions or billions in monthly or annual revenue can make one feel underutilized and sidelined.
This line of thinking, I’ll contend, makes an unfair assumption:
High visibility = high impact.
This is a fallacy.
Someone (your boss) will always know what you’re working on, especially if you use a ticketing system like JIRA.
If your team follows an Agile methodology, your leadership will discuss open tickets at stand ups and if they’re a particularly good boss, they’ll highlight individual contributions during such meetings.
Data engineering is, at its core, a customer service job. With the exception of housekeeping projects like documentation, you will almost always be accountable to someone within…
