If Techies Made Up A Construction Team
An outline of different career paths in tech, their significance, and their roles.
Let’s talk about the broadness of tech and how it consists of different careers but in an unconventional way. We will discuss the significance of different roles in tech and how they work together to achieve a similar goal — creating digital solutions for everyone to live with ease.
Let’s imagine a construction team consisting of only techies, but this time, the project is an app or a website:
The ‘Engineer’ — Project Manager(PM):
“Engineer, when will the sand delivery arrive?” “Engineer, we need to resize the windows.” “Engineer, this; Engineer, that.”
If you’re a regular at construction sites, you’d be familiar with the statements above. The Engineer is responsible for almost everything: He is the direct link between the customer and the construction workers. He is to ensure that the project is executed excellently and promptly. All team leads — bricklaying, painting, plumbing, etc. — report to him. If anything goes wrong or well, the Engineer is to blame or be applauded.
This is an accurate depiction of the Project Manager’s role in a tech team. A Project Manager is responsible for ensuring that the project meets the client’s requirements and industry standards and drives the team to hit the goal within a specific period. Asides from the training and skills a PM has, he must also possess soft skills such as composure, critical thinking, conflict management, time management, people management, and leadership skills. All of these would aid him in managing the team and beating set targets because, as we often hear, everything rises and falls on leadership.
The Architect — UI/UX Designer:
An Architect’s sole role is to create designs for construction projects and make amendments when necessary. These designs will then serve as a guide for all other workers to follow and replicate. When designing, the Architect considers many factors, e.g. the safety of the building, the budget, the client’s specifications, sustainability, and the outward appearance, amongst other things.
UI refers to the User Interface, the appearance of a product and how it generally looks. UX means User Experience, the process involved in using a product and how it works.
You’d enter some buildings and marvel at the structure, while on the other hand, you’d enter others and the only thoughts running through your mind are, “What in the horrible-structure-and-waste-of-space-and-money is this?” and “Lmao, I wish I could demolish this nonsense.” I have been in such buildings, too; it could be the position of the staircase, a column in a position that is not so good, or other terrible architectural decisions. Oftentimes, I’m quick to ask, “Which Architect did this?” It’s the same for Apps or Websites with bad UI or UX; they’ll leave you wondering, “How am I supposed to go back to the homepage?” “Errr, is that the edit button?” or my personal favourite, “What kind of hideous colour combination is this, fgs?”
UI Designers are responsible for designing the look and layout of digital products, while UX designers are more concerned with the flow and ease of navigation for users. To ensure that products are both easy to use and aesthetically pleasing to users, UI/UX designers conduct surveys and research before and during design. They pay attention to alignment, the position of different components on different screens, colour schemes, user flow, etc. They may also be required to amend or adjust the designs to suit the client’s requirements or due to some changes in the product features from time to time. The characteristics of UI/UX designers that I consider the most attractive are critical thinking and attentiveness to details. To learn more about UX Design, read this.
The Foundation/Trusses Builder — Backend Developer:
When you walk into a building, can you see the foundation or the trusses in the roof? The answer is most definitely ‘No’, but, of course, they are there, and they are crucial to the structure. The foundation provides support to and holds the building in place securely, while the trusses are designed to provide support to and keep the integrity of a roof.
Backend Developers are the ‘support system’ and behind-the-scenes workers concerned with the software’s functionality — databases, scripting, user connections, etc., like the people who work on the foundation and trusses. They work closely with the Frontend Developers to execute what has been conceptualized and designed by the UI/UX designer.
The Bricklayer/Carpenters— Frontend Developer:
What attracts you to a building? For me, it’s the height, the painting, the windows, and everything on the outside. Going in, I then begin to pay more attention to the windows, doors, handles, and others. Do they close easily, or it’s a struggle? Does the paint smear or overflow where it isn’t supposed to?
All of these are similar to what a Frontend Developer does. You can tell I had a tough time likening them to bricklayers, painters, carpenters, or even tilers. They are responsible for all of that stuff — replicating the UI design and building what the users can see and interact with. As said earlier, Backend Developers are their buddies; they work hand-in-hand throughout the development process.
The Inspector — Software Tester:
Like inspectors, Software Testers have one goal — to ensure that the products are error-free and of the highest possible quality. They do this by testing vigorously to find defects and write test reports. They test everything — the buttons, the links, authentication, error messages, and even the things that are seemingly silly, like what happens when the user inputs an email without the @ symbol. They also check to confirm that what has been built correlates with the product guide and UI design.
They usually have to test multiple times to ensure that the reported bugs or defects have been fixed, and until it’s almost perfect, they don’t stop. We cannot be 100% sure that the software is completely void of errors, but Software Testers do a good job ensuring that as many errors as possible are found and eliminated. They do this either manually or by automation. It’s almost impossible to be a good Software Tester without patience — to find errors and report them as many times as they take. Like UI designers, they also have to be extremely attentive to details and possess good descriptive skills. Read about Software Testing.
The Documentation & Technical Specification Writer — Technical Writer:
Technical Writing plays an essential role in construction; the project specifications must be clearly and concisely outlined. At the end of different stages, e.g. land testing, they have to write reports. They are also responsible for writing installation guides.
Technical Writers curate user manuals or guides for digital products; they also play a major role in the API documentation or help write pieces that enlighten the public about what has been built, amongst others. Read more about Technical Writing here.
Conclusion
As seen above, each career path in the tech field has its own peculiarity, significant role, and importance. No one is out of place or less important than the other — an actual representation of the quote, “We are because you are.” You can’t possibly admire the foundation of a building, as it is incomplete, and on the flip side, a building without foundation cannot stand. Every part of the team is important to that team and plays a part in achieving the set goal. Of course, there are several other roles in tech that are not covered in this piece; we’d probably discuss them in other articles to come.
