Women in Tech, Interview with a Software engineer.
Women are underrepresented in the tech sector — myth or reality?
A week back we started a channel on Medium — Techopedia aimed to bring the most inspirational professionals in the tech scene to your attention. Today, we’d like you to meet Ramsha Khan, Software Engineer at Photobook Worldwide.
You can find Ramsha on LinkedIn.
1. Tell us about yourself?
I am an Android Developer, working at Photobook Worldwide Sdn Bhd, with almost 4 years of experience. I moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to pursue further studies after completing my O’Levels in Karachi, Pakistan in 2011 and have been living here ever since.
I have always been a bright student excelling in academics, being awarded a Scholarship twice, once for my A’Levels (which I did not accept) and another for my Bachelors.
My journey in this field of technology started when I enrolled with Sunway University for BSc Hons In Computer Science. And ever since, the IDE is my best pal.
2. How did you start your career as a developer?
During my semester break in 2015, I took a short Android Development Training. It was then I realized that Mobile development was how I was going to combine my love for designing and programming.
My first job as Android Developer was at a startup company, where I started as an intern, in 2017. Lucky enough, I was their only in-house android developer. Being their only in-house developer, not only did it give me the confidence to speak up and share opinions, but also to work with more freedom where my colleagues and boss entertained creativity. However, being young blood, was craving more challenging tasks, and above all was craving working with a team of experienced developers.
That is when I joined Photobook Worldwide in 2018 as Software Engineer (Mobile), where my core focus is Android Development.
3. Can you tell me more about the day-to-day responsibilities of this job?
An average daily responsibility would involve completing a given task. It could be something as small as changing a text to as big as implementing a whole new feature. Whatever that task is, it will mostly fall under one of the three categories, bug fix, refactor/improvements, or a new feature. These tasks are predefined with the requirements from the Project Managers or Team Leads. My job is to deliver what they have asked me to do. Sometimes it could be tricky and not so straight forward, so one has to think outside the box.
Some part of the day is also spent reviewing the code of my fellow Android developers, as they do mine, to make sure their implementation is the best possible approach.
Other responsibilities, not daily but could be several times a week, is to take part in discussions on how to improve our codebase, about how we can refactor parts of the code to incorporate new libraries and make it more maintainable.
4. What do you think are the most important qualities for someone to excel in this job?
Know where to look
When looking to solve a problem or getting started with a new library, you will find multiple implementations and conflicting opinions from different sources. This may leave you confused.
Therefore, the best approach is to always refer to the official documentation first, don't directly dive into articles and tutorials from outside sources.
Leave the comfort zone
Now moving outside the comfort zone pushes you to learn more than you currently know. Android is now advancing at a much higher rate than it ever did, therefore you have to keep up with it. The only way you’ll ever be able to do it is if you are willing to learn more. It is possible that the things you knew a year from now, are not even being used in the market out there. Therefore, it is essential to keep yourself up to date.
Don’t hide from Challenges
Don’t be afraid to take on something challenging. You might not know how it works, you might not know how you would solve the problem but that creates an opportunity. It is exactly what you need, an opportunity to shine among your team and learn. Along the way, you might learn how to utilize new tools and libraries, as well as improve your problem-solving skills.
Be a team player
Always help your colleagues whenever you can. If they are stuck at some task, offer them your help. Try to guide and mentor them if you can. Be humble and open to suggestions and criticism.
5. What do you think are some of the biggest challenges for someone in this job?
There is so much diversity when it comes to Android. The devices running Android have varying hardware and software specifications, screen size and density, graphics card, software version, memory, etc. As Android Developers, we have to take these factors into account when delivering an experience to the user.
To add, each Android release introduces new libraries and improvements. It is evolving at such a rate that developers might feel overwhelmed to keep themselves up to date. Moreover, the app can not always adapt these improvements as they need time-consuming refactors, while the priority lies with the deliverance of features and bug fixes.
6. What are the biggest challenges developers are facing COVID-19?
In my opinion, the least impacted sector of the industry is the software developers. With Covid, we are forced to work from home, but honestly, a software developer can work from anywhere as long he has his machine and a good internet connection. With all these video conferencing tools available, meetings and brainstorming sessions have been made very easy. It does not have a real feel, but it does the job.
7. Do you have any interview tips?
Always be honest about what you know and do not know. Do not oversell yourself or undersell yourself. If you oversell yourself, you might end up disappointing them. If you undersell yourself, you might miss the opportunity entirely.
Just be yourself, and be honest.
8. What advice and tips would you give to women who want a tech career?
The tech industry is a lot larger and more creative than it seems! And the industry tries to be open and inclusive in many places. There are many great communities in and about tech campaigning for diversity, which can also be good support. The path into technical professions is not always easy for women, as well as for other people from underrepresented groups. But it is worth it!
See you in the next interview with another tech professional(s).
