Full-Stack Developer_Tech Talk_August 13

Full-Stack Developers
Are you ready for the future?
@buihaian

Who am I?
• Bui Hai An, Andy
• Co-founder & Connector at
Silicon Straits Saigon
• Building Products and
Developing People.

A Product Development Lab
We build products (MVP, Prototype) for our clients and
ourselves for both web and mobile apps.
20 devs + 4 UI/UX designers

Am I a Full-Stack Developer?
No .. a big NO.
I’m not even a real Developer. I can only code a bit.
Then why the h*ll am I standing here?
By the way, sometime I call myself Full-Stack Marketer
(no pun intended)

Why are we here today?
Debunk some “Full-Stack Developer” myths
Who or What a Full Stack Developer really is?
Check whether FSD is something for you
If that the case, then how to become one … or not
become one.
Some personal stories from SSS (if you care)
Ahhh also Pizza and Beer!

Full-Stack Developer_Tech Talk_August 13

What is “Full-Stack Developer”?

Deﬁnition 1:
“.. a Full Stack Developer is someone with familiarity in
each layer, if not mastery in many and a genuine interest
in all software technology … ”  
 
(http://www.laurencegellert.com/2012/08/what-is-a-full-stack-developer/)
Full-Stack Developer

Deﬁnition 2:
“… a full-stack web developer is someone who has
honed skills in both front-end web design/development
and back-end/server coding. You can count on a full-
stack web developer to design, code, implement and
maintain a fully functional modern interactive website on
his/her own … ” 
 
(http://edward-designer.com/web/full-stack-web-developer/)

• Another way to look at it: 
 
“…. when people are asking for a full-stack
programmer they're looking for the all-singing, all-
dancing technical wizard. Or at least someone who
won't complain too much when asked to do some
work outside their normal comfort zone…” 
(http://www.quora.com/What-does-the-term-full-stack-programmer-mean/answer/Ian-Peters-Campbell)

Is it a buzzword?
• Forbes article 11/4/2014  
Developers Need To Broaden Their Range 
http://www.forbes.com/sites/oreillymedia/2014/04/11/
full-stack-developer-is-a-tall-order-bordering-on-
unicorn-territory/
• CIO Article 14/2/214 
So Long IT Specialist, Hello Full-Stack Engineer 
http://www.cio.com/article/2378708/cio-role/so-long-
it-specialist--hello-full-stack-engineer.html

Is it a buzz-word?
Google Trend: term “full-stack” - worldwide

Is it a buzz-word?
Is it for marketing?
YES!
Why?
We need attention. Buzzword generates attention. 
And we really believe in it.  
So there is no reason not to use it!

Our own deﬁnition
Full-Stack Developer is not a title nor a position.
It’s a Mindset!

A Full-Stack Developer
A Full-Stack Developer is someone who is open-minded,
willing to learn, not complain, love learning new
technology and love developing products.
… That seems a lot, but it’s easier than you think!

The Myths
FSD is just a buzz-word. 
=> We’ve just answered this.
FSD is jack of all trades, master of none. 
=> No, FSD is master of a few stacks and comfortable
with the rest.
You can’t become a FSD if you work for a Outsourcing
company 
=> It’s a mindset, not a position. You may not be a FSD
in your company, but you can always work hard to
become one yourself … and for your next job.

The Myths
You can’t become a FSD if you work in a corporate IT
world. 
=> It depends. Even CIO magazine (a reputable for big
IT companies), asks CIO to embrace this new trend. 
=> When everything get “leaner” and more “agile”,
teams get smaller, FSD will become more favourable.
Full-Stack Developer is not for everyone. 
=> Actually this is true. If it’s a mindset, then not
everyone can get it.

Why you need to become one?
Does typical career development excite you? 
Junior -> Senior -> Lead -> Manager -> Director …
Softwares now need smaller and smaller team to build. 
So one guy need to plays different roles in develop
new software.

If you join a startup, you MUST be a Full-Stack to
survive and beneﬁt to your team.
If your current team could get a hand on new project,
new platform in which you also know (for e.g an iOS
project). It’s your chance to become a Hero. 
Why you need to become one?

Why do you need to become one?
Not anyone need to become Manager. 
(http://blog.itviec.com/2014/08/it-manager-ﬁt-or-not-
ﬁt/)
And honestly, how many lead/manager
positions are available for the whole
team to climb up to?
If you do not aim to be a Manager, who
else you can be? 
Ah yes … Full-Stack Developer, yay!

Is FSD for you?
Are you?
Willing to learn new technology.
Willing to drop everything you currently already knew
and very comfortable with.
Willing to work extra, beyond what your job is asking,
just to learn more.
Willing to invest in yourself: your time, your money,
your equipments, …

Do you?
Love coding more than anything else.
Prefer building products than managing team.
Believe in building your skill-set is a way to grow.
Is FSD for you?

Skill-based Career
Development
Focus on add new skills and honing your current skills
Be relevant in job market.
Always look at your LinkedIn proﬁle.

Skill-based Career
Development
Establishing a skill set over time should be your primary
goal.
A skill set is the combination of skills you have acquired
throughout your employment, education and other
experiences.
Do you have a skill set carefully planned and follow
through?

How to become a FSD?
Adopt this Full-Stack mindset. Build your skill set.
Keep on building new stuff.
Get your hands dirty in areas you are not familiar with.
Be Pro-Active.

How to become a FSD?
BUT, what if my company not allows me to?
Again! It’s a mindset. Which means you are on your
own instead waiting for someone to help.
Use your spare time.
Look for opportunities. It’s everywhere. Really!

Expand your skill-set
Learn and keep learning.
Invest in building your career capital

Invest in your career capital
Online courses is a great way to learn.
Pay with your time: www.coursera.org , www.edx.org
Pay with your money: www.udemy.com ,
www.skillshare.com , www.codeschool.com
Pick a course, then ﬁnd an idea to build. It helps you
learn faster.

Why do we need FSD at SSS?
We are focusing on building products, quickly.
Small team (2-3pax) and short time frame (2-3months)
Communication between team members improves
because they understand each other. 
(imagine typical conversion between Front-end and
Back-end dev, or Designer and Developer)

Some example please!
Example 1: 
Most of our guys have joined with either Ruby on Rails
background or Mobile background. After ﬁrst 2 weeks,
they were all assigned to projects and self-learn to know
“the other framework”.
Example 2: 
All of our developers are required to work and learn with
UI/UX designers. They can’t design but need to
understand the design language, basic design rules and
best practices.

Example 3: 
Our marketing girls can code. Yes, the website
www.siliconstraits.vn is setup, design, and update
through Git
Example 4: 
Our current records: dev can join RoR project after self-
learning 2 weeks and iOS/Android project after 1 month.
Some example please!

How did it work out?
We are happy. That’s why we are promoting it.
Our developers are happy. Most of them are Full-Stack
now (both mindset and skill-set)
We did build a lot of cool products, across from web
app to mobile app, software and hardware.

Q & A
Let’s connect! 
www.haian.vn or buihaian (on any social network)

Credits
• Photo Source:
• http://ﬂashingcursor.com/
• http://andyshora.com/
• http://www.cartoonstock.com/
• http://blog.siliconstraits.vn
• http://guildlaunch.net
• http://blog.cyberbofh.com/

Full-Stack Developer_Tech Talk_August 13

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