Promoted to Team Lead, but using a low-code platform
Posted by griddolini@reddit | ExperiencedDevs | View on Reddit | 15 comments
I've been a full stack, primarily web application developer for \~8 years. Trying to move into senior/lead role. My company is trying to build up a software development team, as most of their contracts are IT/security. Our team lead left the company, and I've been moved up to replace them. Around the same time, the development work on this contract has started to peter out, and the company has had trouble landing any new dev contracts.
We had a new opportunity to get more work on this contract, but we were forced to use the OutSystems low-code platform. Unfortunately we knocked it out of the park and our client seems to like the proof of concept we built.
The root of my question is - if I have to lead a team that is primarily working with a low-code platform, am I nuking my resume? If not, how long should I stay before moving on? I don't want my experience and exposure with modern frameworks and engineering practices to fade as I just waste away as an OutSystems developer. Or do senior/lead roles not care as much about the lower level tech stack after I have enough years under my belt?
Curious what you might think if I saw someone applying to your team as a senior or lead developer, and their last X number years was leading a team building an OutSystems "low/no-code" application.
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obscuresecurity@reddit
You have years of coding experience. When you shift jobs, leet code your skills back to sharpness.
I managed to go back to development after doing 3 years in IT basically. It took real work, but you can do it.
Also, it is the thought process that matters in programming not the syntax... (Take it from someone who has worked in more languages than he can remember.)
Plus... Who says you'll mention it that way? How you present yourself is up to you. Don't lie, but one doesn't always tell the whole story ;).
No_Radish9565@reddit
I think the bigger problem is that no hiring manager is going to look at a resume that says “Led a team of 5 developers to build low code solutions in OutSystems” and think “yeah, let’s bring him in for this distributed systems engineering in C++ job”
Unless you want to move to management or a solutions architect career track then yes this is a dead end job. Kind of like SDET — once you go down the path, there isn’t a great way to get back. Every future hiring manager will be unable to see past your most recent work to see you can handle more than a dinky low-code tool.
obscuresecurity@reddit
if I wrote that, I'd back up that the low code platform allowed us to deliver faster, etc, backing the technical choice.
Or you can go the other way, and just drop the mention of the language.
Pardon the crass analogy:
A good resume is like good lingerie, It flatters the woman, it shows off her best attributes, and hides her worst. And leaves a bit to the imagination.
It isn't lying. It is telling the truth you want to tell.
thisismyfavoritename@reddit
syntax/knowledge of the language matters a lot for more complex languages like C++ and Rust. Definitely can translate a lot of your knowledge across similar languages, like one GCed language to another
obscuresecurity@reddit
Sure, if you are doing rust/C++ you must deal with their syntax. But let's be honest. Most of us leetcode in Python ;)
thisismyfavoritename@reddit
some places might require you do the coding challenges in the language youll be using
obscuresecurity@reddit
I haven't seen that much if at all.
Usually I'm given my choice of languages. Which is Python or C, with 90% Python. C is only used for bit banging examples, or where python is a lame choice. If I'm asked to write a linked list, I'm not doing it in python. There's no... sport, in it.
Can I code in other languages? Absolutely. But I choose the right tool for the situation. :)
NormalUserThirty@reddit
yes you are nuking your resume. i would not consider anyone with low code system experience unless i knew them first hand or trusted whoever referred them.
if we are coding i would want a lead with experience leading code projects not no code projects.
thisismyfavoritename@reddit
that sounds like a nightmare job to be honest.
Also, idk if team lead has a clear role definition. I guess some places might still expect you to code a lot while others maybe not at all. In any case, the deeper knowledge of the stack youre working with, the better.
So definitely that knowledge youll acquire of that low code platform will be wasted if you never reuse it and your other skills might not be as sharp
fortunatefaileur@reddit
If you’re not tech leading a programming team, you’re not tech leading a programming team. Is that what you want?
Worrying about your resume is pretty secondary - first decide if you want your current job before worrying about if it’ll advance your career or not.
thisismyfavoritename@reddit
team lead
Capable_Hamster_4597@reddit
This is only interesting on a CV of someone who implements enterprise software and re-models business processes (SAP/Salesforce/ServiceNow experts). Low code platforms are often used to glue systems together where they fail to map your processes end to end.
On the CV of a software engineer this is entirely useless.
steronz@reddit
I have about 4 years experience working with OutSystems. If you like it, there is work out there, and the pool of OutSystems developers is small. So small that we stopped hiring people with OS experience -- our candidates just weren't very good devs. And in order to be a good Outsystems dev, you first need to be a good dev. The whole "citizen coder" concept is bogus.
If your career is your primary concern, I'd be wary. Companies that have built OS applications will need OS devs for a while, but I don't think the platform is going to continue to grow. We've largely abandoned it where we can, as it's got a lot of limitations that we just couldn't work around.
casualfinderbot@reddit
I wouldn’t hire someone who was working in low code for years up until now. If you don’t write code, how will you be good at writing code?
Regardless of the resume, your coding skills are gonna decay