A Day in the Life of a Web Developer at Share IT

If you’re thinking about pursuing a career in web development, you are probably interested in knowing what will it be like once you finally land your first job. Even though building websites seems like a pretty interesting way to spend a significant portion of your weekdays, just like any other job out there - web development has its good and bad sides.

Maybe you’re completely new to the whole thing and you have an overly romanticized picture in your head regarding the tasks and projects you’ll be working on as a web developer in an actual company. While this profession is fulfilling in many ways, it’s not always rainbows and butterflies.

When they’re looking to hire new web developers, most IT businesses tend to overemphasize employee benefits and tone down the job duties, which makes the position sound like it’s easy as pie. In order to stay competitive on the job market and attract talented professionals, they promote this position through pink lenses and make it sound like it’s all about “collecting a handsome salary, hanging out with cool people, drinking craft beer all day and playing foosball”; very “startupy”, but also far from the truth.

We at Share IT believe this is counter-productive, so we decided to set the record straight and put you in the shoes of an actual web developer from our company. To provide you with some real-life insights, we sat down with our Medior Full Stack Developer, Dusan Milic, and asked him a couple of questions.

Dusan has been with us for more than 3 years now, and he has over 10 years of experience in the industry. Nowadays, he mostly focuses on back-end development, while still finding the time to work on his front-end skills as well. He spends a lot of time exploring ReactJS and its ecosystem.

Hi, Dusan. For starters, how did you end up working in Share IT?

It happened by word of mouth. My friend was already working here, so he asked me if I would be interested to join the company. I listened to his advice, sent my CV, and the rest is history.

That sounds sweet. Since you’ve been with Share IT for a while, would you mind sharing what do you like most about the company?

I would say the culture and the no-pressure atmosphere. You’re given enough space to work on your projects. Plus, you can consult your colleagues about anything job-related.

Of course, deadlines still exist, but in the majority of cases, they are quite reasonable and achievable.

In your opinion, what are the components of a great website today?

I have to say, the mobile layout and UX. For a website to be perceived as good, it doesn’t necessarily have to be flashy.

Quite the contrary, the most important aspect of each website is its functionality. In order for it to fully serve its purpose, a website has to clearly present what it has to offer. Meaning it has to feel intuitive to the users on both mobile and desktop devices. People have to browse pages with ease, and effortlessly find what they need - even during their very first session.

Personally, when I use a website that makes it difficult for me to instantly find and access content that I need, I usually get frustrated. It's even worse when that problem persists on subsequent visits.

However, to be fair, making a super intuitive website is not really that easy to achieve. Every client has a different story and unique demands, so it’s necessary to follow up on their requests and make something that’s in sync with their vision and what you personally believe is good for their business.

Building a great foundation (back-end) is the key here.

What are the most common frustrations or concerns clients come to you with? How do you help them?

In most cases, their frustrations and concerns are tied to the lack of automation of some processes, and the speed at which their data is being processed. I help them by first analyzing the problem and looking if there’s an existing solution that I can apply to their case, or if I need to come up with a custom one. Then, I go deeper into details and try to figure out how to solve a problem and then develop the solution. For instance, I think about which operations are really necessary for this specific scenario and which are not. This is actually the most important part of the whole process.

The time invested in this phase can greatly reduce the amount of coding I’ll need to do in order to come up with the solution, which will also have a great effect on the amount of coding in the maintenance phase. When the analysis is over, the coding is just a matter of sticking to the plan. Of course, changes can happen and we always need to be flexible and on board with the client’s wishes. Shortly put, thanks to my analytical mindset and flexibility in work, I can effectively help Share IT’s clients resolve their frustrations.

Great stuff, Dusan. Could you please describe your ideal client to us?

Ugh, that’s a tough one. My ideal clients are people who are able to clearly articulate their desires and communicate well. People who are efficient and detail-oriented in communication.

The client needs to be able to clearly, and in as much detail as possible, express their needs and renegotiate requests when the implementation exceeds time or resources that were originally planned.

What type of homework should business owners do before seeking the services of a web developer?

Before contacting an IT company, they should really figure out what they need. Having a vague idea of what you need or want is not great when it comes to web development.

Clients should come to meetings prepared so that the developers can have something tangible to work with when forming an actual offer. It’s understandable that most clients don’t really have a complete picture in their head that includes every possible detail, and that’s ok. A lot of things can be worked out along the way. But the more info a developer has at the beginning, the greater the chance of providing quality service in record time.

One of the most important things to consider before contacting an IT company is the size and complexity of the website or app that needs developing. Are you looking for a small, medium or large solution? Is there a possibility for future expansions?

Also, it would be beneficial for the client to have at least some basic knowledge of the connection between certain technologies and languages, and what they can bring to the table.

Nothing too serious, just like a basic understanding that classic WordPress themes are okay for smaller projects, and that .NET solutions are recommended for more complex business needs. Using WordPress for complex business solutions is like digging a trench with a spoon while using .NET for basic web presentation is like using scuba diving gear in a kiddy pool. Both of these solutions kinda work, but they are not really meant to be used that way. For a good reason, of course.

What new technology or innovations are you most excited about today?

I’m most excited about the improvements in machine learning. It has greatly improved during the last decade or so. In addition, today’s tools like TensorFlow really help with coding abstract solutions from a more technical and mathematical perspective. It enables us to focus more on actual business problems and architectural design.

The applications of machine learning are really rich now. From projecting data and making predictions, to visual and auditory pattern recognition - there’s a lot going on. The technology has been with us for a long time for these kind of operations, but now it’s really gaining momentum. It’s exciting. I really think that this field will see greater use in the upcoming years.

Big thanks to Dusan to taking the time to share his story with us!

If you happen to need web development services, feel free to contact Share IT today! We’re ready to help you create something amazing.