

Ask HN: How to navigate software development in terms of business domains? - roundnround

A broad knowledge of technologies is useful, but I&#x27;d like to specialise in something.
I would like to find not only a technological area of focus, but also a business area.<p>Which sectors and industries use which languages, operating systems, databases?
Which divisions of the organisations use different technologies?
What&#x27;s required to enter these fields, both technically and business wise?
What can one expect to experience, daily, and long term?<p>Are there any relevant resources on the web?
======
efriese
It depends on what your goals are. If you want to use cutting edge
technologies, then it's better to stay in commercial and go with either a tech
company or small/mid sized business. I chose to go into the US Federal sector
after college and it was a great decision for me. Feds and big companies
typically use older technologies, but there's stead high-paying work. Lots of
Java and .NET with SQL Server and Oracle. Front end development is just now
starting to get popular, so we're seeing more Angular apps.

I think the best decision I made was to move around in different business
units. I started out writing code, then moved over to a post-sales consultant.
I was basically with customers every day training on our products and helping
our customers use them correctly. I then moved over to being a Sales Engineer
where I design technical solutions and help the sales team close deals.

Each position outside of development made me a better developer. Getting out
of the development echo chamber gave me more of a customer focus. This career
path is probably not for everyone because I have to do a lot of public
speaking, but I love it. I don't know how old you are or where you are, but
don't be afraid to try out different roles. You may be surprised at which role
suits you best...I know I was.

