As with all skills, practice makes perfect. That’s especially true for developers, who need to know the ins and outs of coding to do their job effectively. They also need to be creative, and we all know the best way to think outside the box is to part ways with your normal routine and try new things. These techies all have side projects — and encouraging employers — that keep their skills sharp and their ideas fresh.
Venmo is the payment app you use to send money to friends and family. With the countless transactions happening on the app every day, the company relies heavily on its tech team to produce quality work. Venmo Software Engineer Simon Weber explained how his side projects have helped sharpen his skills.
What are the most interesting side projects you’ve worked on?
The side project I'm most proud of is a Google Chrome extension that adds customizable auto-playlists to Google Music. I got the inspiration from Apple’s iTunes "smart playlists" and built the functionality for the web browser I use most often. I taught myself modern JavaScript by working on this project.
Another neat one is python-libfaketime, which lets you mock time-related system calls when testing code. I was motivated to build this based on the slowness of the alternatives. This project is actually in use at Venmo today — where it made our test suite four times faster!
How do side projects help you succeed in your day-to-day work?
Outside of the direct benefits from tools like libfaketime, side projects allow me to test and learn new paradigms and technologies that I wouldn’t otherwise use, which in turn makes me better at my job.
How does your company encourage you to take on new coding challenges outside of work?
Venmo offers reimbursement for tuition and books for continuing education and development programs up to $5,200 a year. Venmo leadership also supports team members who have a great idea for something new that the company should go after, and hosts an annual hack week to pitch ideas and bring them to life.
Clarifai provides image recognition technology for companies developing apps. It basically trains computers to identify objects and things — which requires some significantly talented techies. Kunal Batra, Head of Developer Relations, explains how his side projects have allowed him to exercise his talents and in turn provide better work for Clarifai.
What are the most interesting side projects you’ve worked on?
Two come to mind. One is Deaftel, which started out as a fun chat app, where someone speaks into the phone and their voice is converted to text. Then, whatever the other person types in a chatbox is converted into voice. I built it for fun, and it turned out it solved a need for privacy for people who are hard of hearing.
Another is Taco Bell Disrupt, a fun little app that tells you how to maximize the amount of Taco Bell calories you can intake with the least amount of money. I created it during a TechCrunch Disrupt Hackathon.
How do side projects help you succeed in your day-to-day work?
Side projects are a great way to learn new tech, keep skills you might not use for your day job fresh and meet new people who can become mentors and improve your coding craft.
How does your company encourage you to take on new challenges outside of work?
Clarifai gives each employee dedicated time to get creative and work on products that aren't on our roadmap. The company also gets together once a month for a hackathon and everyone demos what they have built.
Sailthru helps modern marketers at leading retail and media companies build deeper, longer-lasting relationships with their customers. It works with the fastest growing e-commerce companies, meaning its tech needs to be reliable, fast and innovative. Engineer Lindsay Neubauer explains how the side projects she works on have helped her be better at her job.
What are the most interesting side projects you've worked on?
On the side, I’m a teacher/mentor for Technology Education and Literacy in Schools (TEALS) and an instructor for Girls Who Code. I have been part of TEALS for two and half years. I was first a teacher and now I am a mentor for other teachers.
How do side projects help you succeed in your day-to-day work?
My experience at TEALS has allowed me to translate concepts and ideas to other members of my team and to other departments. At TEALS, I’m teaching introductory concepts at a high school level. I have to make sure that I am explaining things in an approachable way, and that’s really helped me. Any time you’re teaching something new, you get the chance to re-learn it and solidify the context.
How does your company encourage you to take on new challenges outside of work?
At Sailthru, we have a flexible work environment for volunteering. I get a lot of support from the engineering team and the company as a whole. There have been times where I’ve had to skip a team meeting or have had to join a call with a teacher and the team has always been supportive and understanding.
Photos via featured companies.
