The Core Ingredient of Building Software — Ratik Sharma — @CodeDay 2023, IIT Delhi

I got the opportunity to speak to high-schoolers and undergrads at CodeDay 2023 being held on the IIT Delhi campus this past weekend. I put together a short talk about the importance of working in a (software) team based on my experience as a software engineer.

Thank you for having me, CodeDay!

Transcript

1. The Core Ingredient of Building Software* ¬ @ratixyz // ratik.in Ratik Sharma * md–lg scale software Sr. Android Engineer @ Fueled
2. How is software actually built? ratik.in
3. How is software actually built? ratik.in
4. TEAMS! ratik.in
5. no, NOT Microsoft Teams… ratik.in
6. SOFTWARE TEAMS! ratik.in
7. SOFTWARE TEAMS! ratik.in
8. PRODUCT TEAMS! ratik.in
9. What does a product team look like? ratik.in
10. Product Team ratik.in
11. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 ratik.in
12. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
13. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
14. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 UI Designers 🎨 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
15. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
16. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
17. The Core Ingredient of Building Software* ¬ * md–lg scale software
18. The Core Ingredient of Building Software* ¬ * md–lg scale software
19. ratik.in A very brief history of … me!
20. ratik.in 1996-2002 the early years
21. ratik.in 2002-2010 developing an interest in all things tech
22. ratik.in 2010-2012 learning to build and theme a website
23. ratik.in 2012-2014 studying “computer science” for the first time
24. ratik.in 2014-2017 going to university to study … mathematics ( !! )
25. ratik.in 2017 somehow … with a lot of luck … getting that first job writing code
26. ratik.in 2017-2020 Software Developer @ Meraki, a not-for-profit start-up
27. ratik.in 2017-2020 a solo software developer
28. ratik.in 2017-2020 a solo and eventually … lonely … software developer
29. ratik.in 2017-2020 https: // www.ratik.in/writing/meraki
30. TEAM! ratik.in
31. PRODUCT TEAM! ratik.in
32. ratik.in 2020-Present https: // www.ratik.in/writing/why-fueled
33. ratik.in 2020-Present sr. software engineer @ Fueled
34. Product Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in
35. How is software actually built? ratik.in
36. How is software actually built? ratik.in (by a team)
37. Example Time ratik.in
38. ratik.in Software Engineer @ CodeDay
39. CodeDay Mobile Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in *
40. ratik.in CodeDay Mobile App
41. ratik.in CodeDay Mobile App Feature A
42. ratik.in CodeDay Mobile App Feature A Feature B
43. ratik.in CodeDay Mobile App Feature A Feature B Feature C
44. ratik.in Feature A
45. Mob Team: Design Phase Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in *
46. Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in * Mob Team: Design Phase
47. ratik.in Feature A
48. Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in * Mob Team: Design → Dev Phase
49. GROOMING ratik.in CEREMONY 1
50. ratik.in The Grooming Ceremony* * it’s a meeting really
51. ratik.in The Grooming Ceremony* * it’s a meeting really • The product team meets to discuss features to be built in the next N weeks
52. ratik.in The Grooming Ceremony* * it’s a meeting really • The product team meets to discuss features to be built in the next N weeks • Team talks and refines features
53. ratik.in The Grooming Ceremony* * it’s a meeting really • The product team meets to discuss features to be built in the next N weeks • Team talks and refines features • Product Manager updates the feature’s specification based on the grooming session
54. PLANNING ratik.in CEREMONY 2
55. ratik.in The Planning Meeting
56. ratik.in The Planning Meeting • The product team meets to assign estimates* to the features being built over the next N weeks * software estimates as a topic is outside the scope of this talk
57. ratik.in The Planning Meeting • The product team meets to assign estimates* to the features being built over the next N weeks • After estimation, the Product Manager kicks off the dev cycle for the team * software estimates as a topic is outside the scope of this talk
58. Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in * Mob Team: Dev Phase
59. Product Manager(s) 💼 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in Software Engineers 👩💻* Mob Team: Dev Phase
60. DAILY HUDDLE ratik.in CEREMONY 3
61. ratik.in Daily Huddle
62. ratik.in Daily Huddle • The product team meets daily for a quick 15 mins
63. ratik.in Daily Huddle • The product team meets daily for a quick 15 mins • Each team member discusses (1) what they worked on yesterday, (2) what they will be working on today, and (3) what they are stuck on
64. ratik.in Daily Huddle • The product team meets daily for a quick 15 mins • Each team member discusses (1) what they worked on yesterday, (2) what they will be working on today, and (3) what they are stuck on • After the huddle, smaller groups get created to work through queries for people stuck on problems
65. CodeDay Mobile Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in *
66. CodeDay Mobile Team Software Engineers 👩💻 Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in *
67. Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in Software Engineers 👩💻 *
68. Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in Software Engineers 👩💻 * + N-weekly Grooming N-weekly Planning Daily Huddles
69. Product Manager(s) 💼 Project Manager 💼 UI Designers 🎨 UX Researchers 🧐 Software Testers 🧪 ratik.in Software Engineers 👩💻 * + N-weekly Grooming N-weekly Planning Daily Huddles =
70. CONCLUSION ratik.in
71. ratik.in Conclusion
72. ratik.in Conclusion • Collaborate with others as much as you can
73. ratik.in Conclusion • Collaborate with others as much as you can 
 • Seek out opportunities to work in product teams
74. ratik.in Conclusion • Collaborate with others as much as you can 
 • Seek out opportunities to work in product teams • Emulate the different roles found in a product team ie. be the product manager for your own projects
76. ratik.in Conclusion • Collaborate with others as much as you can 
 • Seek out opportunities to work in product teams • Emulate the different roles found in a product team ie. be the product manager for your own projects • Dig into the software estimation rabbit hole
77. ratik.in Conclusion • Collaborate with others as much as you can 
 • Seek out opportunities to work in product teams • Emulate the different roles found in a product team ie. be the product manager for your own projects • Dig into the software estimation rabbit hole • Never forget to have fun along the way!
78. fin() @ratixyz // ratik.in Ratik Sharma Sr. Android Engineer @ Fueled
79. Questions? @ratixyz // ratik.in Ratik Sharma Sr. Android Engineer @ Fueled