Hey y’all!

I’m back at PyTennessee for my third year!

PyTennessee, a regional Python conference, is special to me because it’s where I got my start speaking at tech conferences. In 2015, I was invited to give a talk on my experience learning to code and teaching others to cook, and sharing that very journey on this here blog. A year later I was invited back to give a keynote.

This year I’ll be talking about making the transition from a customer-facing Support team to an engineering role. In From Support to Engineering: Bridging the gap and growing together, I’ll share how working in customer support helps you grow empathy, communication skills, and the ability to troubleshoot. Transitioning to engineering gives you an opportunity to translate that empathy, communication, and troubleshooting.

To “bridge the gap”, I’ve got advice for both sides. In Support, how do you hire (or become) someone the rest of your engineering team can get excited about? I’ll give advice about developing a transition plan that honors the important work done on the customer side while supporting an individual’s longer-term career goals.

And in engineering? Attitude, as they so often say, is everything. I’ll share how elevating support and customer-facing roles in your organization benefits everyone, and give you some tips towards redefining pairing relationships and promoting transparency.

I’m speaking at 11am in Room 100, and I’m looking forward to seeing you!

Check out the rest of the great schedule here.

Now, for a quick FAQ – I have not yet heard if talks will be recorded, but if you’re curious, definitely follow PyTennessee on Twitter for updates.

See you soon!