Why did you decide to become a mentor?
I’ve always been a lifelong learner and believer in education. Mentorship is a collaborative exchange where both the mentor and mentee grow from each other. I decided to become a mentor after receiving a lot of guidance from other mentors. Back in 2023, I was part of the wave of layoffs that swept the tech industry. During that period I was searching for direction on the next play in my career and started to have conversations with veteran leaders in software from engineers to PMs to directors. I learned so much from all of them and also realized I had a lot to offer others.
Mentorship has allowed me to help students looking for guidance in a constantly-changing hiring environment, prepare candidates for technical interviews, and help others make pivots later in their careers. The thing I wasn't expecting from it was how it has improved my own skills. It has made me a better communicator, better listener, and better person. I leverage those skills in both my professional and personal life.
How did you get your career start?
I've had two starts in my career. At the end of my undergraduate degree in business, I was struggling to find a job and my university had a career services program that matched employers with graduating students. Through that I was put in contact with a small company building regulatory software for licensed professionals (nurses, tax preparers, etc.). I jumped at the opportunity and wore multiple hats in that role, from support to sales, including a bit of programming. It was the programming experience in SQL and Python that got me interested in software development.
I made the decision to go back to school and study computer science for a second undergraduate degree which took 3 years (2 years of school, 1 year of internships). During my last couple of semesters I was working in overdrive to find a job and juggle school. I was fortunate to land an interview at Microsoft and barely got a spot in the final rounds after many of the positions had already been filled. I failed to get offers at many other companies I applied to during that period but all of that interview experience paid off. I got the job at Microsoft and started my journey building data pipelines for the Bing local search relevance team.
What do mentees usually come to you for?
I focus most of my mentorship on resume review, technical interview prep, and career transition guidance from other fields into software engineering.
For resume review, I address resumes both from a machine's perspective (ATS systems) and also a real human perspective (typically a recruiter or hiring manager). It's important to have an easy-to-read resume that also focuses on your individual achievements.
For technical interview prep, I cover coding, system design, and behavioural interview formats. These are the most common interview formats for both engineers and engineering managers. We focus on technical aptitude, communication strategies, and time management. More recently I've been focused on AI-assisted interviews and helping candidates understand how to leverage AI in interviews thoughtfully. AI is rapidly changing the technical interview landscape and I help candidates use available tools efficiently.
Finally, for career transitions, these are mostly open-ended discussions tailored to the specific candidate on what they are looking for and their career satisfaction. The tech field has many different career options and choosing the right direction is just as important as preparing to interview for those positions.
What's been your favourite mentorship success story so far?
My favourite mentorship success story so far has been working with a software engineer who was looking for a new opportunity after a layoff. He was struggling to get interviews and the ones he did have weren't leading to offers. We did an overhaul of his resume, application strategy, and practiced mock interviews. He ultimately ended up with a job offer a couple of months later after conducting final rounds with multiple companies and is excited about his new role!
What are you getting out of being a mentor?
Mentorship to me is more than just helping someone achieve a particular goal. It's a lifelong practice of sharing knowledge and wisdom with others. It's also a 2-way street; I learn just as much (if not more) from my mentees.
The most important skill I’ve learned from mentorship is listening. I used to be more focused on what I would say when it was my turn to speak, which prevented me from internalizing valuable insights from others. Now I find myself being more balanced in my communication style which has paid dividends in both my professional and personal life.
