Meet Kuba, Junior Software Developer at Ailleron. He’s a young, ambitious individual with clear goals, focused on personal development and consistently expanding his career path. We invite you to read on – we hope it will inspire you to invest in yourself and your growth.

1 . Hi Kuba, thank you for agreeing to share your experiences and practical advice for beginner developers. 

Hello, I’m really pleased to have the opportunity to give this interview and share my knowledge and experience. I hope that, even in a small way, it will help people who are just starting their programming journey. 

2. How did your passion for programming begin? 

My true passion for programming only emerged when I discovered “my” technology – the one I really felt comfortable with. I tried coding in high school and later at university, but it didn’t interest me enough to make it my future. 

A lot changed when, during my student internship, I had to learn to program in the field of ERP systems and dedicate more time to it. I quite enjoyed it, but I felt it wasn’t the technology I wanted to work with long-term, so I started looking for something else. 

I’ve always enjoyed reading about the latest technologies, gadgets, and similar topics. An idea came to my mind that it would be great to create something myself – something I could use every day and that would be easily accessible. That’s when I realized I could achieve this by creating a mobile app for Android, so I decided to give it a try. I bought a course, and that’s when everything got serious. From the very beginning, I really liked the technology, and learning it was a lot of fun. Over time, I took more courses, created several of my own apps, learned more advanced topics, and I can confidently say that’s when my passion for programming was born. 

3. The beginning of a career can be different for everyone. Some start with internships or traineeships, while others find stable employment immediately after graduation. How did your career as a Junior Software Developer begin? 

I won’t hide it – it was pretty tough. Finishing high school or studying computer science didn’t matter much to recruiters. The experience I gained during my student internship was in a different technology, so when I switched to Android development, many people dismissed me at first. They were mainly looking for candidates with commercial experience, which I didn’t have then. 

Despite several months of searching for my first job and facing setbacks, I didn’t give up. I kept acquiring new knowledge, developing my portfolio, building apps, and sending my CV to various companies. Eventually, someone from Ailleron reached out to me. First, I was given a recruitment task, which I did quite well, and that led to a technical interview. That step determined my acceptance and gave me the opportunity, for which I am very grateful. 

4. We’re thrilled that you can spread your wings here at Ailleron. 😊 You work with Android daily. Where is the best place to start if someone wants to become an Android developer? Through webinars, training courses, books, or industry articles? 

I’m not a fan of books when it comes to learning programming, especially for Android, which is a very dynamic and constantly evolving field. Books written even a few years ago can already be outdated, making it impractical to invest time in learning from them. Today, there are newer and better solutions. 

While the fundamentals of many programming languages remain unchanged, and the knowledge from books can be sufficient, I believe it’s not the most convenient way to learn coding. 

5. Agreed. Learning how to code is best done through hands-on experience. Do you recommend courses or articles for that? 

Yes. In my opinion, it’s beneficial to start with courses or industry articles that can teach you something and, at the same time, try coding things yourself. During my learning, I made sure to write at least a very simple app after each course, which helped solidify my knowledge. Webinars and training serve as excellent resources for further learning after establishing a fundamental understanding of the subject. 

6. When a difficult task comes up at work, where do you look for inspiration and reliable information? 

Until recently, I searched for similar problems and solutions on various programming forums. The main issue was that many threads were several years old, making the proposed solutions outdated or not entirely relevant to my specific case. The suggestions from other users often didn’t work for me. Occasionally, I also used YouTube videos, but that was rather rare. Another source was technical documentation, but in many cases, I found it lacking, as the way it was written often seemed hard to follow. 

7. A puzzle like “what did the author mean by this?” to solve? 

Exactly! I also increasingly rely on artificial intelligence. The last few years have seen tremendous growth in this field, and I believe there’s nothing wrong with using such tools if they can improve and speed up work. It might not be at a level where it can solve complex tasks, but it certainly helps a lot, and it’s very easy to use. You just describe the problem, and the AI suggests several potential solutions. Even if they don’t work out perfectly, they can at least help guide us toward the right answer. Of course, I use it in line with company policies so our code remains safe. 😉 

8. Do you have any favorite bloggers, YouTubers, authors, or industry gurus who inspire you and you follow closely? 

Yes. At one point in my learning journey, I discovered YouTuber Philipp Lackner, who stays up to date on Android programming and modern technologies. I still follow him. He creates many videos primarily for beginner programmers but also covers advanced topics. He discusses fundamentals, presents innovative solutions and technologies, and demonstrates ways to enhance performance or optimize apps. His content has helped me understand many concepts that I previously struggled with. Since discovering him, I’ve seen significant progress in my coding and app development skills. I think it’s worth following his channel, especially for his monthly updates on key Android and Kotlin developments. 

9. Professional growth is heavily influenced by the workplace. How does Ailleron support your development? 

Ailleron provides a lot of opportunities for development. Apart from the main project I work on every day, I also had the chance to work on other projects, which taught me a lot. I participated in adapting our company product, LiveBank, to meet WCAG requirements for accessibility for people with disabilities. Thanks to this project, I learned a lot about accessibility, which is practical knowledge that could prove very useful in the near future. According to new guidelines, other apps will also need to be adapted to the needs of people with disabilities. 

Additionally, we have the opportunity to work with new technologies. Recently, we worked on a project using KMP (Kotlin Multiplatform), which involved creating a multiplatform library for managing advertising banners. The technology allowed us to write shared code for both Android and iOS. There’s a good chance that multiplatform solutions will gain importance in the mobile industry in the coming years, and the knowledge we’ve gained will be very valuable. 

Popular initiatives that help with professional growth include guilds. Ailleron has a lot of them, and the one I participate in is the Mobile Guild, which brings together developers working in mobile technologies. We meet every two weeks to exchange experiences, knowledge, problems, and solutions from our projects and familiarize with new technologies and design patterns. 

Each employee receives 80 hours for professional development, which can be spent on courses and training. 

10. To wrap up, what three pieces of advice would you give to someone starting their career as a Software Developer? 

First of all, I believe that programming should be enjoyed. If we’re learning to code just to change careers for better pay, it’s probably not the right approach. This can quickly and harshly clash with reality, so it’s important to ask ourselves from the start whether we really want to do this. If the answer is yes, and we plan to go in this direction, I think it’s worth looking for a language that we feel comfortable with. There are so many options, and it’s better to develop in a technology we’re interested in than in one that’s in high demand or offers the highest pay because, otherwise, we might burn out. 

11. Passion, which we’ve been talking about, is undoubtedly a source of motivation to act and grow. What else do you think is equally important? 

That’s exactly what I think. Another piece of advice is to stand out from the competition when looking for a job. Often, dozens or even hundreds of candidates apply for a single position. Right from the start, you need to demonstrate why you are the right choice. A well-prepared CV is crucial, as it immediately captures recruiters’ attention and encourages them to take a closer look. Equally important is having a strong portfolio. If you lack experience, you must prove your programming skills, and the best way to do this is by sharing your original projects in a repository. However, these should be well-thought-out apps that genuinely showcase your abilities. 

I’ve seen many cases where people presented projects that were 95% based on a course application, with only a different color palette or minor visual adjustments. Unfortunately, this approach doesn’t get you very far, as it doesn’t prove that you truly understand the course material and can apply it in practice. It would be much better to plan out a few simple applications – not necessarily groundbreaking ones – but projects that demonstrate a solid grasp of key aspects of a given technology. 

The last piece of advice might sound a bit cliché, but it’s absolutely true: in my opinion, you must not give up, especially at the beginning of your career when you don’t yet have much experience. The IT job market has become quite tough recently, and the entry barrier is relatively high, so patience is essential. You also have to accept that finding your first job may take some time. Early in your career, companies rarely reach out to you first, so you must actively seek opportunities yourself. It’s important to keep learning and expanding your skills, but don’t forget about developing soft skills as well – IT is not just about technical knowledge. 

12. Kuba, thank you very much for the conversation. I’m sure this will inspire those starting their IT journey and navigating the industry. Wishing you great success! 

Thank you for the interview!