Raul Rivero

It’s official: landing a software engineering job is tougher now than it was just a few years ago. With many startups shutting down and big companies laying off employees, candidates with 0-5 years of experience are feeling the pinch. What can you do? Shift your storytelling from tools and languages to the impact you've made. Highlight who your users were, how you improved their lives, and any recognition you received. Remember, outcomes matter more than just the technologies you used!

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"I don't like leetcode style interviews!" See I wasn't making it up! Kurtis Nusbaum tells us more about why engineers don't like leetcode and the types of interviews that lead to a more enjoyable and effective interviewing experience.

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SDE job openings are increasing significantly vs the previous quarter. 📈 Looks like the tech hiring market is continuing its steady incline back to full strength. Sharing some great insights curated by Dave Hardwick. • As of the 27th, there have been 45,241 SDE openings on LinkedIn in the U.S. for the last 7 days. • This is +37.2% v. the 13-week rolling average, +95.43% above last week’s count of 23,149, and the highest weekly count for this category of ads this year. ⬆ • Product Manager ads: 5,033 (+79.6% v. the rolling 13-week average of 2,802), and the highest count for this calendar year. ⬆ • Program Manager ads: 7,758 (+73.6% v. the rolling 13-week avg of 4,470), again, highest for the calendar year. ⬆ MAAMA Co’s (SDE job ad counts for this cohort): • Apple: Apple: 0 (continuing their no-job ad trend on LinkedIn since 10/30/23 ↔ • Google: 312 (+100.9% v. their rolling 13-week avg. of 155) ⬆ • Microsoft: 1,544 (+148.7% v. their rolling 13-week avg. of 621)⬆ • Amazon/AWS: 2,009, (+230.5% vs their rolling 13-week avg. of 608)⬆ • Meta: 413 (+434.2% v. their rolling 13-week avg. of 77)⬆ • Total: 4,278 (+192.7% v. their rolling 13-week avg. of 1,461)⬆ ⬆

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Junior Software Engineers—are you ready for the new way that companies are looking to hire in 2025? This weeks videos is all about how coding hiring will evolve as AI continues to improve.

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In 2025, what sets apart a remarkable hire? - **System Design Mastery**: It goes beyond coding; it's about crafting scalable, efficient systems. - **Problem-Solving Mindset**: Tackling challenges creatively and collaboratively is key. - **Lifelong Learning**: Adapting to evolving technologies is crucial as today's tech stack may be outdated tomorrow.

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Dev agencies, if you don’t want to be treated as a commodity, stop acting like one. - Learn the business context for engineering needs - Stop squeezing your clients every opportunity you get - Prioritize transparency, communication, and accountability In short, position yourself as a partner that uses tech to solve business problems. You really can’t complain about being seen as a commodity if you treat everything as a transaction.

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The tech hiring market feels good again, with urgency returning to the forefront—particularly for early-stage startups. The selectiveness is higher than ever though... The most in-demand roles? Founding Engineers. These are the cornerstone hires for scaling startups: versatile, product-focused full-stack engineers who write clean, well-tested, production-ready code. They're expected to design scalable architectures, quickly become domain experts, and operate with self-motivation and curiosity. Essentially, Swiss Army knives capable of driving significant impact. My expertise lies in placing these high-caliber engineers, primarily in hybrid in-office roles across NYC and SF. While there’s some movement in Series B/C/D companies, the bulk of the demand I’m seeing is in the early-stage space, where the right hire can make or break the trajectory of a company. If you’re scaling, looking or know someone who is, let’s connect. I have some huge plans for 2025, and they start now!

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Top 3 things I’m hearing software engineers want… (aside from money & flexibility) 🎯𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 & 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 🎯𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬  🎯𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 If you’re hiring for software folks… A good place to start is highlighting these in job specs. Then as part of your interview process. And once they’re in the door. Put it into practice and your retention will improve. Otherwise I might be speaking to them again 😊 Anything I've missed? #softwareengineer #retention #talentacquisition 

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Don’t have a JD to prepare against?  Not sure about the nature of the interview round? Just follow these steps (more details in the video) - ▶️ Understand the Company’s Tech Stack ▶️ Know Your Interviewer ▶️ Always be ready for coding and System Design ▶️ Practice Time-Boxing ▶️ Verbalize Your Thought Process ▶️ Stay calm and be flexible For any clarity or details, feel free to reach out to [email protected] Scrabble Jigsaw Game Room FYLM

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Taken from TLDR - full article attached. "To automate entire job functions" it says. Talking about making your job easier? You won't have to do anything! 🤖 In two months they have generated 700k in ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue, so subscriptions. Artisan, a fast-growing startup founded in 2023, is revolutionizing the future of work by developing AI employees, called Artisans, to automate entire job functions, starting with sales. After initially struggling with a self-serve model, it transitioned to a sales-led approach, resulting in significant growth. Artisan is focused on building an efficient inbound lead generation system and aims to create the best outbound AI SDR on the market. It plans to expand into other areas like marketing and customer success. https://lnkd.in/eUnT972j

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The #1 reason software engineers leave their jobs is a lack of growth opportunities. Often they feel stagnant due to unclear career paths, outdated tech stacks or limited chances to upskill. If you’re in a management role, you’re likely balancing business objectives, team goals, and your team members’ individual aspirations - it's really hard to get things right without a competency framework in place. First of all, it makes hiring a lot easier when you know exactly what skills and behaviours are non-negotiable. Secondly it really can drive performance in your team: when competency frameworks are well-defined everyone knows where they are, what's expected and how to move forward. And lastly, to get back to the retention issue: engineers don't leave companies - they leave stagnation. With the righ competency frameworks in place you can provide a roadmap for growth, showing team members exactly how they can develop and advance, keeping them engaged and motivated. If your team doesn't have a framework for what defines skills and success, you're esentially flying blind and it will be really hard to hire well, define and offer growth and ultimately make your team better. Over the last couple of years I've supported a number of startups defining compentency frameworks for specific roles within their engineering teams. From out-of-the-box SFIA 8 & 9 aligned frameworks, to bespoke frameworks tailored to the structure of the business. Recognize this challenge? Let's do something about it this year. Reach out via DM or [email protected]

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💻 Live Coding Challenges vs. Take-Home Tests: Which is Better? 🤔 When it comes to technical interviews, both live coding challenges and take-home tests offer unique benefits: 🚀 Live Coding Challenges: - Real-time problem-solving: Shows your ability to think on your feet and adapt quickly. - Collaboration under pressure: Simulates teamwork, demonstrating communication skills in high-pressure environments. - Immediate feedback: Speeds up the interview process with on-the-spot insights. 📝 Take-Home Tests: - More time to reflect: You can plan and structure your solution without the time constraints of a live interview. - Real-world work simulation: Provides the opportunity to showcase how you’d solve problems in a real-world setting, using all available resources. - In-depth solutions: Allows for more thoughtful, polished code that can demonstrate your best practices and attention to detail. Both approaches have their place — live coding highlights a candidate's problem-solving under pressure, while take-home tests allow you to showcase your skillset thoroughly without the added pressure of extra eyeballs. What’s your preference? Let me know!👇 #TechInterviews #LiveCoding #TakeHomeTests #CareerDevelopment #Hiring #TechCareers #JobSearch

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🎯 Hiring managers…have you ever felt overwhelmed opening a new software engineering role? 🤓 Hiring software engineers for your team shouldn't be a headache. My video below reveals the top 3️⃣ struggles I see – and the small, actionable 🎯 adjustments that'll save your team time in the hiring process. 🤝Ready to partner for a smoother search? Watch ⬇️!

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Developers, never forget that interviews should go both ways. Yes, the interviewer is there to learn about you, but you’re also there to learn about them. If you’re interviewing at an early-stage startup (e.g. less than 10 employees), here are three things you might want to find out during the first stage: 🗣️ Where are they currently at with app development, and how do they envision plans to change as the business grows? 🗣️ When resources and budgets are limited, where does app development fit into their priorities, and how would your role be impacted? 🗣️ What challenges have they faced (or anticipate to face) in development so far, and how do they expect to overcome them? Sometimes, interviews can seem one-sided, but don’t be afraid to speak up and ask questions. It’ll show the interviewer that you’re engaged, interested, confident, and can use your initiative. (Plus, if they don’t encourage you to ask questions, it’s probably a red flag!) #DeveloperOpportunities #DeveloperJobs #MobileDeveloper #InterviewTips

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AI is everywhere... startups building AI tools and looking for engineers with experience building ML systems. Big companies reporting on how they were able bump profits through cuts in headcount thanks to automations and benefits from AI. Facebook Groups of job seekers are discussing - how it possible that a LinkedIn Job Post got 600+ or 1000+ applicants in very short period of time. AI is everywhere remember? There is clearly a vertical of tools that allows Candidates to automate their application process using AI. Below is the screenshot from such tool. And while motivation on a Candidate side is clear - Get hired at their dream company ASAP The pressure on screening and hiring departments of companies grew exponentially. And thats only on the stage of getting applicants. But AI is present as a power-up on other stages as well - Zoom Interviews, Coding Assessments etc. Yep of course each ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) also will claim that AI is there too to help parse and filter resumes. Yet, we know all too well the issues that arise there (more on that in a future posts). The main objective of a hiring company is remains the same - Get right candidate efficiently and effectively. Thats why reason for using an external recruiting agencies shifted -> from: accelerating the growth of headcount during the hiring spree times to: cutting through the noise and hiring the best possible candidate for the role.

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Programming challenges are a lazy test to filter for high IQ & ability to code. Making an interview process actually reflect the work you'll be doing takes thoughtful design. So most companies don't bother. Valid strategy if you have enough applicants in your pipeline and a high enough filtering bar. If you're smart enough to pass leetcode questions you're probably smart enough to figure out the actual job. Fire quickly to cover the rest. But it doesn't respect the applicants. It would bother me a lot less if companies admitted this up front. "Hey, we know this coding test has nothing to do with the job. Doesn't matter. We want to see how you think. Here's what qualities we're looking for:"

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Your Best Software Engineer Just Quit What To Do Next **Immediate Actions:** 1. **Project Assessment:** Conduct a thorough review of the projects impacted by the engineer's departure. Identify critical tasks, dependencies, and potential risks. 2. **Resource Allocation:** Develop a detailed plan for redistributing the workload among the remaining team members. Consider factors such as skill sets, expertise, and bandwidth. 3. **Knowledge Transfer:** Prioritize knowledge transfer to ensure a smooth transition. Facilitate documentation, code reviews, and one-on-one sessions with the departing engineer. 4. **Communication:** Communicate openly and transparently with the team about the situation. Address any concerns or questions promptly and provide regular updates on the project status. **Long-Term Strategies:** 1. **Recruitment:** Initiate a comprehensive recruitment process to identify and hire a qualified replacement. Develop a detailed job description, leverage multiple channels to attract top talent, and streamline the interview process. 2. **Team Development:** Invest in the professional growth of the existing team members. Provide opportunities for training, mentorship, and skill enhancement to build a strong and resilient team. 3. **Retention:** Conduct an exit interview to gain insights into the reasons for the engineer's departure. Analyze the feedback to identify areas for improvement in the company's culture, compensation, or work-life balance. 4. **Process Improvement:** Review and optimize team processes and workflows to improve efficiency and reduce reliance on individual contributors. Implement tools and technologies to streamline tasks and enhance collaboration. By taking a proactive and strategic approach, you can mitigate the impact of the engineer's departure and ensure the continued success of your projects.

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Want to know how I helped a software engineer overcome crippling presentation anxiety? It wasn't just about the presentations... He was battling: → A serious knee injury and recovering from surgery → Sleepless nights that destroyed his focus → Anxiety that was killing his confidence The cost? His credibility was slipping. Opportunities were passing him by. His irritability was pushing people away. But here's where it gets interesting... We tackled it with a simple 3-step approach: ― Light Breathing - This wasn't just about calming down. It increased oxygen delivery to his muscles and tissues. (Hello, faster recovery!) ― Nighttime Mouth Taping - Sounds weird, right? But it encourages nose breathing during sleep. (Game-changer for sleep quality) ― Box Breathing before presentations - Think of it as a secret weapon. 4 seconds in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold. (Instant calm and focus) After 8 weeks on my daily breathwork program: The results? ✅ Deep sleep up 120% (Tracked on his Whoop strap) ✅ Recovery speed doubled (His doctor was surprised) ✅Confidence tripled (His words, not mine) But the real transformation? He went from: "Please don't make me present" to "When's my next opportunity?" The ripple effect? → His credibility soared → Opportunities started flowing → Work became fun again That's what proper breathing can do. Want to learn these exact techniques? DM me "ICE" and we can chat more about my coaching program. Because here's the truth: Your breath is the most underrated performance tool you have.

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