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Jamie Pittman is a Raleigh, North Carolina-based software engineer. She grew up working in her family’s restaurant and has had an interesting career path that eventually led her to software development: public school teacher, human resources, and account management. In mid-2017, Jamie transitioned to software development after completing a coding boot camp and hasn’t looked back.
Her current role is with Live Oak Bank where she works in a full-stack capacity but primarily focuses on the frontend building applications.
Jamie has primarily worked at start-ups around North Carolina and loves the fast-paced environment. In addition to her full-time job, she also acts as a LinkedIn Learning Instructor and has released several courses focused on JavaScript for beginner to intermediate learners. Jamie loves mentoring and hopes to inspire young women to pursue a career in software engineering. When she’s not coding, Jamie loves to be active and spend time with her loved ones, including her two dogs.
Connect with Jamie to learn more.
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Here are Five Things We Cover:
- Leveraging Diverse Skills: Diverse backgrounds can lead to innovation in tech, but may challenge specialization.
- Empathy as a Tech Asset: Embracing soft skills like empathy and communication can greatly benefit tech roles and teamwork.
- Embracing Career Changes: It’s possible to successfully transition to tech at any point with dedication to learning and upskilling.
- Women in Software Engineering: Addressing the gender gap in tech needs more exposure to the field and visible female role models.
- The Power of Resilience: Overcoming self-doubt and initial struggles in tech is key—success can come without being the most technical individual at the start.
Here are Three Actionable Takeaways From This Episode
- Prioritize Lifelong Learning: Engage actively in learning opportunities such as coding boot camps to bolster your tech skills. Persistence pays off—keep at it, even when the material seems challenging.
- Value and Utilize Your Unique Skills: Gain real-world tech experience through internships or collaborative projects. Use your diverse background to bring new perspectives to technology teams.
- Promote and Partake in Diversity Initiatives: Take a stand against biases and support diversity in the tech sphere. Be a mentor and a role model to encourage others from underrepresented groups to pursue tech careers.