285: Remember To Develop Your People Skills and Don’t Get Caught Up In The Hype with Mark Richards

<p>In this week’s show, Phil talks to Mark Richards, an experienced, hands-on software architect involved in the architecture, design, and implementation of microservices architectures and other distributed systems in a variety of technologies.</p> <p> </p> <p>He has been in the software industry since 1983 and is the author of numerous technical books and videos. He has also spoken at hundreds of conferences and user groups around the world on a variety of enterprise-related technical topics.</p> <p> </p> <p>Mark talks about the value in developing people skills and what a difference they can make to the shape of your IT career. He also discusses why careful consideration should be employed when it comes to solutions, and why you should never be caught up in the hype of a popular methodology.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>KEY TAKEAWAYS:</strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>TOP CAREER TIP</strong></p> <p>Soft skills matter in any role you perform. Never discount the value in people skills, which can make all the difference.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>WORST CAREER MOMENT</strong></p> <p>As a result of being abrasive in the workplace, several people left the organization. This led to a period of reflection, and several lessons learned.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>CAREER HIGHLIGHT</strong></p> <p>Being able to build a development team from the ground up, and being able to manage the team closely. This was Mark’s first assignment as an independent, and the experience shaped the way he worked forthwith.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T</strong></p> <p>The advancements in the tools, platforms and frameworks available now, is incredibly exciting in terms of seeing how these factors affect and energise the careers of new IT initiates.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>THE REVEAL</strong></p> <p><strong>What first attracted you to a career in I.T.?</strong> – Mark has been intensely interested in science from a young age, determined to follow his passions into discovering how science and programming can change t