Navigating Your Way Through Tech
It’s no accident that Ludovic Galibert is finding success in his career. Senior Software Engineer at Netflix, he came to chat with Holberton School students about the ins and outs of navigating the tech industry from an engineer’s point of view. Holberton Students Sue Kalia and Lee Gaines interviewed Ludovic; asking him a myriad of questions from interview advice to favorite Netflix shows. Ludo detailed many pro tips including advising students to obtain a public library card and espousing the importance of what he referred to as ‘soft skills.’
The emphasis on development of professional soft skills (i.e., – effective communication, teamwork, etc.) ran a constant thread throughout all of Ludo’s answers. When asked about what characteristics a good engineer should have, he pointed to traits such as ‘determination’, ‘resilience’ and being a ‘team player’ as well as noting not to “underestimate things like social skills and communication. You’ll have to talk to and work with a lot of people.” You can see these elements becoming habits by looking at Holberton’s curriculum. For example, all students participate in a project where they are split into two teams and each team self organizes into a corporation; there’s a CEO, a marketing “department”, a product development team, etc. Both teams are given the same problem and it’s a race against when the clock strikes 5:00 to solve the problem in a more efficient way than your opponent. Now that is certainly the type of project that produces resilient team players, that know how to communicate!
Furthering his point, when asked about how to go about landing an engineering job his answer focused on gaining experience, as well as interview preparation – “any type of interview here in Silicon Valley, or generally in tech, it’s all about preparation.” Preparation for interviews goes beyond learning the code. Interview preparation includes skills ranging from technical understanding to understanding social cues.
When Sue asked Ludovic if he had made any mistakes throughout his career, we gained an even clearer insight into the importance he places on soft skills. He gave an anecdote of a time when he wished he had been more selfless as a mentor to a group of junior engineers;
“I would go back and learn more about mentoring because it’s really important for the next generation to think about that – take time to help people. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to be a mentor for Holberton.”
During the student Q&A, Ludo touched on a couple of the industry’s current pain points including diversity and inclusion. He reminded the audience to remember not to get so wrapped up in your career that you forget to take a step back and help people around you. It is clear Ludovic has a handle on the larger picture. Engineering success seems to be a delicate balance of technical and non-technical skills.
Watch the full interview here.
Ludovic Galibert, Senior Software Engineer at Netflix & Holberton School Mentor, designs and implements highly scalable tools and services that indirectly impact millions of users.