Being a Frontend Engineer for more than 5 years, I have learned that there are several ways to be successful in this field. In this article, I will share some tips on how you can become a talented Frontend Engineer.
Writing good code and documentation
- Good code is easy to read and understand.
- Good code is easy to debug.
- Good code is easy to refactor.
- Good code is easy to test.
- Good code is easy to maintain.
- Good code is well documented, including all necessary information required by others who may work on it in the future (coding conventions, where did you get this or that from, etc.).
Maintain an understanding of the application ecosystem
An application ecosystem refers to the software that runs on a smartphone or tablet, such as apps and games, and also operating systems and middleware, like databases and persistence frameworks.
A keen eye for design and user experience
Frontend Engineers need to think about the user experience and understand how users will navigate through a site; what they are looking for and how they will interact with it.
Ability to work with designers to implement UI/UX requirements
Designers develop the layout, look and feel of a website or application; they also determine how information is presented on the page. It’s your job as an engineer to translate these designs into code that functions according to specs set by developers and designers.
You should have an understanding of how design works before approaching this task. You don’t necessarily need to be able to draw or even know Photoshop,, but you do need enough familiarity with design terminology.
Work with teams to develop testing frameworks
In addition to the tools you use to write code, you should also be working with other team members to create testing frameworks. These are tools that help ensure your code is operating as intended and not breaking at any point during the process.
A testing framework is a collection of libraries, scripts and resources used to automate tests for software applications. The goal of a testing framework is to make sure that everything is working correctly before issuing it for production use. The framework will contain all kinds of different tests which can be run against an application in order to ensure that it’s working properly across multiple browsers and devices within those browsers (e.g. mobile vs desktop).
Being able to talk about design decisions
Design is at the core of what we do, and it’s important that you’re comfortable explaining your decisions and being able to defend them. This applies both to situations when you’re speaking with other developers on your team and designers from other teams. If you’re talking with other developers, they’ll appreciate hearing why something works the way it does, whether that’s because of technical limitations or user expectations. They’ll also be able to give feedback if they think there’s room for improvement (or simply offer different approaches).
If you’re speaking with designers, they want to know how things work so that they can best make design decisions based on what will work best in production code. They may also want examples or screenshots of similar sites/apps/etc., which helps them understand what needs to be done first before moving forward with any particular feature/design change request.
Ability to communicate well when asking questions, reporting issues, and responding to feedback
It is important that you communicate well when asking questions, reporting issues and responding to feedback. Firstly, try to be polite and respectful when communicating both online and of-line with your team members. If someone asks for help on Google Chat, Slack or via email, don’t just reply with “I don’t know how to solve this problem” or “That seems easy enough – why can’t you figure it out?” Instead, take the time to ask clarifying questions so everyone understands each other better.
Secondly, if someone gives feedback about an app or website that doesn’t work very well (for example: it’s slow), try not to get defensive! Instead of saying “that’s stupid – I think it loads fast enough,” explain why they are wrong instead of proving them right by showing data from Google Analytics/PageSpeed Insights tools etc. After all, being able to explain complex technical matters simply is one of the most important skills in any field.
Being a talented Frontend Engineer is more than just being an expert in writing JavaScript code
While being an expert in writing JavaScript code is definitely one of the most important traits for a Frontend Engineer, it’s not the only one. A talented Frontend Engineer is more than just a code monkey, because they also need to be able to communicate well with both their fellow engineers and designers.
Being able to communicate well with other team members is essential because it will help you understand what others are doing so that you can work together on projects more efficiently. While communicating with designers will allow them to give feedback on how your work affects their designs, which ultimately, helps both parties create better products together.
In Conclusion
An outstanding Frontend Engineer is a developer that can understand the business needs and make decisions on how to implement them. They are able to communicate with their team members and collaborate effectively to get things done.
Wish to learn more tips from our Tactful AI Xperts? Explore our open positions via www.tactful.ai/careers and apply today.
About Tactful AI
Tactful is a leading and private technology company based in the UK, with a presence in EMEA. Tactful offers omnichannel and AI-powered customer experience software to help businesses thrive by enabling meaningful and effective engagement with their customers across touchpoints. Tactful UCX is a comprehensive customer experience platform that incorporates all technologies and tools businesses need to deliver the best customer experience, reduce costs, and boost customer loyalty and sales.
