Jun 10, 2022 3 min read Events

Introduction to career in Developer Relations

Various new roles are emerging in tech. Developer advocacy is one such emerging role these days. Check out what was discussed in this event on Developer Relations topic and how you too can explore this field starting out as a developer.

“Amazing things will happen when you listen to the consumer.” – Jonathan Midenhall

This Thursday (9th June, 2022), we had an awesome discussion during our community Discord event. The event was about "How to become a developer advocate". As advancements are being made in tech, various new roles are emerging that are bound to change the way things used to be. Developer advocacy is one such emerging role these days. Check out what was discussed and how you too can learn, network, and grow as a professional.

What is DevRel

Developer Relations, a.k.a. DevRel, or Developer Advocate, all refer to the same role. DevRels are folks who bring together technology and community. DevRel is the missing piece that completes the social link of an idea with society. A long time ago, Google, RedHat, and many other organizations adopted a community-centric approach for their products. DevRels make it easy for developers to understand a product or technology and get started with it. They make the whole process of user onboarding and engagement quite interesting through their content. And the most important point to note is that developer relations is not marketing; it's quite different. DevRels are folks with technical backgrounds who help developers engage and create a community around their product rather than simply marketing it.

Creating documentation
Attending meetups and conferences
Building community
Helping others out
Creating podcasts, blogs and video tutorials

How to become a DevRel?

Be like rocky, prepare well (training harder montage plays 🎵)

While for most of the roles in tech out there, there are so-called roadmaps and preparation strategies, in the case of Developer Relations, one cannot point out a sure-shot way to become one. However, here are a few tips to increase your chances of becoming one.

1. Networking

It is observed that most of the folks active in the DevRel space are folks who attend a lot of conferences and meetups. This leads to an important factor of networking. These conferences are a golden chance to meet new people and grow your network. The more people you meet, the more opportunities become available to you. Also, you will be able to learn new things from senior developers in your network.

2. Content

Content creation is an integral part of being a developer. So try your hand at creating blogs, videos and podcasts. This will help you learn a lot of new things, and eventually you will figure out the type of content you are confident in creating.

3. Tech skills

Being a DevRel doesn't make you less of a programmer. So keep your fundamentals strong. You should aim to delve deep into your field of interest and learn the fundamentals that underpin all of those frameworks and libraries. So be a technically sound person and try to help others understand the same thing in a beginner-friendly way.