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🚀 Exciting News: I've Completed the "AI_devs2" Course! 🚀 I am thrilled to announce that I have successfully completed the "AI_devs2" course, a comprehensive program designed to dive deep into the world of Generative AI, focusing on OpenAI's GPT-4 technology. This course has armed me with the skills to program and automate processes using GPT-4, setting a new benchmark in my professional development. 🤖 Throughout this journey, I had the privilege of learning from some of the brightest minds in the industry, who brought real-world applications and cutting-edge research into the classroom. The curriculum was a perfect amalgamation of theoretical foundations and practical implementations, helping me understand the nuances of Generative AI technologies and their transformative potential.🌟 One of the highlights was gaining hands-on experience with OpenAI models, which allowed me to build, test, and refine AI-driven applications. This sharpened my technical skills and enriched my problem-solving strategies, making me better equipped to tackle complex challenges in the AI space. 💻 The course also delved deep into AI's ethical considerations and societal impacts, a crucial aspect that enriches the technological discourse. Discussions around AI ethics have inspired me to advocate for responsible AI usage and to strive to implement AI solutions that are both innovative and ethical. 🌐 As I receive my certificate, I am not just celebrating the end of a course but the beginning of a journey. Armed with the knowledge and skills confirmed by this certification, I am eager to explore new opportunities where I can apply my learning to drive impact. 🚀 To my instructors, peers, and everyone involved in the "AI_devs2" program, thank you for making this one of the best educational experiences I've ever had. Your mentorship, support, and insights have been invaluable. 🔥 Jakub Mrugalski Mateusz Chrobok Adam Gospodarczyk Here’s to future projects where I can bring all these learnings to life! Let's connect and explore potential collaborations that leverage AI to solve real-world problems. 🌐🤖 #AI_devs2 #aidevs #AI #GenerativeAI #OpenAI #GPT4 #Programming #Automation #ContinuousLearning #ProfessionalGrowth

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Do you hire developers based on technical skills alone? It could be costing you.  Many companies make this mistake, believing that if a developer can code well, they’ll automatically thrive in the team. But this is not always the case. I have a client in Krakow who specifically hires Java Engineers who can have a “normal conversation" about software, clean code practices, and general life. But most importantly someone he can get along with. If they can do that, he’s usually ready to hire them. However, if they don’t fit culturally, it doesn’t matter if they’ve coded at Google, have an Oxbridge education, or have a long list of technical achievements. They won’t get the job. This is also not unique. According to Leaders.com, approximately 80% of employers take personality into account when making hiring decisions. Also research from Harvard Business Review found that 40-60% of hiring managers admit to hiring candidates who resemble them in terms of background, values, or attitudes. None of this mentions their skills. The ability to mesh with the team and collaborate is non-negotiable. Some people picture developers as introverted hackers, coding away in dark rooms, surrounded by empty energy drink cans. The stereotype that developers don’t need social skills in my opinion, comes from how they’re portrayed in Hollywood (Die Hard 4 was what came to mind when writing this). In reality, developers are part of cross-functional teams. They interact with product managers, designers, and other stakeholders daily. They need to explain complex ideas, collaborate on solutions, and contribute to the team’s overall culture. A developer who can’t work well with others or communicate effectively can disrupt workflows, no matter how technically gifted they are. It’s like having the most advanced software that no one knows how to use. What’s the point? The best hires are those who fit into your culture and can contribute to the team dynamic - not just those who can write the cleanest code. So if you’re only hiring based on technical skills, you might be missing out on your most valuable assets: collaboration, communication, and cultural fit. Skills get you in the door, but culture fit keeps you there. Do you take culture fit into account when hiring engineers?  #SoftwareEngineering #PolandTech #TechRecruitment #PolandJobs #CultureFit #DeveloperLife #WorkplaceCulture #TechRecruitment

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“When Polish software engineers look for a job, they only care about their rate. How can we compete with higher paying competitors?” A client asked me this yesterday. While it’s not entirely true, it’s worth exploring. Do all engineers focus only on rates? No. Is the rate you offer important? Yes - but it’s not the only factor. Here are 4 ways to make your vacancy stand out (even if you’re not the highest paying): 1. Share Your Vision Explain where your business is heading and how the candidate fits in. When candidates see themselves in your story, the role becomes more appealing. 2. Build a Personal Brand for Your Leaders Candidates want to know who they’ll work with. Encourage your leadership team to share their views on technical topics. This helps candidates understand their style and values. It may deter some, but it’ll attract the right fit. 3. Be Transparent About Salary & Perks Don’t make candidates guess. Transparency builds trust. Worried about overpaying? You have the final say. Hiding salaries might cost you great candidates before they apply. 4. Offer a Low-Commitment Introductory Call Let candidates ask questions without starting a formal interview. This lowers pressure for those passively exploring roles. It builds trust and relationships. Even if they’re not ready now, they’ll return when they are. Focusing on the whole package, not just pay, helps you stand out. What’s worked for you when attracting top talent? How do you stand out from the competition?

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Quick engineering salary comparison based on the #DEVBG stats from 2023 and 2024 in the Bulgarian IT industry. Dev.bg publish yearly a summary of the Bulgarian IT engineering salaries based on the job openings offers on their platform. https://lnkd.in/dNU5MD8D (2023 stats) https://lnkd.in/dX_dxvP7 (2024 stats) Based on the population data (let's assume it's a proper representation of the real world) we can determine the following: 1. PHP should be dead but it isn't (unfortunately) as it's one of the two categories with growing salaries in all job positions and ranges. 2. The second is the full stack development with a minimum drop of 65 levas in the first MID range(2-5 years) 3. All ranges except the Senior level(5+ years of experience) have a drop in salary compared to 2023 but for some seem negligible compared to the notion in the industry that "it's going down and AI will take over the world" :) 4. We can see that seniority still counts and there is now a shift towards growth of salaries of more senior people compared to others as the market tries to regulate. 5. There is still a lot of green for a "dying" and "shrinking" industry. P.S To anyone interested I can share the excel if needed but it's quite straightforward to generate it. *Legend: Diff min Mid - difference in the minimum ranges for a category between 2023 and 2024 Diff max Mid - difference in the maximum ranges for a category between 2023 and 2024 Diff min Sen - difference in the minimum ranges for a category between 2023 and 2024 Diff max Sen - difference in the maximum ranges for a category between 2023 and 2024 Diff min Sen Median - difference in the minimum ranges based on the provided median from dev.bg for a category between 2023 and 2024 Diff max Sen Median - difference in the maximum ranges based on the provided median from dev.bg for a category between 2023 and 2024

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INTERVIEW SCAM ALERT! I want to share an important observation with my network. Over the past few days, we conducted several interviews where candidates were required to build a frontend app using CodeSandbox in a live challenge. We noticed a concerning pattern among three candidates who shared the same ethnicity and were all located in Poland. Upon opening CodeSandbox, a flag appeared indicating "Companion Mode." This feature allows for live or pair programming, enabling someone else to code alongside the candidate. During one of the interviews, it became evident that the candidate was struggling to set things up. We realized they were cheating by having someone else assist them through Companion Mode. Consequently, we terminated the interview. If you use CodeSandbox for your interviews, I strongly suggest stopping the interview immediately if you see the "Companion Mode" flag. Additionally, performing thorough background checks on previous companies and obtaining feedback from referrals has become essential. After blowing off someone's cover this afternoon, the profile of one of the three guys has been removed from Linkedin. I hope this information helps other companies avoid similar issues.

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Four years ago, I placed a top C#/.NET Engineer in Krakow - and lost my client in the process. At first, everything seemed ideal. The developer was perfect technically, Immediately Available And joined within 10 days of submission. The client was thrilled, and it felt like a win for everyone involved. But then their first day arrived, and everything began to unravel. The candidate clashed with the team's approach, Criticising the code quality, the tech stack, And even the team itself - demanding they were replaced. Within two months, the client dismissed the candidate and ended our partnership. This left the client frustrated and me reflecting on where it all went wrong. Looking back, I realised there were two clear red flags during the qualification process that I had chosen to ignore... The candidate admitted to getting frustrated when others disagreed with their views. They also mentioned frequent clashes with managers in previous roles. This wasn't qualified further at the time. These warnings were overlooked because the rest of their profile seemed perfect. That mistake cost the client valuable time and resources, and I lost their trust. Since then, I have made it a rule. Even if there is a one percent chance that something feels off it needs to be addressed. This principle has helped me build stronger partnerships and avoid mismatches entirely. Since then, I have contributed to €millions in billings and earned the trust of many clients. As agencies, we're paid well for our expertise and judgment it is our responsibility to get it right. The takeaway? Always qualify. Never overlook red flags. Have you ever overlooked a red flag during hiring? What did you learn from the experience? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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Candidates asking salaries and negotiation strategy tips. Whether you are negotiating with a new employee or freelancer, or one of your existing developers are looking for a raise or are due for a review, it is essential to be prepared. This will help you make an informed offer; ensuring you are being competitive in order to attract or retain talented developers by paying a fair market rate, whilst not being taken advantage of. Negotiation strategy might differ depending on number of factors: - When was the last salary raise? Has anything special happened since then? - Current geopolitical situation in the employee’s country - What is your local employment market like for this role? Do you have lots of suitable candidates available? - How long have they already worked in your company? - How long have they stayed in previous roles? - How much experience do they have? - How critical is this person to your project/company? - Do you need the skills they have and are using within your project / company, or are you over employing? - How easy will it be to replace them with a new hire? - What kind of employee are they? - Do they deliver? - Are they a good resource? - Are they reliable? - Do they have a proven track record yet? Before you begin any salary negotiations, familiarize yourself with the current market’s situation so that you can assess how much other companies pay developers of a similar level in your local area. If you want to have a rough overview of these ranges you can start by checking levels. Websites such as fyi (which can be seen in the link below) gather data points from engineers all over the world to present aggregated information regarding salaries in the software engineering field. https://buff.ly/4cTbpdp Then the next step is to research positions offered by your competition either on one of job boards or directly on their website. That will give you a good grasp of where the market is heading and what expectations are reasonable. If you are already a bigger and established company (>35-50 people) you might already have some specified levels of seniority in your company so salary ranges are predetermined. In this case the objective of the interview process is to determine the candidate's level, which will enable you to know what room you have for negotiation. It is important to also take into consideration the location of the given person. For example, a salary might differ for a Software Engineer with the same skill set in Poland and in Ukraine. #EasternEuropeDevelopers #TechInCEE #DigitalTransformation #DevelopersContracting

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I got a question yesterday at Devoxx Poland as to why I describe the APIs proposed by JEP 453 (Structured Concurrency) [1] as "low-level", compared to Ox [2], which I'd call a "high-level" structured concurrency API. I think this might be a common concern, hence a wider explanation on my part: First of all, there's nothing wrong with being "low-level". The proposed #Java APIs are more flexible, but they are also more verbose and error-prone. It's a tradeoff, which makes total sense for a JDK API. I'm viewing the JDK APIs as "foundational". That is, not necessarily for consumption by end-programmers, but as a basic toolkit, which library authors (such as myself, in Ox), can use to implement a structured concurrency library. Very similar to reactive streams: we have the base `Publisher`/`Subscriber` APIs in the JDK, but they are targeted to be implemented by library authors, not application developers. (cntd in the comments)

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Pragmatic approach to DDD with Spring Boot by Maciej Walkowiak. Highly recommended to watch before you start to overcomplicate your design: #keepITsimple

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#NewArchitecture Explained We turned to our New Arch experts, Jakub and Wojciech, to uncover the essence of Turbo Modules! 🚀 Watch the short clip below to find out more and stay tuned ⬇ #ReactNative #reactnativeappdevelopment #TurboModules

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DevOps Salaries in Hungary: A Quick Update 💼 Over the past two weeks, the DevOps job market in Hungary has remained steady. If you're at a Junior level, finding a job might be challenging. Across popular platforms like NoFluffJobs and Profession, I only came across one listing from NIX. However, if you're a Mid or Senior level professional, you’ve got plenty of options to choose from! The market is brimming with opportunities tailored to different preferences and skill sets. In the category of top-paying remote positions (especially in the crypto space), here are the standout roles: Platforms Engineer: 12,500 EUR SRE: 17,349 EUR #job #salary #salaryDevOps

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💸 What’s the State of the Current Market Salary for Ruby♦️Developers in Poland? In my latest article, I explore Poland’s tech market, breaking down Ruby on Rails salary ranges. We assessed all available job opportunities with salary ranges, split by seniority levels, location within Poland, and — the cherry on the pie — salaries for Ruby on Rails developers in other developed countries. Whether you’re hiring or curious about tech salaries in Poland, this guide gives you a complete overview of what to expect. The link to the article is in my first comment below. #TechSalaries #RubyOnRails #RemoteHiring #Poland #Itentio #ITRecruitment #TechRecruitment

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It's official - Call for Papers for #PHPersSummit2025 is OPEN! 🎉 You know how much this meetup means to the IT community in Poland. 🇵🇱 It's not just the biggest #PHP event in the country 🐘 – it's a place where we share knowledge, inspire each other, and build something truly meaningful together.🤝 I invite you to be a part of it. 🎉 Got a topic you're passionate about? Share it with us! Whether it's your first time on stage or you've been doing this for years, your voice matters 🎤 📅 Deadlines: - For international speakers: submit your topic by January 31, 2025. - For speakers from Poland: submit by February 28, 2025. 💻 How to apply? - Go to our website: https://lnkd.in/dzDvpwyr  - Or drop me a line - I'll help you get started. ✨Why should you join us? - Share your expertise with (almost) thousands of passionate audience. - Expand your network - meet top Polish professionals not only from the PHP world. - Make an impact - your talk could spark the next big idea in the community! Let's make May 23-25, 2025, in Poznań unforgettable. We can't wait to see your ideas and, hopefully, you on stage! Don't wait - submit your proposal today! 📣

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Next AWS User Group Wrocław meetup in a week (24.04.2024). 📅 24.04.2024 ⌚ 18:00 📍 Wędrówki Pub: https://lnkd.in/eeYukrXZ First of all, thank you ALGOTEQUE Innovation Hub for sponsoring our event! :) 🎤 Speakers: 🔭 Marcin Sodkiewicz (me) I am going to talk about #opentelemetry in my talk titled "Observability on AWS & OpenTelemetry". It's talk on the 300 level, but don't worry, I am going to cover all areas, and even if you are new to a whole concept I think you should understand everything. This is also a great opportunity to discuss your experiences with #opentelemetry. 📟 Grzegorz Kalwig: "Serverless is above limits? Our Path to production database cluster" If you don't know about it - Grzegorz is on a road tour with that talk as I believe I saw that he presented that material in many User Groups already. It means that his material is polished and he should be able to answer all your questions about Aurora Serverless v2. Super interesting and important topic, so stop by and make notes :) We are still part of JetBrains Community Support program. So we are going to give away some coupons for free access to IDE of your choice for a whole year. More details: https://lnkd.in/egGjACeV #awscommunity #awsugwro #opentelemetry #aws #rds #auroraserverless #serverless

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Dear companies and recruiters, advertise salary ranges, otherwise don't be mad ( 😠 ) if the candidate asks! 🙂 During the last month, I have applied to many different corporate positions in Estonia and noticed job advertisements rarely include the salary range for the position. Sometimes the compensation is not even brought up in the first round of interviews until the later stages, and almost always the candidate is required to define 'what the salary expectation is'. And if indeed the candidate does explicitly ask about the compensation at the first stages there is either no response ("he/she cares only about money") or the response is that 'the candidate is required to define so'. I think this is not the best way to go about recruitment. Namely, when trying to find a job, various aspects are important to different persons and on different scales: for some a challenge or a mission is the most important, for others flexibility at work, a sense of team membership, job loyalty-reliability-security, or it might be compensation. Not one motivation is better or worse than another! For me, it's a combination of them all. As mentioned in Estonia we have a habit of not advertising the salary range while companies and institutions do actually know the budget they are willing to spend on a position. Somehow, the formula has been turned upside-down and people are expected to define their salary wishes. For example in my situation, I have not worked a corporate job for several years and it is very difficult to answer. I could do some market research, ask a friend or maybe 'take an educated guess from a marble ball' but I feel it is not the candidate's job to do so. As mentioned I am an exception. Still, I think a similar principle should apply also to others. The salary of a previous job should not determine the salary of the (future) job they are applying for. Even though positions and organizations might be different in asking the candidate to define the expected salary, people often base their expectations on their past compensation. Question: what are the reasons companies are not advertising the salary ranges in Estonia? I potential guesses here: 1. To minimize the cost of employment (find the cost-effective solution - OK candidate, lowest salary expectation) 2. Not to advertise current employees the salary of a new recruit 3. Don't understand the market themselves, e.g. how much a position should be paid and go ad-hoc 4. Fear of disclosing the information to competitors? Is there something I am missing here?

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Incora employs the top 10% of Ukrainian technical specialists. This is on our website for a reason. We truly are that thorough at Incora | Software Development Company Of course, every company wants the best specialists to work for it. That’s why you need to have defined values, requirements, and a thorough hiring process. But no one loves the overdo of a 10-step, month-long interview process either. At incora, we have 2 main steps: 1. The first is an initial interview to see if our values and vision match. There’s also an English test because that's a big part of the job. 2. And just then, we have a technical interview (sometimes with a few steps if needed) to see if a candidate has all the skills needed. Sometimes, not all the requirements are checked, but it’s still a perfect match. The skills could be learned, but a responsible person is hard to find nowadays. How do you know you’re hiring the best candidate? #team #teammanagement #outsourcing #teamextension #softwaredeveloper #hiring #softwaredevelopment

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Previously at DevOpsDays, Radosław Szulgo discussed the use of "Everything-as-a-Code" to enhance collaboration among hundreds of engineers by automating processes through GitOps practices. ♾️ Watch his presentation for practical tips on starting with GitOps. Join us in 2024 ➡️ https://devopsdays.pl/ #DevOpsDays #Warsaw #DODWarsaw #DevOps #DevOpsCommunity #ITconference #JoinUs

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On May 8th, we have WarsawJS Meetup #114 awaiting us, featuring Tomasz Ducin on stage with a fascinating presentation titled "Back in the game: Recent Revolutionary Changes in Angular"! But today, let's reminisce about his previous appearance at WarsawJS Meetup #108 💭 In that lecture, titled "Who needs Server Components?", Tomasz delved into the next step in the evolution of web architecture. After MPAs, SPAs, SSR, SSG/ISG, it's time for Server Components! Throughout the presentation, he asked himself many questions: Does this architecture fit the needs of my business and application? What are the benefits? And are we not stepping backward by moving more operations back to the server? Breaking down the hype around Server Components, Tomasz also introduced us to some technical details regarding React Server Components. By combining client-side interactivity with server-side efficiency, we can optimize web metrics and revolutionize website development. We invite you to watch that presentation, which opened our minds to a new perspective on web development! Enjoy watching! 🍿 🎥 Part 1: https://lnkd.in/dQ7G_jFZ  🎥 Part 2: https://lnkd.in/dJzQmsQD We encourage you to participate in WarsawJS Meetup #114, where you'll have the opportunity to not only listen to Tomasz's lecture but also to other outstanding speakers live. The link to tickets is below: 👇 🔖 Tickets: https://lnkd.in/dhXVXwpf #WarsawJS #Meetup #ServerComponents #WebDevelopment

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