Reflection

In the spirit of agile, I'll present a retrospective similar to sprint review: what went well, what could be improved, and some actionable items.

The Good

Overall, working on an agile team has introduced me to a different kind of work environment that I thrived in. I was happy with the structured workflow, timely organization, community of learners, and the goal-oriented work . I had a wonderful time meeting with and getting to know my team and was thrilled to learn that my presence with the team was beneficial and my participation was fruitful for the team's endeavors.

This internship provided for me the invaluable opportunity to participate within the context of a software development team and assuaged many of the doubts and fears I had in pursuing an industrial career. I think a large fact of the matter when working in industry is that there isn't any one person on the team that knows the solution to every problem. I had to grow comfortable with not knowing everything, and I was "surprised" to learn that not even current team members had everything together in some sacred programming nook that can be summoned forth at a whim. Of course there's no replacement for consistency, practice, and immersion, but one primary aspect of software development can be research into completing a task, and oftentimes that includes teaching oneself about new methods, best practices, and exploring packages and the tutorials surrounding them. This internship taught me to remain curious and unyielding.

The Improvement

As with many places, the workflow and onboarding information can be challenging for the newcomer to absorb and assimilate into. All the different tasks on JIRA, the many daily standups, the biweekly reviews, much of it felt like puzzle pieces without context. There was much to learn in a short amount of time, and understanding the overall goals of the Unified Workflow are still beyond my depth of understanding at times, though I blame much of this on what felt like such a short summer.

Given another opportunity like this, I would want to ensure that my schedule was clearer to allow myself more time to indulge and focus on more projects. During the course of my blog, I was assigned a couple of smaller tasks for the sake of coordinating my time with my other summer class, but in truth, I wish I had had more time to devote to practicing Python, learning many techniques and packages, and growing closer and more knowledgeable of the team's overall project goals. Nevertheless, I am entirely grateful for this opportunity to work with the team and feel that my experience is invaluable to my growth as a graduate and ever continuing student in the science of technology.

Moving Forward

After this internship, I'll be returning to school to continue work on my post-baccalaureate degree. Next semester I will be enrolled in a course on software development, containing many parallels to the workflow and tools used this summer that I believe will offer me the upper hand.

While it may be more of a longer term goal, continual learning and practice is important to me, and I am looking forward to finding more meaningful reading and challenging projects. After accepting that I would not always remain in my comfort zone, I found searching for the solution to my projects and enacting on newfound skills appealing. Beyond my degree, I hope to continue reading up on documentation and techniques and apply those to my own personal projects.

Thank you

Unified Workflow Team, including Frederick, Rahul, Ope, Arun, Terry, Ben, and Ryan - for offering a welcoming community and for participating and contributing to my growth as a fledgling software developer. I've appreciated the many anecdotes, advice, and book recommendations that came with your welcome messages and many meetings that showed me something new. Thank you for fostering my curiosity.

Christina - for being such a great mentor and easing me into the ebb and flow of agile. It's been a great pleasure getting to know you gradually over the weeks as well as working alongside you toward our common goals. We make a great team, and I hope others after me can appreciate and reap the benefits of having such a caring mentor.

Dr. Stade - for believing and encouraging my growth by presenting me with this amazing opportunity. I've greatly appreciated your coaching and for being one of my biggest supporters in my endeavors. And as much as you revel in watching me struggle when I push myself beyond all of my limits, you also challenge me to rest and relish in the here and now.