The allure of working at an agile, fast-growing startup can be extremely appealing for aspiring engineers of all different backgrounds. But while you might think that tech companies require a computer science degree or formal coding experience, that’s not always the case. We caught up with three Boston tech companies who have made nontraditional hires for their engineering teams — and why those hires have paid off.
Jennifer Paxton, director of talent at LevelUp, shares why they hired a former circus performer with a degree in computer science and interface design for their agency's iOS engineering team.
Can you describe a surprising or untraditional hire you recruited for your engineering team?
Several of the engineers at LevelUp have had non-traditional engineering paths — whether that means having earned a degree in a field such as sociology or having joined our company without formal training or job experience when it comes to coding. One team member hired in 2016 used to perform with the circus before joining LevelUp.
What role was this employee hired for?
Taylor Wright-Sanson was hired onto our mobile agency development team where he primarily works on the LevelUp app for the iOS platform, which involves making sure the user interface runs smoothly so that our users always have the most consistent and pleasant experience possible.
Apart from his background, what other characteristics inspired you to extend Taylor an offer?
During the interview process, Taylor showed that he was innovative, had novel ideas and could approach new challenges with a different perspective. Sometimes the technical skills can be taught, but the soft skills such as problem-solving and critical thinking are what really impressed us with this particular candidate.
Taylor, what excited you about working at LevelUp?
Taylor Wright-Sanson: I chose to work for LevelUp because I was intrigued by the opportunities I would have while working with a small team on a product that has a lot of impact. A year and a half later, I still love coming into work every day because of the challenges I get to tackle and the people I get to work with are smart, kind and welcoming. Bonus: there was a unicycle waiting for me at my desk on my first day. LevelUp continues to be the perfect place for me to use my computer science degree as well as my circus background.
Rosa Carson, senior manager of Wayfair Labs, shares why empathy and communication are more important in new hires at home retailing giant Wayfair than having a traditional software background.
Can you describe a surprising or untraditional hire you recruited for your engineering team?
In 2016, we hired Shireen Kheradpey, a graduate of Boston University. She double majored in mechanical and biomedical engineering, with a focus on electronics and control systems. She also completed the pre-med track, meaning she doesn’t have a traditional software background. Experimentation and curiosity are characteristics that contribute to our entrepreneurial culture, so we pride ourselves on hiring candidates who are passionate about computer science and explore the field of their own volition, even if their credentials are non-traditional.
What role was this employee hired for?
Shireen was hired as an entry-level software engineer, where she began her tenure in our Wayfair Labs Program. All engineers starting as entry-level at Wayfair come through labs or an internship, which allows junior engineers to hit the ground running on all things related to our engineering efforts. They learn about our tech stack, front-end development, the MVC framework, important applications, processes and much more. Shireen now works in our storefront team focusing on merchandising platforms, which is the area she joined after her Wayfair Labs graduation.
What made Shireen an untraditional engineering hire?
At Wayfair, we don’t operate around definitions of 'non-traditional' expertise. While Shireen doesn’t have a computer science background, this isn’t a critical issue. When it comes to our willingness to train the right people, our labs program provides a great platform for entry into our engineering department, and this kind of mindset is present throughout our organization. The benefit of this is that it’s easy for us to respond positively to candidates in the hiring pipeline who have related skills. During their time in labs, for example, new employees receive training and feedback on engineering overall, as well as how Wayfair operates, which helps them transition smoothly to a production team after their labs graduation.
The labs program is roughly three months long, with two months focused on project training, and the remaining month spent working with a team which they likely join once they’ve completed the program.
Why did you take the leap and hire Shireen?
Shireen is one among dozens of our team members who does not have a formal computer science education. From our chief architect to the newest entry-level engineer, Wayfair is proud to boast an array of people whose background hasn’t hindered their foray into a technical profession. We want to focus on the strengths that are needed in each engineering team, from offering critical thinking skills, to proactively solving problems, to being a team player. These are skills and characteristics that allow us to have a seamless customer experience. Shireen is a great example of this and possesses the right mix of skills and abilities to succeed at Wayfair.
Why is it important to your company to hire employees with diverse backgrounds?
As an organization, we’re committed to bringing the best people for the job into our company – it’s foundational to our hiring philosophy. This goes beyond having relevant experience or a traditional educational background from the get-go. We have the ability and resources to train new hires and get them to where they need to be in order to be successful.
Our challenges aren’t always technical in nature — the tech side of these roles can always be taught. It isn’t easy to measure or train newcomers in the areas of communication, empathy or their proficiency to learn fast and adapt quickly. It’s these skills that many of our employees possess that make them an asset to our team as we continue to grow at scale.
Jason Squatrito, director of engineering, explained why online catering marketplace ezCater doesn’t always require engineers to have computer science degrees.
Can you describe a surprising or untraditional hire you recruited for your engineering team?
We recently hired an individual that hails from Trinidad, where he worked as an engineer for a power plant. He obtained a mechanical engineering degree from the University of the West Indies, Trinidad, and quickly thereafter discovered a love for writing code. To pursue his newly found passion, he moved to New York City and attended App Academy. During his 12 weeks of training he gained proficiency in the tech stack we are leaning heavily into these days (Rails, React, Postgres). Given our current need for more senior engineers, this was a profile that didn't quite fit our needs, but his risk-taking mentality, the collection of solid repositories in his Github account, and his strong performance on our technical screen made us move forward with the process and ultimately make a hire.
What role was this employee hired for?
He was hired to be an associate software engineer, now focused on our web applications that support our vast caterer network. ezCater has the nation's largest online catering network and we offer sophisticated tools that are used to keep operations running smoothly on a daily basis for our users. The role this employee filled when joining our company is undeniably very important and impactful, with a direct tie to one of our 2018 business objectives.
What made him an untraditional engineering hire?
We do not require a computer science degree, but we have a strong preference for people with strong CS fundamentals. This individual's experience as a power plant engineer in the Caribbean did not shout 'perfect match,' but we are glad that we moved forward despite the untraditional background.
Why did you take the leap and hire him?
The conviction to pursue a career in software engineering and the strong tech chops given the relatively compressed timeline, were what led us to start the hiring process. Throughout the interviews, he struck us as a very bright, capable and hardworking individual that would likely come up-to-speed quickly. We're happy to invest in someone as long as they are willing to invest heavily in themselves.
Why is it important to your company to hire employees with diverse backgrounds?
We want to aim higher. We want to try things and track them. We want to learn and improve our offering on a daily basis. These are but a few of our core cultural values. If you have a large group of like-minded individuals with similar backgrounds, you are simply not going to experiment and learn effectively. We value diversity as a means of challenging the status quo, as a means of generating a wide array of ideas and as a way of creating a rich working environment.
