Dear Reader,
Every since “Social Coding” became a thing and GitLab and that other social coding site opened up, developers around the world have been asking “GitLab or LinkedIn for my CV/Resume?”
I now present you with the definitive answer to this question.
YES
Github, or your favorite social coding site is absolutely necessary for a developer. You have to have a profile and you have to have some public examples of your code that potential employers can look at.
Hiring managers look at your work and look for things like
- Advanced concepts (depending on the level of job you are applying for)
- Coding style
- Style consistency
- Application of Best Practices
They may also pick out one or two bits of code to discuss with you in the interview.
- Why did you code it this way?
- What were the requirements of the project?
- Did it cause you any unintended consequences?
Your answers help them understand how you code. Your entire social coding repo will help them understand you are a developer.
There is more to you than your ability to code, though. Your social coding profile can’t show everything. That’s why you also need a traditional resume/CV.
Your LinkedIn profile shows things that your social coding profile cannot. Things like:
- Career Progression
- Time at each job
- Range of companies you’ve worked for.
- Extra curricular activities (e.g. hobbies)
All of these are just as important as your social programming profile.
Show potential employers that you are a well rounded software developer by making sure you have both a social coding profile and a LinkedIn profile. Help them discover this by cross-linking them.
Until next time,
I <3 |<
=C=
p.s. yes, it has occurred to me that Microsoft owns both LinkedIn and that other social coding platform. Kinda scares me a little.