Ask HN: How do I get the most out of an analyst job?
Hi HN,
I recently started a new position as a "program analyst" in the context of software for public administration in EU. There are two teams involved in the project, team A who are basically like product owners and architects, doing the conception and deciding of the priorities, and team B, the devs, who actually make the software.
My job in team B is to act as an interface between team A and the devs, I'm supposed to have a good overview of the project, keep track of the progress made in the code (bugs, new features etc.) so I can update team A on what's going on and in the end synchronize the teams. I also have to manage our git repo. It was clear from the beginning that I am not supposed to code. Overall I don't feel super enthusiastic about the project itself but I must admit that for a junior the working conditions are really good (working hours, holidays and salary) and the team is nice.
The contract is set for 3 years, since I'm a junior with low experience I fear that at the end of the contract I will lack some coding experience and have trouble getting a new job. So I was wondering if there are similar positions in the private sectors? And basically, how can I get the most out of this job?
Thanks!
Hey, I’m probably not the best person to give an answer for this, but since you’re not getting comments…
To keep track of progress, you could create dashboards, maybe using Python or JavaScript. Would managing the git repo include CI/CD? The role sounds like it involves some DevOps components. If so, push for access to Python so you can automate some of these tasks. Sounds like it involves some project management stuff as well, so you could take the opportunity to learn how to set stuff up in Jira (if that’s what is being used).
Do you have a CS degree? If not, I’d suggest starting an online CS degree such as Oregon State University’s or the Georgia Tech masters. Get a feel for how intense the job will be first though. I suspect that, since it’s public admin in the EU, and if you’ve been able to automate some tasks, it will be fairly relaxed. Doing a degree while working full time is still exhausting though.
Look up job descriptions for DevOps , or try to find to find the role it most closely matches with, and go deep. Find an excuse to use the tools/methods typically used in the job postings you see, and you’ll be in a good position to find one of those jobs after a while. If they won’t allow you to, practice using those tools outside of work, or get involved with open source projects.