Beyond Coding

Most senior engineers don't realize they're stuck until it's too late. The longer you stay, the more people around you have already decided who you are and what you're for. Ian Miell, CTO at Container Solutions, breaks down why this happens and how understanding the system around you is the first step to growing beyond it.In this episode, we cover:Why staying too long gets you put in a box (and how to escape it)How your software architecture is shaped by money flowsThe 30% rule: why you should feel uncomfortable at work and what it means if you don'tHow to pitch to senior leadership and actually get buy-inWhy AI makes distribution the real challenge, not buildingIf you're a senior engineer trying to grow beyond your current ceiling, this one is worth your time.Timestamps:00:00:00 - Intro00:00:42 - How to Pitch to Senior Leadership and Get Buy-In00:03:26 - Why You Should Feel Uncomfortable 30% of the Time00:06:33 - How to Break Through a Seniority Ceiling00:08:24 - The Burden of Context: Why Being the Go-To Person Traps You00:10:16 - How Ian Became CTO Without Trying To00:13:40 - Why a CTO's Job Is Mostly Coaching Now00:18:20 - Understanding Incentives: The Key to Navigating Any Org00:23:08 - Startups vs. Large Companies: Completely Different Rules00:25:00 - Why AI Makes Distribution the Real Problem, Not Building00:28:16 - The Hidden Maintenance Risk of Vibe-Coded Software00:30:13 - Security and Compliance: More Nuanced Than Engineers Think00:36:54 - Where "Architecture Follows the Money" Came From00:42:36 - The Wrong Number of Customers: A Systems Thinking Story00:47:23 - Why Engineers Think Individually Instead of Systemically00:51:53 - How to Start Thinking in Systems00:57:50 - How to Create Cross-Pollination in Consulting Teams00:59:39 - What CTOs Actually Look for When Hiring01:00:34 - Outro#softwareengineering #systemsthinking #careergrowth

Most architects stop coding... and that's exactly where they lose their edge. Dennis Doomen has been a hands-on coding architect for 30 years, and his take is blunt: if you're not in the code, you can't make good architectural decisions. Period.In this episode, we get into the real causes of codebase rot, why dogmatic pattern-following destroys teams, how Dennis uses AI tools to build open source projects without compromising his standards, and why documentation and decision records might be the most underrated investment a software team can make.This one is for software engineers and architects who want to stay sharp, stay relevant, and build systems that actually last.00:00:00 - Intro00:01:05 - Why Dennis Refuses to Stop Coding (After 30 Years)00:02:54 - The Only Way to Be an Effective Software Architect00:04:43 - What Happens When Teams Copy Patterns Without Understanding Them00:06:23 - Software Engineering Is About Battling Complexity00:08:20 - When to Break Consistency to Reduce Complexity00:09:24 - The Problem with Overzealous SOLID Principles00:11:06 - The Future Where We Don't Care About Code Anymore00:12:07 - How Dennis Built an Open Source Library with GitHub Copilot00:14:18 - Accepting AI-Generated Code That Doesn't Meet Your Standards00:16:39 - How to Use AI Without Losing Code Quality00:17:41 - The Execution Is Accelerating — What Actually Matters Now00:20:19 - Why Tests Are Your Safety Net in an AI-First World00:23:44 - Lessons Learned from Letting AI Run Unsupervised00:26:46 - Should Teams Standardize Which AI Tool They Use?00:27:32 - Junior Devs and AI: Learning Skills vs. Speed00:29:21 - How to Stay Curious and Critical in an AI-Assisted Team00:33:43 - How to Build a Software Engineer from Scratch Today00:34:38 - Dennis's Emoji-Based Pull Request Review System00:36:45 - What AI Still Can't Do: Holistic Architectural Thinking00:38:38 - Why Your Git History Is More Valuable Than You Think00:40:44 - Decision Records: The Architecture Investment That Pays Off00:43:16 - When Documentation Saved Dennis from a Bad Management Decision00:44:47 - The Tailwind Layoffs and the Open Source Business Model Crisis00:46:27 - Guidelines for Consuming Open Source Responsibly00:49:51 - Why You Should Open Source Your Own ProjectsGuest: Dennis Doomen - Microsoft MVP, open source creator (FluentAssertions and more), and coding architect at Aviva Solutions.#softwaredevelopment #softwarearchitecture #softwareengineering

Sendil Nellaiyapen, an engineering manager at Uber who builds systems for millions of users, shares practical takes on system design and leadership. He discusses foundations for scaling, when to take reversible shortcuts, isolating migrations, and why clarity matters more than seniority. He also covers handling opinionated engineers, setting team guardrails, and the real trade-offs of moving from IC to management.

Bas de Groot, tech lead focused on developer experience and platform engineering, shares sharp takes on avoiding over-engineering and treating opinions as testable hypotheses. Short, punchy conversations cover removing friction in CI/CD, when dedicated DevEx makes sense, measuring developer pain with surveys, and realistic expectations for AI in production.

Alessandro Mautone, senior Android engineer (ex-WeTransfer, Aquablu) who blends product ownership with technical craft. He talks about balancing speed with quality in scale-ups. Short takes cover negotiating scope, saying no, choosing generalist paths, keeping tests sacred, and using AI carefully. Practical, candid, and focused on shipping without drowning in debt.

Joris Conijn, AWS CTO at Xebia and leader in automation and developer workflows. He discusses agentic tooling, system design, and why banning AI creates security risks. Short takes cover using AI to automate SDLC tasks, preserving engineering fundamentals, testing AI-written code, and checking AI agents into Git. The conversation spotlights the shift from just coding to designing resilient systems.

Jelmer de Jong, platform engineering practitioner focused on self-service and measurable developer flow, and Adnan Alshar, platform enthusiast centered on developer experience and AI readiness, dig into when platforms help or hinder. They discuss why golden paths can become roadblocks. They cover shadow IT as a failure signal. They explore when to start a platform and which metrics matter.

Practical strategies for pushing change inside legacy-first companies. When high pay becomes a trap and how to know when to walk. Systems thinking and spotting root causes instead of treating symptoms. How to act like a leader before getting the title and explain architecture to non-technical people. Tricks for retaining technical knowledge and stress-proofing your engineering mindset.

The hosts discuss how AI tooling lets juniors produce senior-level output and reshape what technical skills matter. They cover why interviews are shifting toward system design and how to ask smarter questions. Practical tips on negotiating raises, handling toxic high-performers, and where to find real tech roles are also highlighted.

Gregor Hohpe, a retired technologist and author known for his work at Google and AWS, shares valuable insights on transitioning to software architecture. He reveals that architects should focus on lowering risk and making teams smarter rather than being the smartest in the room. Gregor discusses the 'Phantom Sketch Artist' technique for visualizing unclear requirements and emphasizes the importance of navigating office politics to effectively influence decision-making. He also highlights the balance between complexity and simplicity in scalable architectures.