Who will train the next generation of developers?
Candidates are pasting AI-generated answers into interviews. They sound perfect until you ask them to explain their reasoning. Then it falls apart.
In response to AI coding tools infiltrating engineering teams, companies have cut hiring to prioritise seniors and staff engineers, the ones who already know what good looks like and can evaluate AI outputs.
Great news if you're already senior. Catastrophic if you're trying to break in.
Junior developers don't know what "good" looks like yet. They can't evaluate AI outputs because they haven't built the mental models that come from years of actual work. And now they won't get the chance to learn. Entry-level positions are vanishing because companies ask: "Why invest in training when we can hire experienced engineers who are productive from day one?"
It's the capitalist calculus: optimise for now, worry about later when later arrives.
But here's the problem, every senior engineer today was once a junior who needed mentorship and made mistakes. The industry has always depended on companies investing in the next generation, even when the payoff wasn't immediate. That implicit contract is breaking.
In five to ten years, who will be the senior engineers if no one is training juniors today?
I get it. Not every company has the resources for extensive training programs right now. Economic pressures are real. But we're collectively creating a crisis while solving for the quarter.
So what happens next?
Juniors need to find other paths: open source contributions, side projects, mentorship outside traditional employment. Build in public. Make your learning visible. Some have done this already. It might become more necessary now.
Companies with runway should see this as competitive advantage. Invest in juniors while everyone else fights over the scarce pool of seniors.
Senior engineers: mentor where you can. The industry gave you a chance to learn. Pay it forward.
And as an industry, we need new models. Apprenticeships. Shared training initiatives. Ways to spread the cost of developing talent. AI hasn't made junior developers obsolete. It's made them harder to develop and easier to overlook. Those aren't the same thing.
We're at a crossroads. We could keep optimising for the short term and watch the talent pipeline hollow out. Or we could recognise that investing in the next generation, even when it's expensive, is investing in our collective future.
The market will do what markets do. But markets are made of human decisions. The question is: what will we decide?
~ Lachlan
What’s been happening?
Events, events, events!
In January, Nicola ran a workshop on Effective Coaching at Everything Open conference. Nicola discussed what coaching is (and isn't), and when it's appropriate to be used (and when it's not!). She also taught people key coaching skills and got them to practice on each other.
Friday next week, Elle is hosting a roundtable discussion at the Byron Bay Chamber of Commerce International Women’s Day event, Byron’s Badass Women of Business, which sold out. Elle's table theme is: From Doer to Leader – Building Teams That Thrive. Discussion topics might be switching from reactive tactical hands on to a more systemic and proactive thinking, scaling and growing teams, delegation and more.
Then the following week, Elle is joining a panel on Handmade Values in an Automated World at the Byron Tech Meetup. If you're in the area, please join us.
Leading engineering teams workshop ⎼ in two weeks
From leadership styles, team culture, giving and receiving feedback, effective one-on-ones, mentoring, prioritisation, to balancing speed, quality, and technical debt, this workshop will provide you with the essential technical leadership skills that you can apply immediately, and will enable you to lead with empathy and confidence.
Our next workshop is in two weeks, March 16-19.
Just around the corner. The workshop is optimised to be done online and fit in with your work commitments.
If you are interested, either check out https://blackmill.co/coaching-training/workshops/leading-engineering-teams or reach out for an obligation-free chat with us
Group coaching ⎼ new cohort in April
As a leader, you understand the importance of effective team performance in achieving your company's goals. However, identifying and addressing the challenges that hinder this performance can be difficult. Three of the most common challenges leaders face include unclear priorities, poor communication, and misaligned expectations. Do you experience any of these? Maybe your challenges are different. But the premise of what we suggest is still the same. We all could use support to do the the best work we can.
Our next cohort is start on April 21st. You can learn more at https://blackmill.co/coaching-training/group-coaching or book an obligation-free chat with us
What are we reading?
Companies are laying off workers because of AI’s potential—not its performance – the job losses and slowed hiring are real, even though companies are still waiting for generative AI to deliver on its promises. This strategy of focusing on short-term gains based on long-term hopes has costs
The real way schools are failing boys – This article describes how schools are failing boys by perpetuating a culture that equates boys' worth with dominance over girls. It argues that this toxic culture leads to boys' disengagement from education and hostility towards girls, and suggests that promoting mixed-gender collaboration and rivalry, and encouraging boys to view girls as equals, can help boys succeed in a world where girls are increasingly excelling.
So you wanna de-bog yourself – Have you ever been stuck? While the post is written from a perspective of a human doing human things, some of the stuff also applies within an organisational context.
W.A.I.T. framework: How to leverage it and common mistakes to avoid – Discover how asking ‘Why Am I Talking?’ creates psychological safety, improves decision-making, and builds balanced relationships. And also super useful when coaching.
What are we cooking?
Sweet potato and miso soup
We don't have an image for this soup but just imagine any pumpkin soup and you get the picture.
Ingredients
A little bit of oil
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves
Ginger, grated
2 carrots, chopped
900g sweet potato
900g veggie broth
400g coconut milk (1 can) - or almond milk
Miso paste, to taste
Salt and pepper, to taste
Almonds or hazel nuts, for garnish
Instructions
Heat oil in a big pot, then add the onion, garlic, and ginger, and fry for a few minutes. Add a touch of water to prevent them from sticking to the pot or burning.
Add the carrots and sweet potato, and continue to cook for a couple more minutes. Then add the veggie broth, milk, and miso paste. Turn the heat up and cover the pot.
Bring to the boil and then lower the heat. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
Turn the heat off and let the soup cool for a few minutes before processing it into a smooth consistency.
Season to taste and garnish with almonds or hazelnuts.
And we’re out
Thank you for showing an interest in our newsletter and we hope that you enjoyed the read. Feel free to contact us if you have any feedback, a burning question, or just a recipe that you would like to share.
Until next time, keep learning!
Everyone at Blackmill