What is the Career Scope for Full Stack Web Developers at Mid and Higher-Level Experience

Newer and better digital products are making the penetration of web and application software and development even deeper than before. In comparison to the last two decades, there are a plethora of platform options to use today– from desktop and web to mobile and immersive reality technologies. Naturally, this only widens the scope for the employment of developers– in specific, full stack web developers.

A full stack web developer career is considered one of the most fruitful ones in any tech-driven industry– which almost every industry is today. A full stack developer is one who can handle the presentation, logic and database layers of a stack, be it a mobile, web or application stack. A full stack web developer career profile eliminates the need for independent back-end or front-end developers, who until now had separate job descriptions.

Experience and a thicker portfolio add to the profile here much more than in any other career. Learning code and theory isn’t enough in full stack development– putting it to practice through numerous personal and professional projects, firefighting and troubleshooting when issues arise and learning the business aspects of a product are just as important.

In this light, it’s acceptable to say that the career scope for full stack web developers at mid- and higher levers of experience is constant and ever-expanding.

Here are a few job roles that mid- and higher-level full stack web developers can fulfil:

Chief Architect

A Chief Architect (of the software kind) is tasked with so much more than code and product building. The Chief Architect in any organisation is required to analyse and evaluate the non-functional demands of a system to be built, and then make the necessary decisions and arrangements to ensure it’s built accordingly.

Product Manager

Full stack developers make great product managers from a technical perspective. They already know the ins and outs of a product and, having worked on multiple projects from start to finish, also have more than a fair idea of the business benefits and value of a product.

The caveat here is that PMs need to be able to manage a team as most of the role involves spearheading projects, leading developers and engineers into projects and overseeing the successful finish of it all.

Project Lead

For mid-level full stack web developers, this is a job role that’s well worth the effort it takes to bag it. It requires a skill set that allows the person to understand all aspects of a single project– from the technical to the business-driven.

Critical thinking and problem-solving skills are key here– much more than technical coding skills, as there will be junior developers to handle that part of the project for you. A full stack Project Manager is ideally comfortable with (and well-versed in) development, design, code, communication, deployment and business.

Chief Technical Officer

Climbing even higher up the corporate ladder, full stack web developers can find themselves eligible for the role of CTO (Chief Technical Officer), especially in start-up and SME setups. The job role changes from coding and project management to joining the higher ranks of management of the company itself.

Naturally, this means that the stakes are much higher– the focus is now on the company and the value of its projects and systems, rather than on individual projects themselves. It would involve designing (even redesigning) the technological architecture of the firm as well as outlining a comprehensive roadmap geared towards profitability and sustainability.

Training

As full stack development continues to be in demand, many software engineers are actively upskilling and switching lanes to be a part of this lucrative career prospect. Mid- and senior-level full stack developers can, therefore, take on the role of trainer or career coach.

This is because, at this point, they would have gathered all skills and plenty of experience– perfect to coach and guide freshers or lower-level developers in scaling up. Full stack developers can become trainers in an experience-based full stack web developer course in specialist institutes or conduct a scheduled full stack web developer course in tech-driven firms and universities.

Rising from the ranks of a basic coder to a project lead to even the CTO is a massively transitional process that requires a lot of dedication, effort and upskilling. However, it’s equally rewarding because of the responsibilities and prestige involved, as well as the potential for growth into other core management positions.