Episode 441: Will working in healthcare hurt my reputation and precious wisdom
Dec 30, 2024
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The hosts tackle the challenges of considering job offers from large healthcare companies amid public scrutiny. They humorously weigh the impact of reputational risks against the desire for career advancement. A vivid discussion unfolds around aligning personal ethics with professional choices. The conversation also touches on the complexities faced when transitioning into new roles and the emotional undertones of inheriting legacy code. Plus, enjoy some light-hearted banter that keeps the mood lively and engaging!
Evaluating the ethical implications of joining a healthcare company under scrutiny is essential for protecting one's professional reputation.
Maximizing knowledge transfer from an experienced colleague during onboarding is crucial for overcoming challenges in a new engineering role.
Deep dives
The Importance of Ethical Considerations in Job Decisions
Considering the ethical implications of joining a company is crucial, especially in industries that may be under scrutiny. The discussion revolves around how recent negative press for a healthcare company may influence one's decision to accept a job offer there. It emphasizes that personal beliefs and moral values play a significant role in whether to join such an organization. It suggests that candidates should assess their own comfort levels and the potential repercussions of working for a company whose practices they might find questionable.
Navigating the Transition in a New Role
When moving into a new engineering position, particularly as a primary internal applications developer, it's essential to gather as much knowledge as possible from the departing employee. Key questions to ask include what surprises they encountered in the past and which system aspects they found most challenging. Understanding these nuances can prepare the new engineer for unforeseen issues and help in building a productive work relationship with various stakeholders. This inquiry allows for a smoother transition and a better grasp of the existing codebase and its intricacies.
Leveraging Knowledge from Experienced Colleagues
The value of learning from an experienced colleague during the onboarding process cannot be overstated, as they can provide insights that would be difficult to attain on one's own. It's beneficial to ask broad, open-ended questions about the codebase and identify potential pitfalls that may arise during development tasks. Engaging with the senior engineer on diverse aspects of the system while they are still available allows the new engineer to gather insights and clarity on unclear areas. This proactive approach fosters confidence and competence as they navigate their new responsibilities.
In this episode, Dave and Jamison answer these questions:
I’m currently in the interviewing pipeline for an engineering position at a fairly large healthcare company. In light of the recent events surrounding UnitedHealthcare, there’s been renewed criticism towards the insurance industry as whole. I was interested in this position and the work culture seems good, but now I’m having second thoughts. If I were to accept an offer from this company, could it somehow negatively affect my career or reputation? I feel like I’m worrying over nothing, but let me know your thoughts. Also, hypothetically speaking, what would you do if you received a job offer at a company that recently had negative press?
Hi! I’m an internal applications engineer, and after a couple of years of propping up a couple of different small and midsized companys’ intranets with duct tape and cardboard, digging through old, unmaintained code that nonetheless runs the business, and trying to decipher the intentions and reasonings of the Developers Who Came Before, I have landed what is perhaps the dream position: the primary internal applications developer at my new company is retiring, and the business has hired me on such that we have a few months for said senior developer to catch me up and hand things off.
I’ve been brought through the basics; how to troubleshoot day-to-day misshaps, which clients need to be handled with care, and I’ve been shown the excel workbook that will make the finance department explode if it’s edited incorrectly. What other non-technical questions should I ask my senior before he leaves?
Thanks and thanks also for an awesome show!
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