1. POLLUTION! FIND A STEM SOLUTION!
JOB CARD
LOVRO GRACIN, software developer
Questions Answers
GENERALQUESTIONSABOUTYOURJOB
What is your daily routine? What does your job consist
of?
"Analyzing users’ requests for
new functionalities and
translating them to structured
assignments for developers.
Writing functional
specifications for programmers
and clients. Leading the team
towards efficient solutions of
given tasks.
Daily routine:
1. Get to work
2. Read emails
3. Prepare for meetings with
the clients
4. Analyze clients requests and
hold internal meetings with
developers to find best
solutions for clients requests
5. Write functional
specifications for clients
requests
6. Respond to emails
7. Supervise the development
progress and identify bad
practices in order to correct
them
8. Find solutions for
unpredicted situations during
the development process
Do you work at the office? I am mostly in the office but
often go to meetings with
clients as well as on business
trips to meet clients.
Is there any business travelling included? From time to time.
Does the work involve public relations? No
What type of communication is it? No
Do you sometimes work from home? Yes, sometimes I have to get
something done and also deal
with some kind of private
2. POLLUTION! FIND A STEM SOLUTION!
matters. In such cases I work
from home or if there is not
enough time to do everything
because of the short deadlines
so I do some work in the
evening or during the
weekend.
Is there any difference in the salary: at the beginning and
at the end of your career?
Of course. As I learned more
and as I became better at what
I do, my salary got better.
Are there any career developments possible? Yes, I started as a junior Oracle
database administrator seven
years ago and today I am
leading a team of 20 people.
What is your daily routine? What does your job consist
of?
At primary school I gained
interest in learning and gained
some general knowledge. That
helped me through my entire
life because I wanted to learn
new stuff. If I had to point out
something that would be
mathematics and physics.
SKILLS
Which knowledge did you gain at primary school that
helps you with your profession now?
I think that English is a must
know these days. Internet and
most things you find are in
English and the majority of
literature is in English too, so
knowing it helps a lot. Also
communication between two
people on opposite sides of
the world is now days a normal
thing so some foreign
language is definitely a
necessity.
Is it necessary to speak any foreign language? Which
one? Which level? Why?
Not at the beginning of your
career, well, it is not
mandatory but it is definitely
very helpful. People can
acquire experience in their
own free time even if it is not a
real job through some kinds of
personal projects.
Is the working experience necessary? I think that programming
(coding) is a first stepping
stone for everything else in
technology driven industries.
3. POLLUTION! FIND A STEM SOLUTION!
But that is just my opinion
because I work with software
developers. Nevertheless,
every machine needs some
kind of a program to run it.
Which technology skills are necessary? Good logical skills is the most
important thing a person
should have. With that you can
do almost anything.
Unfortunately, you can’t go to
a single class and learn how to
think about solving problems.
Mathematics and physics are
very important for developing
those skills.
What other skills are recommended? FER (Faculty of Electrical
Engineering and Computing) is
by far the most valued college
in Croatia for that line of
expertise. I would definitely
recommend it because of the
great equipment they have
and the quality of the
professors.
PROFILE
What is the minimum of knowledge required for the job? I have met some great
software developers that have
only finished high school but
that is pretty rare in Croatia.
Is there extensive knowledge of STEM needed for the
job?
It depends on where you work
and in which tech industry. If
you work for the Mercedes
and develop a car stabilization
system you will need physics,
but if you work for Facebook,
then physics is not needed at
all.
Is there any manual labor included in your profession? No, well maybe if you have to
carry your computer from one
room to another.
OPINION
What advice would you give to students interested in
your profession?
Learn the basics and set a
small project for yourself that
you can develop by yourself.
This way you will learn things
quickly and also create
something that you can show
or talk about on a job
4. POLLUTION! FIND A STEM SOLUTION!
interview. Other than that,
embrace learning and think of
it as fun, not as an obligation.
What do you like the most about your job and is there
anything you dislike about it?
The dynamic work
environment, there is always
something new to think about,
some new problem to solve
with your knowledge and
creative thinking. I dislike that I
sometimes stare at the
monitor too long so my eyes
can hurt. But that is nothing
compared to all the other
things that I like.
