In Pursuit of New Challenges

Just over one and a half years ago, I got a jumpstart into the corporate world through Fidelity’s flagship Leap program, which seeks to enable the transition for technology graduates. What made me nervous was that this had to be done virtually, owing to the pandemic. However, my doubts were unfounded as Fidelity ensured that even in a virtual working mode, we got all the support we required.

Starting out as a software engineer through the Leap program, I went through multiple virtual training sessions that covered diverse technology stacks and frameworks. While it can be overwhelming for someone fresh out of college to try to understand how the corporate world works, the Leap program is designed in such a manner that it ensures the transition is as smooth and seamless as possible. 

During the program, I gained insights into industry disciplines and developed essential communication skills. I was able to gain a better understanding of the Firm and how it works through my interactions with leaders. I also established a strong network with my peers from various institutions. The training, leadership insights, and networking opportunities aided in honing my existing skills and helped prepare me for my journey as a full-stack software developer.

On completion of my training, I was assigned the role of a full-stack software developer in Fidelity’s Asset Management Money Market Product Area. Armed with the knowledge gained during the program, I was excited to take on the challenges that were in store, adapt to the requirements of the role, and add value to my team.

I hit the ground running, and soon enough, my squad and I were actively working on the migration of our existing applications from on-premise servers to Amazon Web Services (AWS). To achieve our goal, it was important to understand the basics of core AWS services, and my training helped in that regard.

Next up was a monitoring tool that usually tends to be complex for beginners. However, the skills I amassed during the bi-weekly scheduled learning hours, helped me create complex dashboards and programs that came in handy for the analysis of production issues and finding bottlenecks in workflows.

The need to consistently adapt to newer technologies all the time was not much of a challenge for me, since having a growth mindset is a way of life at Fidelity. Every member of the squad is always eager to take on any task given, learn on the go, and support other team members. Together, we explored a ton of cutting-edge tools and technologies, which enabled us to speed up the development process.

Apart from my daily tasks, I was also actively involved in developing various proofs-of-concept (POC) aimed at enabling effective automation.

I owe a debt of gratitude to my manager, team members, and everyone at Fidelity for providing me with such incredible opportunity to learn and grow. Overall, the Leap program was the perfect way for me to transition from the student life into that of a professional, working with one of the world’s leading financial firms. It allowed me to solidify my existing knowledge, acquire new skills, put them into practice, build a network I could trust, and identify ways to combine them all to further my career. Leap enabled me to quash the apprehensions that I had had at the start of my journey and transformed me into a professional who now looks forward to new challenges every day.

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Views expressed are as of the date indicated and may change. Unless otherwise noted, the opinions provided are those of the author, and not necessarily those of Fidelity Investments.

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