Stage 3 · Lesson 5 of 7
Know the business, not only the code
is understanding the business your code serves: how payments settle, why a hospital cannot lose a record, what makes a logistics customer cancel. It takes years to build, it is rarely written down, and AI tools do not have it for your company.
An engineer who can say "this change will break month-end reporting for finance" is much harder to replace than one who only knows the framework. Build it on purpose: sit in on customer calls when you can, read support tickets, ask product managers why a feature exists, and learn the few numbers leadership watches.
Common trapthinking business knowledge is someone else's job. In a cut, the people who understand both the code and the business are the ones teams fight to keep.
A question to check yourself, an AI practice session and 1 cheat sheet entry come when you add the roadmap to your account. Add it
Resources for this stage
Start with· follow one of these
- GuideFreeGet Your Work Recognized: Write a Brag Document
Julia Evans
A template for writing down your impact every week, so it is ready when someone asks
- GitHub repoFreePath to Senior Engineer Handbook
Jordan Cutler · Intermediate
The sections on ownership, impact and working with your manager