General

Differentiating Yourself and Your Product: Lessons from Vijaya Raghunathan, SVP and Head of Mortgage Servicing Technology at Truist

Published Oct 4, 2023

Updated Aug 22, 2024

2 min read

In this episode of the Engineering Leadership series, Rob Ocel talks with Vijaya Raghunathan, the Senior Vice President and Head of Mortgage Servicing Technology at Truist. Vijaya emphasizes the significance of competition in the mortgage servicing industry, not just among traditional banks but also against tech giants like Amazon and Netflix. Customers today expect a seamless user experience, and companies must find a balance between complying with regulations and making the process easy for borrowers.

They cover the challenges of managing legacy systems within the industry, highlighting the difficulty of maintaining older systems while keeping up with technological advancements. Vijaya reveals that her team's approach includes grassroots-driven innovation, allowing engineers to come up with proof of concepts during IP sprints to demonstrate their creative solutions.

Vijaya's career journey, from a project manager to a senior vice president, is also discussed. She emphasizes the importance of differentiation in one's career, achieved through consistency and delivering results.

Throughout the episode, Vijaya underscores the need for leaders to stand out and differentiate themselves among their peers. She believes that excellence alone might not be enough; differentiation sets individuals apart in a competitive environment.

They also explore how to help team members discover their unique strengths and differentiating characteristics. Vijaya highlights that people can learn from both positive and negative examples, allowing them to incorporate these lessons into their careers.

The discussion includes the importance of staying curious and aware of technological advancements. Vijaya personally sets an example by continuously seeking new certifications and knowledge in areas like AI, machine learning, and cloud technology.

Vijaya provides insights into the challenges and opportunities within the mortgage servicing industry. She touches on balancing innovation with legacy systems, the importance of differentiation in one's career, and her personal commitment to staying curious and learning about emerging technologies.

This Dot is a consultancy dedicated to guiding companies through their modernization and digital transformation journeys. Specializing in replatforming, modernizing, and launching new initiatives, we stand out by taking true ownership of your engineering projects.

We love helping teams with projects that have missed their deadlines or helping keep your strategic digital initiatives on course. Check out our case studies and our clients that trust us with their engineering.

Psychologically Safe Workplaces with Krystal Smith-Moore

Krystal Smith-Moore, Engineering Manager at Spotify, shares her journey from a non-traditional background to management, and how it informs her empathetic leadership approach. Krystal emphasizes the significance of self-awareness, seeking support, and aligning personal values with management roles. By ensuring our values align with the company's mission and culture, we can create a more fulfilling leadership experience. Krystal stresses the need for self-care, setting boundaries to prevent burnout, and recognizing when it's time to recharge. By prioritizing self-care, leaders can maintain their energy and enthusiasm, leading to better decision-making and a more positive work environment. She also discusses the importance of empathy, continuous learning, and creating psychologically safe workplaces where employees feel comfortable expressing their ideas and concerns. By aligning personal values with management roles, prioritizing self-care, and fostering a psychologically safe workplace, leaders can create a positive and impactful experience for themselves and their teams. Download this episode here....

Jun 13, 2024

1 min

Engineering Leadership

How to be an Effective Technology Leader in an Agile Startup Environment with Daniel Chopson

Daniel Chopson, CTO and co-founder of Cove Tool, discusses key aspects of engineering leadership, team management, and software development in the fast paced startup environment. Cove.Tool, initially a sustainability-focused software company, has evolved to offer AI-driven solutions for architects and engineers. Daniel shared valuable insights on the importance of productive retrospectives, agile planning, and strategic team structuring. Daniel emphasized the significance of conducting productive retrospectives to foster team improvement and effective communication. By celebrating wins and establishing clear action items, teams can identify areas for growth and implement necessary changes. These retrospectives provide a platform for open and honest discussions, enabling teams to learn from their successes and failures. Encouraging a culture of continuous improvement allows engineering leaders to drive innovation and enhance team collaboration. In a startup environment, balancing planning and agility is crucial for success. Cove.Tool prioritizes shorter-term sprint planning to allow for real-time feedback and adaptability. By aligning work towards business objectives while maintaining flexibility in planning, the team can respond quickly to changing market demands. This approach enables Cove.Tool to stay ahead of the curve and deliver high-quality solutions to their clients. The key lies in finding the right balance between long-term strategic planning and the ability to pivot when necessary. Team structuring plays a vital role in engineering leadership. Daniel highlighted the importance of specialized roles like engineering managers and tech leads for effective people development and technical guidance. Engineering managers focus on nurturing the growth and well-being of team members, while tech leads provide technical expertise and mentorship. This division of responsibilities ensures that both the personal and technical aspects of team development are adequately addressed, leading to a more productive and motivated workforce. The conversation underscored the significance of adaptability, feedback-driven decision-making, and strategic team structuring in successful software development endeavors. By embracing change and continuously seeking feedback, engineering leaders can make informed decisions and drive innovation. Strategic team structuring, with specialized roles and clear responsibilities, ensures that the right people are in the right positions to maximize productivity and foster growth. Effective engineering leadership is essential for adapting to changing market demands and building teams equipped to tackle future challenges. Download this episode here....

May 24, 2024

2 mins

Engineering Leadership

Building a Stripe App: A Step-by-Step Guide to QR Code Generation

Building a Stripe App: A Step-by-Step Guide to QR Code Generation Why Build a Stripe App? I recently participated in an audio space with the Stripe team, and something they said really stuck with me: the Stripe app store is a growing area that isn't overly saturated yet. There's a lot of potential for new apps, and companies can use this opportunity to grow. I work at a company called This Dot Labs, and we've created several Stripe apps and even own one. After looking at the data, I can confirm that the Stripe team was right! Creating a QR Code Generator App For this tutorial, we'll build a QR code app that can take a URL and generate a code for it. This is a good use case to help you understand the ins and outs of Stripe's developer tools. Why QR Codes? QR codes are useful tools that have become common in e-commerce, restaurants, and other industries. While Stripe already has a QR code tool, we'll make our own to familiarize ourselves with their syntax and problem-solving approaches. Project Structure Before we dive into the implementation, let's look at the structure of our Stripe App QR Code project: * .vscode: Contains settings for Visual Studio Code * source/views: Holds the main application views * .gitignore: Specifies files to ignore in version control * stripe-app.json: Defines the Stripe app configuration * ui-extensions.d.ts: TypeScript declaration file for UI extensions * .build: this is where the built Stripe app gets placed. Step-by-Step Implementation 1\. Install Stripe Locally First, you need to install Stripe on your local machine. The documentation provides great instructions for this: * For Mac users: Use Brew to install * For Windows users: Download the package and add it to your environment variables You can find the details here in the stripe docs to install the Stripe CLI https://docs.stripe.com/stripe-cli When using Windows, you must do stripe login from Powershell, NOT from Git bash or any other tool. After the server is up, then you can continue using git bash for everything else. After stripe login, you need to enter stripe apps start. Once you do that, the server is up and running and you can go back to using git bash or any other tool. 2\. Install Dependencies We'll be using an extra package for QR code generation. Install it using npm: ` 3\. Set Up the Main Component Let's look at the home.tsx file, where we'll use Stripe's UI components: ` These components are similar to other UI libraries like Bootstrap or Tailwind CSS. 4\. Create the UI Structure Our app will have: * An input field for the URL * Validation using a regex pattern * Error handling for invalid URLs * QR code generation and display Here is the Home.tsx file that is located in the src/views folder ` * ContextView` is at the top level of the app where we see the Title and the link to the Stripe Docs that we placed in our Context View. * Box is how you use Divs. * Banners can be used to show notification errors or any other item you wish to display. * Textfields are input fields. * Everything else is pretty self-explanatory. 5\. Handle Content Security Policy One problem I personally ran into was when I tried to redirect users, the Stripe policies would block it since I did not express that I knew what it was doing. I had to go into the stripe-app.json file and mention the specific security policies. For this particular exercise, I kept these as null. This is my stripe-app.json file. ` 6\. Configure App Views As you can see here, the stripe-app.json file shows the views for each file I have. The Home.tsx file and the Invoice.tsx are also included This is our way of saying that for each view we have, show the app functionality on that page. Our stripe-app.json file will show it but also, the manifest.js file in our .build folder will also show the same. Any view that doesn't have a file will not show the application's functionality. So, if I were to go to transactions, the app would not show the same logic as the home or invoices page. By following these steps, you'll have a fully functional QR code generator app for Stripe. This is just a simple example, but the potential for Stripe apps is massive, especially for businesses serving e-commerce customers. If you need help or get stuck, don't hesitate to reach out, danny.thompson@thisdot.co. The Stripe team is also very active in answering questions, so leverage them as a resource. Happy coding!...

Dec 18, 2024

4 mins

stripe

Understanding the Difference Between `:focus` and `:focus-visible` in CSS

Understanding the Difference Between :focus and :focus-visible in CSS I have learned my fair share about the importance of keyboard accessibility, so I know that visual indication of the focused element is very important. But the well-known :focus pseudo-class is not always the best fit for this job. That's where :focus-visible comes in. Let's look at the differences between these two pseudo-classes and explore the best practices for using them effectively. What is the :focus Pseudo-Class? The :focus pseudo-class is a CSS selector that applies styles to any element that receives focus, regardless of how that focus was triggered. This includes focus events from keyboard navigation, mouse clicks, and touch interactions. Example Usage of :focus ` In this example, the button will display a blue outline whenever it is focused, whether the user clicks on it with a mouse, taps it on a touchscreen, or navigates to it using the keyboard. What is the :focus-visible Pseudo-Class? The :focus-visible pseudo-class is more specialized. It only applies styles to an element when the browser determines that the focus should be visible. This typically occurs when the user navigates via the keyboard or assistive technologies rather than through mouse or touch input. Example Usage of :focus-visible ` Here, the button will only show a blue outline when focused through keyboard navigation or another input method that usually requires visible focus indicators. Key Differences Between :focus and :focus-visible :focus - Behavior: Applies to any element that receives focus, regardless of the input method. - Use Cases: Ensures that all interactions with the element are visually indicated, whether by mouse, keyboard, or touch. :focus-visible - Behavior: Applies styles only when the focus should be visible, such as using a keyboard or assistive technology. - Use Cases: Ideal for scenarios where you want to provide focus indicators only to keyboard and assistive technology users while avoiding unnecessary outlines for mouse and touch users, typically required by design. Accessibility Implications :focus - Pros: - Guarantees that all users can see when an element is focused, which is critical for accessibility. - Cons: - Can lead to a suboptimal experience for mouse users, as focus styles may appear unnecessarily during mouse interactions. :focus-visible - Pros: - Enhances user experience by showing focus indicators only when necessary, thus keeping the interface clean for mouse and touch users. - Tailors the experience for keyboard and assistive technology users, providing them with clear visual cues. - Cons: - Additional considerations may be required to ensure that focus indicators are not accidentally omitted, especially in older browsers that do not support :focus-visible. - There may be cases where you want to show focus indicators for all users, regardless of input method. Best Practices for Using :focus and :focus-visible To achieve the best accessibility and user experience, combining both :focus and :focus-visible in your CSS is often a good idea. Combining :focus and :focus-visible ` Here is a Stackblitz example of what such styling could look like for you to try out and play with. Additional Tips - Test with Keyboard and Assistive Technology: Ensure that your web application is navigable using a keyboard (Tab, Shift + Tab, etc.) and that focus indicators are visible for those who rely on them. It's never a bad idea to include accessibility testing in your e2e testing suite. - Provide Clear Focus Indicators: Make sure that focus indicators are prominent and easy to see. A subtle or hard-to-spot focus indicator can severely impact accessibility for users who rely on keyboard navigation. Conclusion The :focus-visible pseudo-class offers a more refined way to manage focus indicators, improving accessibility and user experience, particularly for keyboard and assistive technology users. By understanding the differences between :focus and :focus-visible, and applying best practices in your CSS, you can create more accessible and user-friendly web applications. Remember, accessibility should never be an afterthought. By thoughtfully applying focus styles, you ensure that all users, regardless of how they interact with your site, can easily navigate and interact....

Nov 8, 2024

3 mins

AccessibilityCSSPlaywright

Let's innovate together!

We're ready to be your trusted technical partners in your digital innovation journey.

Whether it's modernization or custom software solutions, our team of experts can guide you through best practices and how to build scalable, performant software that lasts.

Differentiating Yourself and Your Product: Lessons from Vijaya Raghunathan, SVP and Head of Mortgage Servicing Technology at Truist

You might also like

Psychologically Safe Workplaces with Krystal Smith-Moore

How to be an Effective Technology Leader in an Agile Startup Environment with Daniel Chopson

Building a Stripe App: A Step-by-Step Guide to QR Code Generation

Understanding the Difference Between `:focus` and `:focus-visible` in CSS

Let's innovate together!

You might also like

Psychologically Safe Workplaces with Krystal Smith-Moore

How to be an Effective Technology Leader in an Agile Startup Environment with Daniel Chopson

Building a Stripe App: A Step-by-Step Guide to QR Code Generation

Understanding the Difference Between `:focus` and `:focus-visible` in CSS