One final competency however is one that we all need; the ability to recognize that there is actually no uniquely valuable set of skills or behaviors, and that in any organization, there are multiple ways to be successful, many roles to fill, and that an individual’s work is just part of a larger process, all of which needs to work to be successful. Smart people sometimes overlook other kinds of intelligence; it helps if we maintain the desire to achieve mutual respect and offer our views as an opinion, even if we believe we are actually correcting an error — you’d be surprised how often we confuse opinions and perspectives as facts.

However, a developer would do well to have the competencies above; then they are well placed to advance in their career on the technical track to become a senior developer, then a development lead and later an architect, or on the management track where integrity, a passion for respect, and the desire to inspire and help others to achieve are even more key.