Brittany Johnson made her journey to the south from Detroit, where she studied sound recording technology, to attend Tech Talent South’s 8-week Code Immersion program.
During her time at Tech Talent South, Johnson built an app to connect with fellow sneaker enthusiasts, allowing users to buy and sell rare sneakers. The application includes an inventory feature for sellers and integrates Stripe’s API to process payments. Next on her list to learn? Swift and Java for mobile app creation.
“I want to make a difference in tech and I want to do it while having fun and enjoying every minute of it,” says Johnson. Learn more about why Johnson might be a great fit to your team.
What is your previous education?
Before packing up and moving to Atlanta for the Full-Time Code Immersion program at Tech Talent South, I attended Schoolcraft Community College in Livonia, MI. While attending Schoolcraft I was enrolled in their Sound Recording Technology program. During the program, I explored the functions of audio signals and the sound reproduction equipment, how to listen like a recording engineer, and emerging audio technology.
Why the interest in the technology field?
Since I can remember, I’ve always been interested in computers and how things work. When I was able to start choosing a career field I always gravitated towards tech, from my music technology studies, as well as working for several mobile wireless carriers, to now developing my own apps and representing a demographic that isn’t prominent in this field.
What projects have you worked on?
For my final project at Tech Talent South, I built a full-stack web e-commerce application to assist fellow sneaker heads in buying and selling rare sneakers. The app allows users to sign up for an account as a seller, buyer, or both, and have the ability to get their hands on cash or the latest sneakers. Sellers will have access to purchase sneakers and access to the “backroom,” which will store their sneakers inventory and information such as price, size, style and quantity.
The app includes user accounts made possible by Devise and abilities made possible by CanCanCan; additionally, the app includes the Stripe API for processing credit card transactions and the Google Maps API which features an interactive map on the “Contact Us” page. I’ve also created a fun Magic 8 Ball game using HTML and jQuery, which can be found on my GitHub.
What tech or tools are essential to you as a developer?
I must say Google has been a big help throughout my coding career thus far — especially being able to use the inspect feature in the Google Chrome browser to search my coding error messages. Stack Overflow is also an excellent resource for searching my code errors. You’re able to not only find assistance for your errors, but you’re able to assist others as well.
How do you stay informed and on-top of emerging trends?
I’m an avid reader, so I follow tech companies on Facebook and read blogs daily. Just recently I’ve been introduced to Slack where I’m a part of the Tech Talent South channel and Women Who Code Atlanta. A lot of inspiration and information is fed to me from these channels. I’ve also been using Meetup to explore the Atlanta community to become familiar with what’s happening in the tech field here.
What are your best technical or creative skills?
I invest a lot of time in all aspects of my project; however, after the back end is up and running, what the user sees is extremely important to me. It’s imperative that the customer-facing views are aesthetically pleasing and inviting. Second — my organizational skills. To me, it’s important as a developer for your code to be legible. Easy-to-read code comes in handy when you’re working in groups and or if you need assistance in correcting errors.
What’s next on your list to learn?
I’d like to become not only a web developer, but also a mobile app developer. So I’d say next on my list is learning Swift and Java for mobile app creation. Additionally I’d like to dig deeper and familiarize myself with the many popular Javascript libraries such as Node.js and React.
Are you interested in working for a startup, mid-sized company, or a corporate giant?
For me, the size of the company isn’t important. I’m interested in working for a company that encourages mentorship, continuing education and values their employees. I’d have to say overall that culture outweighs size when it comes to my ideal work environment.
Interested in looking at Brittany’s credentials? Here you go! Portfolio, GitHub, and LinkedIn.
