By Dr. Xenia Mountrouidou
JU Department of Computing Sciences
Jacksonville University’s Computer Science Society was visited recently by David Beach, a 1984 JU CS and accounting graduate. He owns a small startup in Jacksonville named AppWright.
Beach brought the students up to speed on topics related to entrepreneurship and career paths in Computer Science, and answered many questions they had on how tough it is to build your own business.
Among student questions, one was about the toughest moment Beach experienced while president of his own business. He said he regretted spending time on an extension to a product he and his developers loved, but customers did not really need or want. He emphasized how important it is to listen to your customers.
On a question about important qualities in a developer seeking a job, he said that besides expertise, the most important thing is to be a team player and have the right attitude.
For more about the JU Computer Science Society, visit http://www.ju.edu/computingsciences/Pages/Royal-Computer-Science-Society.aspx.
Students wrote essays on Beach’s Sept. 19 talk, some of which are excerpted below:
Veronica DelRosario:
It was a pleasure to have Mr. Beach as the guest speaker for the first Royal Computer Science Club meeting. I think that it was a great way to jump-start the rest of the club meetings that will be held in the future. The knowledge and experience of Mr. Beach is most definitely appreciated. It is also motivating to know that he graduated from Jacksonville University and is the President of Appwright. … The information that I found was most important is his advice on staying motivated: “You must have the drive; find the idea.” He explained his path, and how he started off in the corporate world and then started his own company. I think this was the main point of his visit — to show his path. Obviously, we as computer science majors will want to emulate Mr. Beach by having a career in the field, but it takes a lot of perseverance and dedication to get there.
Johnathan Vincent:
Of all the information shared by Mr. Beach during the Royal Computing Science Society meeting, the point I found to be most resonant was his discussion of the importance of understanding and being prepared for opportunities in the job market. He started by differentiating the roles and corporate views of IT workers and programmers, at both standard (non-technology-centric) and technology-based companies. These employees of standard companies are generally viewed as unwanted, replaceable expenditures; whose job is to perform system maintenance and support. Conversely, IT workers and programmers at tech-based companies such as Google, are greatly valued; often given perks and other incentives to encourage them to keep performing at their best. Mr. Beach then went on to emphasize the importance of developing the proper skills for such positions. Among these, he mentioned a comprehensive understanding of data structures, good database management skills, and plenty of experience with object-oriented languages. Lastly, he emphasized that, although companies may specifically look for proficiency in modern programming languages, it is one’s understanding of the aforementioned skills which will carry forward, as older languages fade and younger languages rise to prominence.
Christian Wilde:
The key to starting your own business as a software developer is to have the key idea. Think of something that no one else has. Also aim for the most efficiency if you’re pursuing making your own company, and also have discipline in what you are doing. In addition, know what type of business you’re getting into when having your own company. The main point, though, that I got out of this was to try to be in the field for a couple of years before deciding to start up your own company, and have an idea in mind that you think could be successful.
Jabnel Santos:
I found out that it is truly great to create one’s own business, but there are things that one should get first from working in a corporate environment. First and most important is discipline in your work, work ethic and time management. Next, if you are off in your own venture, you want to be able to understand not only efficiency but scalability in regard to whatever it is that you are creating and work with those ideals in mind to make a truly powerful product. Lastly, always put your customers first and generalize their requests, so the request isn’t narrowed to just one thing, but instead think of all the places that a general form of that request could be used and develop in that manner.