Why Your Developers Should Support Customers

Lessons learned supporting customers and appreciating a different perspective of development

Photo by Neil Thomas on Unsplash

Tech support is probably one of the most unloved jobs in technology. Developers frequently look down on tech support as people who can’t program. The tech support team is often thought of as a team of people who “raise the issues” with development teams. They’re the people who are the communicators of “problems.”

This is why developers and software engineers will walk away even when they’re directly confronted by a member of the tech support team. The reply tech support always gets is: “I’m busy on another project. If it’s a big issue, please talk to my manager.”

When I transitioned into a tech support role for Front Office trading and risk systems after being a senior developer for Middle Office reporting applications in the investment bank I worked at, people thought I was nuts. My need to see the “big picture” drove my decision at the time. I also thought the business knowledge I gained at the job might lead to a developer job for one of the Front Office trading and risk systems. But, instead, I rose through the ranks of my tech support team, became a leader, and eventually found myself appreciating development from a different perspective.

From my years dealing with customers, development team managers, developers, and members of my support team, I can now offer some insights into why I think every developer, at some point in their coding career, should sit in that tech support chair to support customers. Even for a short time, such as two weeks, the experience can change the mindset of a developer, change the way a developer codes, and increase the skill set of a developer.