Sakthya – My role as a Full Stack Engineer

Sakthya Dhanasekar on what makes it so great working at Standard Chartered

I’m a full stack developer, who supports our Consumer Banking business. As a full stack developer, I work in both front-end and back-end development. I specialise in API services and back office applications. My role involves lots of interaction with other application teams including internet banking and mobile banking and my role has great exposure to our other business functions across the bank.

After I joined Standard Chartered, I was unable to spend much time with my team before the pandemic hit. The time we did get to spend on team outings and celebrations like Holi Festival, are the most memorable to me as they were so few and far between.

What drew you to a career in banking?

Banking is evolving every day and I see cutting-edge technologies being used in banking. Recent technical advancements in the industry made me want to be a part of it and Standard Chartered is a globally reputed brand. I felt that the opportunity I was offered matched my skillset and would challenge me at the same time.

What do you love most about your role?

The flexibility to switch between front-end and back-end development, and how challenging and exciting it is to learn new things.

What has been your career path, to get where you are now?

I started as a mobile app developer at Tesco, where I worked for 1.5 years. Then I moved to Oracle and continued to work as a mobile application developer. As a mobile developer I was able to gain experience in both UI and back-end which paved the way to becoming a full stack developer.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced when working?

At Tesco I had an opportunity to work on an application from scratch. It was a challenging task as our whole team were new to it. We successfully released the app to Tesco store employees. It was both a challenging and exciting experience.

If you didn’t do the job you do now, what would be your other career?

I would be a psychologist.

MILESTONE #1

Getting into one of the top colleges in Tamil Nadu, Anna University with merit scores. It opened a new world full of opportunities and gave me enough exposure to pursue the career I wanted.

MILESTONE #2

Getting a placement in the Tesco Mobile Lab. Being my first job, it was a significant milestone in my life and helped to build my independence.