Besnik Konjuhaj works as a Junior Data Engineer at Cloud1. Besnik's responsibilities include implementing data integrations, maintaining client environments, and solving any potential problem situations in Cloud1's continuous services.
Besnik came to Cloud1 through an internship. Originally studying to become a business administrator, his interest in information technology and coding led him to Supercell's Hive Helsinki coding school.
Hive Helsinki aims to diversify the mathematically oriented perspective on coding that stems from engineering sciences. The core idea of the school is that as programming is needed in increasingly wider areas of society, coding expertise should also come from people with different backgrounds and orientations. The school seeks to bridge this gap by training coders who have various strengths, knowledge backgrounds, and interests.
At Hive Helsinki, the teaching method also challenges traditional approaches. Work is carried out in groups, and students find solutions to tasks on their own.
Besnik describes the teaching system as exciting and interesting because it allows for individual progress according to one's own situation, skill level, or motivation. Knowledge can be deepened as much as one wants. In traditional classroom-based learning, everyone progresses at a set pace, which can be too slow for some and too fast for others. Here, progression depends on oneself.
Mastering Azure
A similar approach based on personal initiative and enthusiasm has also propelled Besnik forward as an intern at Cloud1. For instance, there are abundant excellent resources available for mastering Azure, and one can easily immerse themselves in the Azure world, provided there is enough interest and enthusiasm.
Besnik has been absorbing Azure knowledge at an impressive rate. He has already completed his first certifications, with more on the way. The key factors are personal motivation, interest, and the desire to learn and understand new things.
"Getting into the Azure world is easy if you have enough enthusiasm and motivation."
In addition to motivation, Besnik finds it important in learning new things to immediately apply theory to practice. This way, expertise deepens and becomes concrete through real-world applications – he gets to apply and experiment with what he's learned in practical work.
Support Through Mentorship
Support for diving into the deep end of Azure has been provided by Cloud1's mentoring model. Regular weekly meetings with Harri Puupponen have been a great opportunity to address questions. Having a designated time for mentorship means not having to feel guilty about taking up a busy expert's time.
However, the prolonged remote work has posed challenges for onboarding. Casual conversations over a cup of coffee are valuable moments in many respects. Under normal circumstances, it’s easier to pull a more experienced colleague aside for a quick question. While remote work and digital communication channels function well, there are certainly advantages to a traditional working environment.
Integrations to Artificial Intelligence
Besnik considers that expertise in integrations creates a solid foundation for deepening knowledge in many different directions in the future. In the realm of integrations, it's essential to understand a variety of technologies and diverse environments. Implementations vary, needs change, and applications can be solved in many different ways. Proficiency in integrations aids in comprehending broader contexts, and once this is grasped, it facilitates tasks like software development.
“I really like my job.”
In the future, Besnik is interested in expanding his expertise to software development and working with artificial intelligence. A particular notion related to the latter theme has become more concrete as he delves deeper into the subject. That is, despite all the hype, the practical use of genuine artificial intelligence in production remains uncertain. It would require a significant amount of time and resources to train an AI to be intelligent and useful. From the perspective of the resources required, the business benefit would be minimal. At this stage, it's easier to utilize data and make decisions based on it.
Although many things are called artificial intelligence, Besnik notes that often, when you scratch the surface, it boils down to a mathematical formula, albeit a complex one. A true, human-imitating model that changes behavior based on the dataset provided is still far off. Real AI is currently achievable mainly for companies with unlimited resources.
Data, on the other hand, yields benefits for companies of all sizes.