Professional Development

At Lyquix, we believe that continuous growth and development are essential not only for individual success but for the success of the entire team and our clients. As our skills and knowledge improve, we deliver more value to our clients, strengthen our collective expertise, and achieve higher levels of efficiency and effectiveness.

The Importance of Professional Development

• Competence and Client Value: The more competent and experienced we are, the more valuable we become to our clients. This enables us to offer higher-quality services and solutions.
• Skills as Perishable Products: Skills have a limited shelf life. Novel skills are highly valuable at first, but over time, they become a given. To stay relevant and valuable, we must continually enhance and expand our skills.
• Lifelong Learning: Learning never stops. It is a lifelong endeavor, and we encourage our team members to embrace this mindset.

Take Ownership of Your Professional Development

While Lyquix is committed to supporting the professional development of our team by offering feedback, guidance, and resources to help each person thrive, we expect employees to take responsibility for their own professional growth. This includes:

• Leading Your Development: Identify your areas for improvement and seek out opportunities to grow.
• Regular Reflection: Periodically review your progress, reassess your goals, and adjust your development plan as needed. Reflecting on what you've achieved and what challenges remain is key to continuous improvement.
• Proactive Learning: Don't wait for learning opportunities to come to you—seek them out and integrate them into your work routine.

Resources and Mentorship

Lyquix provides a variety of resources and fosters a supportive environment to help team members in their professional development journey:

• This Handbook: The first resource team members should use is this handbook. It contains a wealth of information to guide your professional development.
• Linked Resources: The handbook includes links to free online resources such as articles, courses, videos, and more to aid your growth.
• Company-Supported Learning: Lyquix is happy to pay for books, training courses, memberships, subscriptions, or conferences that can help develop the competencies of our team members. Please discuss your request with your manager to get approval.
• Knowledge Sharing Culture: At Lyquix, we foster a culture of knowledge sharing. Even without formally assigned mentors, we are all expected to offer help to others and are encouraged to seek assistance from the team.

Areas of Development

Professional development at Lyquix extends beyond just technical skills. We expect team members to be well-rounded, focusing on the following areas to become experts in their field:

• Technical Proficiency: Continuously improving and mastering your core technical skills in design or development.
• Collaboration and Communication: Developing strong interpersonal skills to work effectively with team members and clients.
• Project and Product Management Awareness: Understanding the principles of managing projects, timelines, and client expectations.
• Strategic Thinking and Business Acumen: Thinking strategically and understanding how your work contributes to broader business goals.
• Leadership, Mentorship, and Community Contribution: Learning how to lead, mentor others, and contribute to the community.

Technical Roles Levels

At Lyquix, we categorize team members using the following technical skill level scale for designers and developers.

Please Note

While the number of years of experience provides a rough guide for understanding skill progression, these are not fixed requirements. What matters most is the expertise and impact a team member demonstrates in their work. As team members grow in their roles, they are expected to progressively master more complex skills, take on greater responsibilities, and perform at a higher level of quality and efficiency.

1. Junior: 0-3 years of experience

   • The main focus is on learning and developing core skills.
   • Fundamental skills are mastered, but more advanced techniques may still be unfamiliar.
   • Team members work primarily on tightly scoped or routine tasks, under detailed guidance.
   • Work is thoroughly reviewed, and substantial edits are usually needed.
   • Occasionally, there may be challenges following established patterns, approaches, and workflows.

   Please Note

   Junior-level team members are expected to progress to Mid-Level in no more than 3 years.

2. Mid-Level: 3-6 years of experience

   • Mid-Level team members operate more independently.
   • They are expected to demonstrate proficiency across a wider range of skills and contribute to more advanced tasks.
   • Their work is reviewed with the occasional need for material direction or implementation changes.
   • They follow established patterns, approaches, and workflows, and work mostly on clearly defined and scoped features.

   Please Note

   Mid-Level team members are expected to progress to Senior level in no more than 3 years.

3. Senior: 6+ years of experience

   • Senior team members' work doesn't necessarily need to be reviewed in detail, but their general approach may be.
   • They are fully capable of taking substantial features from concept to launch as the sole designer or developer.
   • They can provide material feedback on the work of Junior and Mid-Level team members.
   • Senior team members possess deep expertise within one main domain and basic proficiency in one or more additional domains.

   Please Note

   Once a team member has reached Senior level, progressing to higher levels is optional.

4. Lead: 9+ years of experience

   • Lead team members work completely autonomously with no regular need for review.
   • They show deep, substantial expertise in a range of technical areas and are fully capable of executing complete projects spanning multiple domains.
   • Lead team members are expected to make high-level technical decisions and solve complex problems independently.
   • They are capable of providing technical direction to small teams for substantial projects, trusted to provide mentorship to other team members, and help set and maintain professional standards for the entire organization.

5. Principal: 12+ years of experience

   • Principal team members represent the top level of technical mastery.
   • These individuals not only excel in their own work but play a significant role in the execution of projects and the direction of the company.
   • They are capable of providing technical direction to larger teams for large and long-running projects.
   • Principal team members are expected to provide technical guidance to team members to handle novel technical challenges.
   • They are responsible for driving technical innovation: they are capable of creating new or significantly revamping existing approaches, processes, and technologies. They invent new concepts and push the whole organization forward regularly.
   • Principal team members are recognized widely in the industry for material contributions to the state of the art.

For more detailed information on the specific skills, expectations, and career progression at each level, please refer to the Designer and Developer Professional Development pages. These pages outline the core competencies required for each role, along with the resources and guidelines that will help you succeed. Whether you're just starting out or advancing to a senior level, these resources are designed to support your growth and provide a clear roadmap for achieving mastery in your field.

Becoming an Expert

The concept of becoming an expert is closely tied to the 10,000-hour rule, which suggests that mastery of any skill requires a significant investment of time and effort. However, it's important to recognize that 10,000 hours (roughly 5 years of full-time work) will not make you an expert designer or developer in totality. Jobs and roles consist of dozens of distinct skills, and the 10,000 hours apply to mastering individual skills or coherent groups of skills.

At Lyquix, you are developing multiple skills in parallel, and as you grow, new skills are introduced at each level. Given this complexity, the path to true mastery often spans well over a decade. The key to becoming an expert lies in focused practice, continuously improving your skills, and challenging yourself at every level.

Here are some key practices that contribute to becoming an expert:

• Consistent Practice: Mastery comes from deliberate and focused practice. Take every opportunity to apply your skills in real-world scenarios.
• Feedback Loops: Actively seek feedback from peers and managers to identify areas for improvement. Use this feedback to guide your growth.
• Specialization and Breadth: While developing deep expertise in a specific area, also broaden your skills by learning adjacent or complementary disciplines.
• Staying Curious: Experts remain curious and continuously explore new ideas, trends, and technologies. Make time for exploration and experimentation in your work.
• Seek Challenges: Continuously practicing a skill you've already mastered will not foster further growth. Push yourself to tackle new challenges, step outside your comfort zone, and take on tasks that stretch your capabilities.

For further inspiration, watch these videos:

The Science of Thinking: This video explores the mental processes involved in thinking, problem-solving, and learning. It highlights how the brain processes information and how deliberate practice plays a role in achieving expertise.

The 4 Things It Takes to Be an Expert: This video breaks down four essential components required to reach expertise, emphasizing focused practice, feedback, adaptability, and continuous learning. It provides actionable insights into what it truly takes to become a top performer.

The 4 Things It Takes to Be an Expert: This video breaks down four essential components required to reach expertise, emphasizing focused practice, feedback, adaptability, and continuous learning. It provides actionable insights into what it truly takes to become a top performer.

Management Roles Levels

At Lyquix, there are also opportunities to pursue a career in management. As with technical roles, management positions require progressively more experience and leadership skills:

1. Team Leader: 0+ years of management experience
2. Manager: 3+ years of management experience
3. Director: 6+ years of management experience
4. Executive: 9+ years of management experience

Please Note

Just as with technical roles, progression in management is not solely defined by years of experience but by the ability to lead and make impactful decisions. Management at Lyquix typically requires at least a Senior level (6+ years of experience) in a technical role before moving into management, ensuring a solid foundation of technical expertise.

At the Team Leader level, the focus is on direct leadership of small teams and managing day-to-day tasks. This is usually a hands-on role, with Team Leaders contributing to the execution of project tasks. They are responsible for task assignment and oversight.

Managers oversee larger teams or multiple small teams. Their responsibilities expand to include more strategic decision-making such as resource allocation, project-wide oversight, team performance management, and client interactions. Managers are responsible for hiring, conducting reviews, and facilitating the professional development of team members.

Directors take on more significant leadership roles, leading entire departments. They set overall strategy and direction, manage budgets, and allocate resources at a higher level. Directors are often involved in sales pitches and high-level client relationships.