A decade of growth: My path to tech leadership at ProductDock

As we continue the “ProductDock’s career reflections” interview series, we are proud to celebrate and honor team members who have dedicated ten or more years to our company.

This time, we spoke with Radislav Stokić, our software engineer, whose smile, ambition, and positive energy left a lasting impression. His team spirit, commitment, and proactivity make him a great colleague.

What do you like most about your role?

I’m still getting used to my new role, which I’ve stepped into since the beginning of the  year. It’s a combination of tech lead and engineering manager responsibilities that I perform on my current project. The role includes participating in a lot of meetings where we align with other tech and product teams and plan the next steps. That’s not the part that I enjoy the most. Usually I like more working directly with my team. I like the sense of accomplishment when we reflect over time and see how much progress we actually made. It’s usually a bumpy road in the beginning when a new team is formed. Then we continuously improve our ways of working, our tech skills and learn the project domain. After some time challenges start to become easier and our communication more fluent. We come to conclusions more quickly in tech discussions. We build trust inside the team. Seeing the progress over time in these areas is really motivating.

What is your biggest challenge in your role at ProductDock?

I already mentioned having many meetings during the day can be exhausting. External communication related to the team usually goes over the person leading the team, and that can lead to information overload if you have many topics running in parallel. Being organized helps to mitigate that issue.

How did you grow at ProductDock? Tell us about your journey.

My development path has been typical, similar to that of my colleagues. I started as a junior team member. Over the years, as I gained both technical and non-technical experience, I became a team lead, working with people from different offices. In the beginning, the challenges were more related to technical matters, and later, as it usually happens, after years of experience, I became a tech lead and improved my communication and soft skills, which were essential for establishing effective communication and leading a team.

What is your best ProductDock memory?

My first team-building trip to Dubrovnik with colleagues was a memorable experience. It was also the first major gathering with our colleagues from Germany, so we had the opportunity to meet them all. Dubrovnik left an incredible impression on me, as did the cruising experience. I’d also like to mention the second team building in Dubrovnik, which was also excellent.

What is the secret of staying in the same company for more than 10 years? 

Even though ProductDock has grown in the last few years, I still like the “feeling of the small company” where everybody has straightforward and friendly communication with colleagues from the office. That makes it an excellent place to be. I’ve developed friendly relations with many of them, and we also hang out outside work.

Which book would you recommend?

The book I recommend to colleagues, especially when less experienced team members join us, is Clean Code by Uncle Bob. It’s essential reading for any software engineer. In the beginning, when we formed our team, we had a team goal to read the book at the same time and discuss afterward how we could get the most out of it.  This helped us establish a common language and better understand our goals, why we insist on something, what is just “nice to have,” and what rules we can altogether skip. It’s a good base for technical development and fostering effective communication within the team.

How do you like the projects you have worked on at ProductDock?

I will mention the project I’m currently working on as a positive example. After approximately four and a half years on this project, I was officially given the opportunity to be a tech lead. This marked a significant milestone in my professional growth. Another advantage of working on this project is that we periodically go to the client’s location to work together with them for a week or so. It’s different when you only work remotely, and you never have the chance to see each other in person. 

What is one piece of advice you wish someone had given you when you first started coding?

Learning technical skills and learning how to stay organized  are sometimes a key part of the job. In the beginning, no matter how much you strive for perfection, more experienced colleagues will find a space for improvements. All of this should be experienced and accepted as part of our development process.

Which app do you find helpful?

I mostly rely on note taking apps when it comes to staying organized. I tried many but currently I’m using the Craft app. If there’s something that needs to be done in three days, I’ll surely forget about it unless I’ve written it down somewhere.

What are the three things you like the most at ProductDock?

The top priority is the people, interpersonal relationships, and communication. The educational budget is another great benefit, and I’m happy to use it. I also value the quality of the projects we work on and the tools we use.

What was the best concert you’ve ever been to?

Rammstein in Belgrade this year in May was an unforgettable experience. Several of us from the company attended, and although the weather could’ve been better, the overall experience was fantastic, and I really enjoyed it.

What do you do to relax in your free time? How do you recharge?

Since I have a little daughter, I spend my free time with her. When I finish work, we go to the park, the playground, or for ice cream. She waits for me to finish my work duties, and then we plan our afternoon or weekend. I also occasionally ride a bike as a hobby. I ride a mountain bike and like to go outside the city and ride for 30-40 kilometers.

Which trip would you enjoy and which destination would you like to visit?

I fondly remember the summer holidays in Turkey, in Alanya, Antalya. 

I want to visit Mallorca. It sounds like a great place, there’s really no need to explain it further. I’m a classic guy who lives for vacations and the sea, and I’m very simple.

Can you tell us something about your hometown?

My hometown is Doboj. For me, Doboj is significant because I was born, grew up, went to school, and got my first job here. It’s a city situated on three rivers, and we have the Gradina fortress, which is a popular tourist spot. My family and friends are also, which is a great benefit.

What is your favorite video game?

I used to play a lot more games than I do today. Generally, when I started working, which involves spending many hours in front of the computer, games would be an additional screen time. Lately, I’ve been playing The Last Campfire with my daughter. It’s a puzzle-adventure game with a nice story telling and difficulty level adapted for young children. We went through all the levels together and we had a lot of fun.