I am often asked “what does a ‘front-ender’ do?” My response has usually been, we start where the files are served out over http(s) all the way to the user. We work in the jsp, or whatever file will be served up. We handle the presentation and the interaction. We deal with: CSS/HTML/JavaScript, ActionScript/Flash, Silverlight, whatever. We handle… and it goes on and on. Not a very concise answer. It becomes a rather complicated answer very quickly.
What front-enders don’t have is the simple title like: Architect, Sys Admin, DBA, Java Developer, Graphic Artist, Software Engineer, etc. Even some of these titles are vague in their own right, but for many they are common parlance. The front-ender is a whole new term for something that has been referred to as: Web Master, Web Designer, Web Developer, Designer, UI Developer, etc..
Over the years I have noticed that front-enders come from two directions, design or engineering. Those who come from design feel the need to prove they are just as smart as the engineers. Those who come from the engineering side feel they need to show they have design skills. Basically we have two groups of people working in a common area that want each other to be accepted in an artistic and scientific manner. If that even made sense.
Then there is the other questions: “How do front-enders compare to the back-enders?” “Are the front-enders skilled enough engineers?” “Is the work just as serious as back-enders?” Depends who you ask, and yes there is a bias amongst the old-guard.
So after well over a decade of being a “front-ender” type, who came to the engineering side via design, I have to say “I give up!”
I give up on trying to explain what I do. I don’t have to, you know when you need my skills and if you don’t then we don’t work together. I don’t need to validate my value with a title, I need to continue doing what I have been for many years. Solve the problems of business and user experience through design and/or code. Or more succinctly… SOLVE PROBLEMS.
Call me whatever you want, it doesn’t matter. I’ll call myself a front-ender if it makes you happy, but don’t think that’s all that I am.
Yah, I give up too. But is it wise? As someone who works at a startup, I have a limited shelf-life to my good job. Eventually I’m going to have to go back on the job market.
How do I market my skills? “I give up” isn’t really a good answer. Do I just call my self “A Front End Developer”, or come up with some other title? “Software Engineer” isn’t really good enough because those roles seem to highlight the backend, while I’m more focused on the user facing side of things.
Maybe I’ve been in this role long enough (15 years) that I don’t need to deal with HR anymore, so it’s a moot point and I can just get hired based on the merits of my experience and expertise. Who knows?!
@benfarrell
As I said, I’ll make you happy and call myself “Front-end Engineer.” I have had so many titles that I give up really worrying about it anymore.
I would say your experience and mine as well titles don’t matter. We just have to keep track of the next tech coming over the wall and make sure we remember what we did. Get’s harder as you get older.