How has the COVID-19 Pandemic Effected Leadership?: CodeNewbie Podcast

Sloan the DEV Moderator - Sep 21 '23 - - Dev Community

Yesterday on our podcast, Rachel Nabors, a developer education leader on sabbatical from Big Tech met with @saronyitbarek talk about what they have been up to since they were last on the show in 2017. We discussed the inside scoop on Big Tech, all informed by Rachel’s experience working for companies such as Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft.

Rachel shared with us their experience navigating a changing, and arguably regressing, world in leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic.

They shared:

I think that happened over the pandemic we don’t talk about is that women’s leadership just disappeared off the board.

I feel like there are even fewer women in React now than at the start of the pandemic that I can point to and say, “This is a thought leader.”

And maybe that’s because the social networks might’ve changed.

Maybe they’re all on YouTube or Twitch right now.

But I do think that we saw a pattern during the pandemic of, at least when I was organizing that conference, I noticed originally the set of people who’d confirmed they would speak.

Half of them bowed out because they had to pick up the slack at home and it was too much.


The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are still being felt deeply in many job fields. As we continue to process the ramifications of the pandemic, what have you gleaned from your time in the pandemic alongside your interest in tech?

Or, more specifically:

How do you think the COVID-19 pandemic has effected leadership in the developer community?


Also, if you didn't get a chance to listen already, find that episode below or wherever you get your podcasts:

Send us your thoughts below and don't forget to give it a listen here or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Be well y'all. 💜

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