September 2021 Summaries

Serverless architecture is a relatively new technology gaining popularity among startup developers due to its advantages such as cost savings, scalability, and reliability. Companies like Netflix, Coca Cola, and Nordstrom have adopted Serverless to deploy servers and storage efficiently, while smaller startups like Courier are using it to cut down costs and build scalable tech. Many students working at startups after graduation will likely encounter Serverless frameworks, which can help them grow their products quickly, cheaply, and reliably. Using Serverless frameworks allows developers to build and deploy applications from zero to production speed, saving time and expenses on people and products. Reliability is also increased as Serverless companies manage the servers, reducing the risk of software, hardware, or human faults related to servers. Students have built projects using Azure Functions for the Serverless Days: Student Edition Conference, including a Smart Teaching Assistant on Github with Serverless, a Knowledge Base for Online Classes, and Go Eat! Meal Reminders with Serverless, showcasing their ability to pick up Serverless architecture quickly and become experts in the field.

We've transitioned to a hybrid-remote approach to work, blending the benefits of both worlds for our team and company. The majority of workers surveyed prefer remote work arrangements, with 97.6% wanting to continue working remotely at least some of the time. Remote work offers flexible schedules, increased productivity, and employee retention, but also presents challenges such as difficulties with communication and collaboration. Our company culture was built around face-to-face interactions, which made transitioning to remote work difficult, especially as we expanded beyond an engineering organization. However, after adapting our processes and tools, we've seen improvements in efficiency, visibility of communication, and team cohesion. A hybrid approach allows us to have a physical office, with team members coming in one to two days a week, while still working remotely the rest of the time. This balance has brought a sense of community and energy to our workplace, and we encourage other companies to consider their own approach to remote work models.

Building a multi-channel notification service using AWS involves leveraging Amazon Simple Email Service (SES) and Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS) to cater to diverse user communication preferences. This approach is particularly beneficial for companies already utilizing AWS infrastructure, as it allows seamless integration with existing systems and familiarity with AWS APIs. The architecture involves creating a standalone notification service with functionalities such as templating, error handling, user preferences, and notification routing, all of which enhance user engagement by delivering tailored notifications. While AWS provides foundational APIs for notifications, developers must implement additional features like error-checking, contact management, and advanced templating to overcome the "rawness" of AWS services. To streamline these processes, services like Courier offer enhanced solutions with features like a Notification Designer, automated handling of errors and unsubscribes, and integration with multiple providers, making it easier to manage and scale notification systems without extensive development effort.