Snyk & 01Founders partner to diversify tech

Have you ever thought of an idea for an app that you wished you could build? Or perhaps you have a favorite app (like Spotify, or an iPhone game) and would love to work for the tech company behind it. Every day, there are millions of engineers and developers around the world who are building the future. But how does one learn to code and break into this field? Or find mentors who can help you along the way?

This is the mission of 01Founders - a bootcamp out of the UK that offers an immersive, free-to access, two-year learning experience to help diverse groups of people learn how to code and launch a career in tech. Learning is gamified, team based, and collaborative with fellow peers. The best part? Guaranteed paid employment for 2 years with one of their partners upon successful completion of the program. Imagine the possibilities that will be unlocked for future builders, creators, and dreamers!

Snyk Impact couldn’t be more excited to support 01Founders as their mission is at the intersection of what we care most deeply about - diversifying the tech industry, developing fast, and staying secure. In 2022, we launched a strategic partnership that includes programmatic support, cybersecurity curriculum development, Snyker mentorship and employment opportunities. On September 15, we were thrilled to formally kick off our partnership by hosting 30 learners from 01Founders at Snyk’s London office. The event featured a panel discussion, capture the flag challenge, and networking opportunities with dozens of Snykers. Read on for a recap of the day!

"As an aspiring software developer, visiting Snyk was one of the best experiences I’ve had at a tech start-up. I was reminded that being successful in tech doesn’t mean simply memorizing complex algorithms, but more so strong communication, collaboration, honesty and a willingness to be wrong and constantly learn."

Remi, 01Founders participant

#DevLife with Snyk engineering

Pat Poels (SVP, Engineering) kicked off our day at the office with welcome remarks, an overview of Snyk and a video message from Snyk’s Founder Guy Podjarny before handing it over to Waleed Arshad (Senior Program Manager) to moderate a lively panel discussion focused on #DevLife.

An insightful look into the culture and life of an engineer at Snyk. It felt like a lot of time and effort was dedicated to give us a carefully curated experience. I particularly liked Snyk’s take on how a software engineering application process should be. Everyone I had the pleasure of talking to was genuinely welcoming. I left feeling envious of not being part of the team!

Arnold, 01Founders participant

The panel of Snyk engineers — Foluso Arewa (Software Engineer), Andre Dalcher (Staff Software Engineer), Charlotte Fereday (Software Engineer) and Crystal Hirschorn (Director of Engineering) — shared their diverse career journeys (including experience with coding bootcamps!), and insight into working at Snyk. Learners were excited to hear that there are many different paths into the world of tech. The panel also covered more introspective questions, problem solving, and what students may come to expect, including:

• What does good look like? What are the characteristics and/or practices that lead you to being good (or even great?) in this field?

• How can the skills 01F participants are learning now transfer into a career?

• What kind of challenges do you face in this field, and how do you go about tackling them?

The discussion ended with career advice and guidance on what newcomers can expect from a constantly evolving tech world.

I found the experience not only interesting and insightful but motivating as well. The visit allowed me to see what my future could look like working in tech at an innovative company like Snyk. The staff were very helpful towards us and answered all of the questions we had with patience and thought.

Yonas, 01Founders participant

Learners then moved to a roundtable networking event led by Sam Hepburn (Senior Manager, Community), where they were paired with groups of Snyk mentors organized by topics including the importance of cybersecurity, sample projects in the field, career paths and more. Our Talent Attraction team was also available to share insights on what tech employers are looking for.

The panelists were amazing and I appreciate their discussion about how having a flexible work balance can increase productivity. Having a chance to chat with the leadership, project, security, developer and hiring teams was amazing and I felt greatly motivated after our conversations. I now have better insight into what the real world of tech looks like. Also, I will not forget what one of the engineers said 'asking for help would not make you weak it will make you better’. It has encouraged me to ask questions until you understand and don’t be afraid of trying things out. Make your failure a stepping stone!

Ricky, 01Founders participant

Capture the Flag challenge

After breaking for lunch, we moved to the event’s main attraction: a capture the flag (CTF) challenge hosted by the Snyk security team. CTFs are crowd favorites, and it gave the learners a chance to flex their engineering skills while having fun competing against their peers. Who knows, maybe one of these developers will be challenging Snyk Co-Founder, Danny Grander, to a competition someday soon.

It was really interesting to see what a career in cybersecurity would involve on a day to day basis. The CTF event was challenging but a great introduction into cyber security!

Nate, 01Founders participant

Code security demystified

The day concluded with a happy hour and informal networking event with the entire London office, thanks to our incredible Workplace Experience team. Overall, it was a great success! Huge thanks to our participating Snykers, and to the 01Founders who spent the day with us. We can’t want to see what you bring to the industry.

It was a fantastic visit and opportunity and I would like to say thank you so much to all at Snyk. You have given us the best first hand understanding of what it’s like to be a developer and really helped us have a better understanding and expectation towards future progression. Also goes without saying, best hosts ever????

Godfrey, 01Founders participant

For more information on what life at Snyk is like, visit our careers page. To learn more about how Snyk is building a more inclusive technology industry powering a more sustainable and secure world, check out our Snyk Impact page.  Are you ready to test your skills? Take a look at 01Founders to get involved or test your own code with Snyk’s free online code checker.