Financial software development lifecycle: Junior developer perspectives in Java using Vaadin framework
Libe', Giulia (2025)
2025
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025092325005
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2025092325005
Tiivistelmä
This diary-base thesis presents an introspective analysis as Junior Software Developer, working for a financial and payroll software firm. A period of nine weeks is documented, from April 29, 2024, to July 5, 2024. The work was conducted within a Scrum team responsible for maintaining and developing a large-scale, monolithic enterprise application built with Java and the Vaadin framework. Daily responsibilities and experiences are recorded while also analyzing each week’s progress.
By documenting day-to-day activities, challenges and weekly outcomes, this thesis aim to pro-vide an authentic perspective on the role of a full-stack developer within a corporate environment, particularly in the context of developing a long-established legacy product. The experience also revealed the necessity of becoming proficient with a wide range of tools and technologies essential to full-stack development, as they are necessary in day-to-day tasks. In addition, analysing these entries helped in highlighting important skill gaps and development areas that should be prioritized to advance as a Software Developer.
The period analysis revealed how growing as a Software Developer does not rely solely on technical knowledge. Clear communication, especially in daily meetings and team interactions, can boost collaboration with other developers and stakeholders. Equally important was the ability to understand and work within a complex, legacy codebase, write maintainable code, and align with long-term product goals. The experience demonstrated that full-stack development in a corporate environment involves not only coding, but also planning, documenting, and participating in structured team processes. These insights gave a clear sense of direction for future growth, both technically and professionally.
By documenting day-to-day activities, challenges and weekly outcomes, this thesis aim to pro-vide an authentic perspective on the role of a full-stack developer within a corporate environment, particularly in the context of developing a long-established legacy product. The experience also revealed the necessity of becoming proficient with a wide range of tools and technologies essential to full-stack development, as they are necessary in day-to-day tasks. In addition, analysing these entries helped in highlighting important skill gaps and development areas that should be prioritized to advance as a Software Developer.
The period analysis revealed how growing as a Software Developer does not rely solely on technical knowledge. Clear communication, especially in daily meetings and team interactions, can boost collaboration with other developers and stakeholders. Equally important was the ability to understand and work within a complex, legacy codebase, write maintainable code, and align with long-term product goals. The experience demonstrated that full-stack development in a corporate environment involves not only coding, but also planning, documenting, and participating in structured team processes. These insights gave a clear sense of direction for future growth, both technically and professionally.