> We need more well rounded people that also fundamentally understand how their code is executing on the backend so performance and cost can be optimized. Ther

> We need more well rounded people that also fundamentally understand how their code is executing on the backend so performance and cost can be optimized. There's also some sort of balance that needs to be struck. As a 'web developer'... to be 'well balanced', I need to understand (or dig in to) the minutia of: * JS build tools, syntax, oddities, versions, and be able to troubleshoot these in a variety of environment (works locally with these architectures, and runs on production, but the CI pipeline changed to accommodate someone else and now I have to unstuck all this). * SQL - I need to understand the implications and nuance of various indexing strategies because... hey, PG 14 changed and now our caching approach needs tuning. Should I be using b-tree indices, or something else? Should my indices be clustered? How do I manage replication and backups? And I need to understand the tradeoffs of ORMs vs hand-rolled, vs stored procedures, time-series databases, performance impact of views and materialization. And security. * Application level - I need to understand various aspects of security at the application layer, and balance security vs usability vs accessibility vs performance vs feedback from various program/product managers and end users. Oh, and I need to be able to troubleshoot the application in a variety of contexts. Oh... and mobile. I need to be conversant and 'well rounded' in various flavors of mobile development (hybrid vs native vs whatever). * System updates - what? I'm still on JDK 11? WTF? Why aren't you on the current versions? We need to update pronto, because there's too many security issues we'll get dinged on! * UI - I need to be a CSS master, and if I'm not already on the tailwind bandwagon, I risk losing my job. Or... at least, I'll fall behind as I try to incorporate the new tailwind UI work the new person did because they couldn't be bothered to learn bootstrap 5. And... accessibility - need to be an expert in that. * Deployment - hey, I now need to be able to understand multiple deployment approaches and processes, be fluent in docker/k8s and various tools, be able to troubleshoot these self-sufficiently. Doesn't matter if these are necessarily the right tools for the situation - someone else dictated this and lobbying for anything else means you're afraid to learn new things. And... I should be cheery and helpful and positive about all of this being my responsibility. Because when I ask for folks from another team to help, I get told I need to 'own' the project, and I can't just 'throw it over the wall' and expect someone else to do something for me. If I push back on anything, I risk getting labelled "old" and "a dinosaur" and "afraid of change" and "unwilling to learn new things". tldr - if you actually have teams of people with related yet diverse skills, consider letting each play to their strengths, help support them in their strengths, and organize around everyone doing what they're best at. The 'well rounded' thing has its limits.