Inside the role: insights from an AWS software engineer
In this Life at AWS Q&A, Lucas Rettenmeier shares how the work culture at Amazon Web Services (AWS) enabled his unconventional career journey, why he loves working as a software development engineer on the DynamoDB team, and his advice for achieving work-life balance.
Inside the role: insights from an AWS software engineer
6 min read | April 26, 2024 | Written by the Life at AWS team
In this Life at AWS Q&A, Lucas Rettenmeier shares how the work culture at Amazon Web Services (AWS) enabled his unconventional career journey, why he loves working as a software development engineer on the DynamoDB team, and his advice for achieving work-life balance.
Lucas Rettenmeier
Software Development Engineer II, Amazon DynamoDB
Lucas Rettenmeier's journey to becoming a software development engineer on the DynamoDB team at Amazon Web Services (AWS) didn't start with a traditional computer science education. Despite studying physics, an accidental internship application opened the door to an exciting career path in cloud computing.In this Q&A, Lucas shares insights from his career trajectory, including how his problem-solving skills and an insatiable desire to learn fueled his transition from solutions architect to software engineer.
Lucas also dives into what it's like navigating AWS's culture of ownership and ambiguity. He offers advice for newcomers on seeking mentors, prioritizing work-life balance, and embracing AWS's learning opportunities.
Getting started in software engineering without a computer science degree
Tell us about your career path to AWS.
I studied physics, so I don't have a computer science background. When I was looking for Amazon internships in Germany in 2018, I didn't really know what AWS was—I just loved being an Amazon Prime customer! I accidentally applied to an AWS internship in business development for industrial software. The role opened my eyes to the global scope and scale of AWS across so many industries, and I almost immediately realized that I liked the technical aspects of the work. I started to explore the best paths into technical roles at AWS in Europe, which led me to meeting solutions architects who shared interesting stories about their roles.
After your business development internship, how did you go about pursuing a more technical career path?
AWS’s Tech U program caught my eye. It takes people from both technical and non-technical backgrounds and trains them to become solutions architects or a few other technical roles at AWS. After six months of intensive training, I became a solutions architect, but I quickly realized I wanted to go deeper and specialize in a specific service area.
"One of my favorite things about Amazon is the Leadership Principles, like ownership, that really resonate with me. I own my own journey and work-life balance. As long as I get my work done, no one cares if I go on a three-hour bike ride in the afternoon to soak up the sun, and then work later in the evening. There's no rigid schedule saying I must be at my desk from 9 to 6 every day."
How did you land on the DynamoDB team as a software engineer?
A year into being a solutions architect, I wanted to apply to be an engineer on the DynamoDB team. I had never worked with relational databases before, and I just thought the DynamoDB user experience was awesome. I knew I wanted to be a part of it. I was fortunate that DynamoDB leaders saw my enthusiasm and potential, and gave me a chance despite not having a traditional engineering background. I think with any career trajectory, you need some luck and you need people who trust you.How did you earn the trust of other DynamoDB team members?
In my first year at AWS, I had the opportunity to speak on stage at re:Invent about DynamoDB and customer patterns using event-driven architectures. I think I really showed my enthusiasm for the service, which went a long way. Everyone could tell I was genuinely excited about DynamoDB. Then I did some work to demonstrate that while I was a solutions architect, I also deeply understood how DynamoDB functioned and how customers utilized it. Once you prove you can perform one role well, I think people believe you can figure out another role, too. Having that diverse background showed I was able to constantly learn new things. So, the DynamoDB team trusted that while I didn't have traditional engineering experience, I could apply myself and succeed as an engineer if given the opportunity. Earning trust is about enthusiasm, proven abilities, and a willingness to keep growing.What transferable skills did your background provide that prepared you for software development?
In my view, when you go to university, there are some jobs where you directly learn the specific skills needed for that role. But for many other roles, university teaches you how to learn, how to acquire new knowledge, and how to solve problems. That's what physics did for me.
I learned vital skills like breaking down complex problems and constantly building new expertise. While the subject matter was physics then, I can apply those same skills to the engineering challenges I face now at DynamoDB. Things like operating large distributed systems at scale and writing code that can handle that level of traffic and computing.
So while I didn't study computer science explicitly, my physics background taught me how to be a perpetual learner and problem-solver. Those mentalities translate incredibly well to software engineering once you dig into the new technical domain.How would you describe DynamoDB to someone without any knowledge of the service?
Almost everyone is interacting with DynamoDB anywhere from 10 to 100 times a day without knowing it. Whenever you put something in your Amazon shopping cart, that is stored in DynamoDB. When you watch your favorite movies, when you book a trip, when you book a hotel—a lot of these things are in DynamoDB. I think at the end of the day, what DynamoDB does is it's really fast, extremely scalable storage for data.
Navigating ownership, ambiguity, and work-life balance
AWS is known for its culture of ownership and working in ambiguity—how do you navigate that?
When I first interviewed for the DynamoDB team, I asked what the most important skill was for this role. The interviewer said, 'being able to deal with ambiguity.' I completely agree that it's crucial. There's certainly some natural ability to thrive in ambiguity, but it's also something you can develop over time with the right mindset. The most important things are to know when to ask for help, and never hesitate to do so.
My top advice for anyone new to AWS is to ask every question you have. If you've been here for years, you may hesitate to ask basic questions. But I'd say regardless of whether you're new or you've been here a long time, ask it all. It's so important. People at AWS are busy, but they will make time to answer your questions and help you navigate anything unclear. Find mentors and ask questions—taking advantage of those around you who can provide clarity—that's key to excelling despite ambiguity in certain roles and projects.
How have you found mentors at AWS?
For me, mentoring relationships happened naturally, stemming from shared interests and casual conversations. For example, going on bike rides with colleagues in the Munich office turned into valuable mentoring connections down the line. I’ve had managers look out for project opportunities that are a good fit for where I am in my development, and that has been invaluable. There's only so much you can gain from classroom or online learning. At some point, you have to do the actual work and learn through hands-on projects. And AWS's culture of ownership means you can seek out the areas you're interested in and will excel at, and take ownership over claiming those opportunities for yourself.
What would you say is unique about working at AWS and what helps people succeed here?
One really unique aspect of AWS is that we have a never-ending stream of hard and interesting technical problems and challenges to solve. If you thrive on tackling complex issues, AWS is a great fit. And as I mentioned earlier, we also really value and emphasize ownership over your work. For some people, that autonomy is incredibly motivating, for others maybe less so. But if you want to control your own career journey, explore different opportunities, and constantly take on new challenges, AWS provides an awesome environment for that.
How has AWS enabled your career growth?
It's much easier to move between different organizations, teams, and roles within Amazon and AWS than to job-hop between entirely different companies. So, if you have an appetite for variety in your experiences, AWS facilitates that career exploration. We also bring together people from all kinds of backgrounds—different expertise, knowledge bases, ways of thinking. To me, that diversity of perspectives is extremely valuable. Getting all those unique viewpoints in one room leads to innovation. If you crave endless learning and want to guide your own career path, you can truly own your journey here in a way that's hard to find elsewhere.
You moved from Germany to Colorado when you joined the DynamoDB team. How has that transition been and how did AWS support your journey?
One of the great aspects of AWS is that we operate globally, which opens many opportunities to work in different locations around the world if you want that experience. I needed to be in the U.S. for the DynamoDB role and the team really supported my interest in relocating to Colorado. AWS helped manage logistics like my visa and move, and Colorado has been a dream in terms of the surroundings and weather.
How does AWS's culture enable you to integrate your hobbies and passions alongside your career?
One of my favorite things about Amazon is the Leadership Principles like ownership that really resonate with me. I own my own journey and work-life balance. As long as I get my work done, no one cares if I go on a three-hour bike ride in the afternoon to soak up the sun, and then work later in the evening. There's no rigid schedule saying I must be at my desk from 9 to 6 every day. The culture empowers me to structure my time how I need, as long as I uphold our customer obsession and deliver results. So, if I want to go for a run when the sun is out, it's perfectly fine. My managers trust me to structure my time in a way that works for me.
What advice would you give someone joining AWS as a new software engineer?
Constantly ask questions, don't be afraid to say, 'I don't know,' and take advantage of AWS's learning resources. And set boundaries to protect your work-life balance and outside passions—the AWS culture really enables you to integrate your interests.
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