Life as a Software Engineer | An interview with Abi Harrison-Nye

Polly:
Hi Abi, thank you so much for joining us today. It's lovely to meet you finally.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Hi Polly, yeah, nice to meet you too.

Polly:
We'll crack straight on with it then. Can you tell us a little bit about what you do for your job and what inspired you to go into that career?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yeah, of course. My day-to-day role is as a front-end-focused software engineer, but I also do backend JavaScript. It's all JavaScript-based. Right now, we’re working on product pages—not the most exciting thing, but still important.

Polly:
You're a software engineer at GiffGaff, right? And how did you get into that? What were you doing before?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yes. Before that, I was a driving instructor, and then COVID hit. They advised everyone to work from home, but you can’t really teach people how to drive remotely. I’m not the kind of person who can just sit at home doing nothing, so I thought, "I’ve always wanted to code, let’s give it a go." I also looked into cybersecurity but ended up choosing coding.

Polly:
Yeah, I can imagine that was a tough transition.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
I did a few taster courses and sI really enjoyed coding, so I went for it.

Polly:
That sounds like a pretty easy choice then! You obviously studied with us—how did your studies help you transition into the industry?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Honestly, it was so good. The way the course is structured is very similar to how I work day-to-day. We had Slack channels to ask questions, and we use Slack at work. The GitHub processes were practically the same. The only extra thing I had to learn was linking it to work tickets.

I also did a lot of hackathons during the course, which really helped me get used to working in a team, listening to ideas, and giving constructive feedback.

Polly:
Did having certifications make it easier to compete for jobs?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yeah, partly because I was certified and also because it was a bootcamp. Many places I applied to were used to university graduates, so when I mentioned doing a year-long bootcamp, they were intrigued. They saw it as a very practical way of learning.

Polly:
That makes sense. I feel like getting certifications later in life shows real dedication. A lot of people go to university at 18 without knowing what they want to do, but when you actively choose a path later, it carries more weight.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yeah, it shows you’re dedicated to your career rather than just following the expected path after secondary school.

Polly:
What challenges did you face when starting out? And did being a woman in a male-dominated field present any difficulties?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
I was really lucky with GiffGaff. They have strong pillars of diversity and inclusion, so my gender has never been an issue.

Interviewing, however, was a different story. When I got my offer from GiffGaff, I had two other offers as well. One company told me, "You’d be working in a team of eight men; we need some lady energy."

Polly:
Oh no, we don’t love that.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Exactly. It felt like they just needed a woman—it didn’t matter who. Another company was more subtle but still emphasised that it was a "man’s workplace." At GiffGaff, my gender wasn’t even mentioned, which was refreshing.

Polly:
That’s exactly how it should be. What advice would you give to women considering a career in tech?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Ask about the gender split in the company. The numbers themselves don’t matter as much as how they answer. If they say, "We hire the best talent regardless of gender," that’s a good sign. If they say, "We focus on hiring the best women," that can be a red flag because it suggests they’re hiring to meet a quota rather than for talent.

Polly:
That’s a great tip. It’s not about the numbers, but about the company’s attitude.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Exactly. My current team has about 20 people, and only two of us are women, but gender just isn’t a factor. Across the business, we’re close to 50% women, but the key thing is that it doesn’t impact how we work.

Polly:
Have you had any female role models or mentors who inspired you?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yes, my biggest role model is a friend I knew before getting into tech. We were in a band together, and she’d been encouraging me to try coding for years. When I finally did, she got me an internship at GiffGaff. She’s an amazing coder and one of the most supportive, caring people I know.

Polly:
That’s so lovely! What kind of music did your band play?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Ska Punk!

Polly:
No way! That’s well beyond my comfort zone. Do you still play?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Not recently, we stopped about a year ago, but we’re still friends.

Polly:
That’s great. Moving on to the tech side—what does your role as an engineer involve?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
I mainly work with JavaScript frameworks like Node.js, Next.js, React, and TypeScript. I also do a lot of accessibility work, making sure components are built in an inclusive way.

Polly:
That sounds really rewarding. Do you enjoy it?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Definitely. One of the best things about tech is that every day is different. Today, I was preparing a webinar on bad accessibility practices, while yesterday, I was coding pages sent from Apple. It’s such a varied role.

Polly:
That’s great! What advice would you give to someone trying to break into tech without prior experience?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
You don’t need prior experience. The key things are:

• Keep your LinkedIn profile updated.
• Showcase what you’re passionate about.
• Don’t be afraid to specialize in something.

For me, it was accessibility. I talk about it, write blog articles, and do webinars. When I interview, companies already know my interests, which sets me apart from other candidates.

Polly:
That’s a great strategy. If you ever want to share your blog articles, we’d love to feature them!

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Cool!

Polly:
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give yourself when starting out?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Don’t listen to imposter syndrome.

Polly:
Love that!

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Yeah, it’s brutal. Everyone gets it. My boss has been in the industry for 15 years, and he still feels it sometimes. That really puts it into perspective.

Polly:
So true. Finally, how important is continuous learning in your field, and how do you stay up to date?

Abi Harrison-Nye:
It’s crucial, especially in JavaScript—there’s always a new framework. I stay updated by following tech professionals on Twitter (or X) and Blue Sky. I also attend conferences, which are great for networking and learning about the latest trends.

Polly:
That sounds amazing. If you want to share any of your go-to accounts for tech news, we’d love to include them in your interview.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
Cool, will do!

Polly:
That’s all my questions—thank you so much for joining us, Abby! It was lovely to meet you.

Abi Harrison-Nye:
No worries at all, thank you! Bye!

 

 

 

I asked Abi to share the resources she'd spoken about that she thinks help her to stay up to date.

Abi's blogs:

https://codeinstitute.net/blog/accessibility-in-code/ 
https://www.codu.co/abi-harrison-nye
ttps://www.giffgaff.io/inclusion/the-wonderful-world-of-accessible-buttons

Abi's webinars:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-4qqmikIqk

On X:

@stevesaylor (accessibility within gaming)
@ShellELittle (accessibility specialist)

On LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kwong4a11y/

Conferences (free):

Axe-con (by Deque) - https://www.deque.com/axe-con/

Google I/O - https://io.google/2025/

Websites:

https://css-tricks.com/

https://flexboxfroggy.com/

https://www.smashingmagazine.com/