Finding a Job: Build Something Real

Published on 2025-07-13 by Stuart Spence

I often see these questions online:

"I have no work experience. How do I get my first software job?"

"I got laid off with only have 2 years of experience. How do I get a software job?"

"What certs can help me get a software job?"

I'm a team lead …

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Empowering public servant managers with displacements

Published on 2024-09-22 by Stuart Spence

Sometimes my friends, family, colleagues, or online communities ask me this question:

"If you could wave a magic wand to make one change in public service, what would it be?"

I'd create a new tool for managers in government called "displacement". Here's how it works.

Disclaimer

The opinions here are …

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My three months vacation this summer

Published on 2024-08-02 by Stuart Spence

After some big disappointments at Environment Canada, I decided to take three months off in May, June, and July of 2024. Now that my time off is coming to a close I thought it would be nice to jot down all the nice ways I got to spend my time …

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A Proposed Point System for Government WFH

Published on 2024-05-01 by Stuart Spence

This page describes a point system where public servants and their managers can autonomously identify what their minimum work-from-home (WFH) day count should be.

Why RTO

Some politicans are more transparent than others about why return-to-office (RTO) is so important to them:

"Three days is a good start," Ford said …

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MA in Education Technology at Concordia

Published on 2024-02-16 by Stuart Spence

Every so often someone asks me what I thought about the master's program in education technology (instructional design) at Concordia University in Montreal. If that's you, you've come to the right place.

Overall I'm happy I enrolled. However the master's was just an outlet for my own self-drive and did …

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New Role at ECCC

Published on 2023-10-23 by Stuart Spence

Today I'm excited to say I'm moving to a new team! They build AI prototypes in the cloud for Environment Canada (ECCC). On paper this is like a dream job! On this page I'll go over key details, the job description, and highlights.

Key Details

  • One year assignment starting November …

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Better Hiring in Government

Published on 2023-07-07 by Stuart Spence

When I help with government hiring I often give the same suggestions to hiring teams. So I wrote this page as a starting point. I focus on IT hiring but this also applies generally. If these points resonate with you, I'd love to help you with your hiring.

Important note …

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