Support is Key in Technical Work
About the role
Back to the Magazine|Archive Issue 03
June 2026
Career Journey
Contributor
Support is Key in Technical Work
Emily Kelley's career progression into support engineering. Why is support important? We need to support the systems we build.
ER
By
Emily Reynolds Kelley
Published
July 2, 2026
Issue
03
June 2026
Read
5 min
Submitted by Emily Reynolds Kelley
Build With Her Magazine
Support is the oft forgotten sister to Engineering. We assume that the hardest part of engineering is building the system, not supporting systems afterward. In an ecosystem which prioritizes new features and growth at any cost, Support is often seen as an after thought. Combine these notions with gender-coded work of support and we begin to see why so few engineers choose to go into Support roles.
I originally had dreamed of creating software and becoming a builder rather than a supporter, but I kept finding my way back to support. I prefer problem solving to building new systems. I find it tedious to start a project only to spend an hour to spin up a dev server. Coding feels rote, mechanized and lacking human interactions. Additionally, it's a very difficult place to start in tech - alternatively, support is a great place to start.
The more I fell into support, the more I fell in love with support as a field. First off, I am a people person. I am the person who is chatting with everyone at the party while my husband takes pictures in the background. Sitting at a desk and coding all day, does not satisfy my urge to talk with people and learn their stories. I love solving problems and feeling a sigh of relief when the customer and I agree that a problem is solved. Support is a perfect blend of customer interaction and engineering and allows you to use both sides of your mind.
Finally, there are real benefits economically in support. While renumeration might be lower than a Senior Developer, there is demand for Support Engineers. For all the talk that AI will eliminate Support, it has not happened. Indeed, it cannot happen - except to the detriment of a company's bottom line. When a customer calls in, they are generally unhappy. Customers do not want to talk to a bot, they want sympathy from a live person. Support comes in here. To make this point personally, when I was laid off, I found a job within a month while some of the engineers I was working with are still looking nearly 1.5 years later. Support may not make the same amount as developers, but we are never unemployed for long.
If you like problem solving, enjoy helping people and don't mind a bit of documentation - Support could be a great career for you.
I love to help women in tech! Feel free to reach me on LinkedIn.
A Note From The Editors
Enjoying these stories?
Build With Her exists to document the journeys, lessons, challenges, and breakthroughs of women building in technology.
You do not need a perfect career.
You do not need a large audience.
You only need a story that might help another woman.
Share Your Story
Not the right fit? Search for Support is Key in Technical Work jobs in Rural Municipality of Reynolds, Manitoba, Canada
About Build with Her
“I looked around and could not find quite the place I imagined. A place where women could share their stories, make their knowledge and experiences visible, build their reputation and create opportunities. So I decided to build it.”
This belief from Tarak, founder of Build with Her, sums up everything that makes Build with Her what it is. It has been our guiding idea from the beginning.
LinkedIn exists. YouTube exists. Résumés exist. But we believe something is still missing: a place where women's stories, experiences, ideas and expertise can come together and become part of something bigger, their professional reputation.
Every day, we are building that place with commitment, curiosity and the belief that what women have lived, learned and built deserves to be visible.
Built through stories: At Build with Her, we believe in the power of stories. Every woman carries knowledge, experiences and perspectives shaped by her own journey. When those stories are shared, they can demonstrate expertise, build reputation, inspire others and create opportunities.
Build with Her Magazine is where this begins. A place where women can share their stories in their own voices and build a body of work that grows with them.
We are building the place we wanted to see in the world. And we invite you to build it with us.
Stories. Reputation. Opportunities.
Build with Her.
Similar Jobs
Support is Key in Technical Work
About the role
Back to the Magazine|Archive Issue 03
June 2026
Career Journey
Contributor
Support is Key in Technical Work
Emily Kelley's career progression into support engineering. Why is support important? We need to support the systems we build.
ER
By
Emily Reynolds Kelley
Published
July 2, 2026
Issue
03
June 2026
Read
5 min
Submitted by Emily Reynolds Kelley
Build With Her Magazine
Support is the oft forgotten sister to Engineering. We assume that the hardest part of engineering is building the system, not supporting systems afterward. In an ecosystem which prioritizes new features and growth at any cost, Support is often seen as an after thought. Combine these notions with gender-coded work of support and we begin to see why so few engineers choose to go into Support roles.
I originally had dreamed of creating software and becoming a builder rather than a supporter, but I kept finding my way back to support. I prefer problem solving to building new systems. I find it tedious to start a project only to spend an hour to spin up a dev server. Coding feels rote, mechanized and lacking human interactions. Additionally, it's a very difficult place to start in tech - alternatively, support is a great place to start.
The more I fell into support, the more I fell in love with support as a field. First off, I am a people person. I am the person who is chatting with everyone at the party while my husband takes pictures in the background. Sitting at a desk and coding all day, does not satisfy my urge to talk with people and learn their stories. I love solving problems and feeling a sigh of relief when the customer and I agree that a problem is solved. Support is a perfect blend of customer interaction and engineering and allows you to use both sides of your mind.
Finally, there are real benefits economically in support. While renumeration might be lower than a Senior Developer, there is demand for Support Engineers. For all the talk that AI will eliminate Support, it has not happened. Indeed, it cannot happen - except to the detriment of a company's bottom line. When a customer calls in, they are generally unhappy. Customers do not want to talk to a bot, they want sympathy from a live person. Support comes in here. To make this point personally, when I was laid off, I found a job within a month while some of the engineers I was working with are still looking nearly 1.5 years later. Support may not make the same amount as developers, but we are never unemployed for long.
If you like problem solving, enjoy helping people and don't mind a bit of documentation - Support could be a great career for you.
I love to help women in tech! Feel free to reach me on LinkedIn.
A Note From The Editors
Enjoying these stories?
Build With Her exists to document the journeys, lessons, challenges, and breakthroughs of women building in technology.
You do not need a perfect career.
You do not need a large audience.
You only need a story that might help another woman.
Share Your Story
Not the right fit? Search for Support is Key in Technical Work jobs in Rural Municipality of Reynolds, Manitoba, Canada
About Build with Her
“I looked around and could not find quite the place I imagined. A place where women could share their stories, make their knowledge and experiences visible, build their reputation and create opportunities. So I decided to build it.”
This belief from Tarak, founder of Build with Her, sums up everything that makes Build with Her what it is. It has been our guiding idea from the beginning.
LinkedIn exists. YouTube exists. Résumés exist. But we believe something is still missing: a place where women's stories, experiences, ideas and expertise can come together and become part of something bigger, their professional reputation.
Every day, we are building that place with commitment, curiosity and the belief that what women have lived, learned and built deserves to be visible.
Built through stories: At Build with Her, we believe in the power of stories. Every woman carries knowledge, experiences and perspectives shaped by her own journey. When those stories are shared, they can demonstrate expertise, build reputation, inspire others and create opportunities.
Build with Her Magazine is where this begins. A place where women can share their stories in their own voices and build a body of work that grows with them.
We are building the place we wanted to see in the world. And we invite you to build it with us.
Stories. Reputation. Opportunities.
Build with Her.