I am using the article to easily and in simpler words answer the following most common questions we receive about starting work, training, and career development at Stenik:
- What would I be working at Stenik?
- What skills do I need to have to start working at Stenik?
- How can my career develop at Stenik?
But first, let's summarize what exactly we do at Stenik:
What do we do at Stenik?
At Stenik, our focus is on creating online stores - setting up and configuring the platform, programming custom functionalities, handling all related integrations, and creating the front-end (client-side).
Long-term support and growth of the online stores we develop are also fundamental to our business model. In this regard, we welcome interns with an eCommerce passion and knowledge, even without mandatory IT experience or education.
From here, two main career paths can be identified at Stenik:
Technical VS. Non-Technical positions
Before addressing the initial questions, it's important to know that we have two main career directions at Stenik:
- Technical positions (Programmers)
- Non-Technical positions (Non-Programmers)
Although Non-Technical positions also require solid computer and technical literacy, they are not labeled "Technical" since they do not involve programming.
Example: The popular position of "Technical Support" at Stenik is not classified as a "Technical position" since it is not carried out by programmers at the first level. Instead, it is taken on by specialists who try to solve the issue through consultations with our client (in this case, the online merchant) or by configuring the online store through the admin panel.
I will answer the questions separately for both positions, starting with the Non-Technical positions, as they require a little more explanation.
Non-Technical positions (Non-Programmer)
What would I be working at Stenik if I don't have an IT education or knowledge?
In addition to programmers, Stenik offers many other positions, such as:
- eCommerce Support Specialist
- Project Manager (divided into Assistant PM, Junior PM, and Senior PM)
- Account Manager
- Sales Manager
- UX/UI Designer
Find out more about each position in the video series about professions at Stenik.
Interesting: Perhaps some of you may be surprised that we haven't listed QA Specialist / Tester as a separate position - this is because testing of online stores is a shared responsibility, and our Support Specialists, Project Managers, and Designers are trained to perform it.
Before you embark on any of the positions, it is essential to have a foundation of eCommerce knowledge and understand how the magic happens with online stores at Stenik.
As mentioned above, the long-term support and growth of our developed online stores are at the core of our business model. In this regard, Stenik welcomes enthusiastic interns with no mandatory IT experience or education, to build their eCommerce knowledge.
After several months of training, mainly through practical tasks on real projects and theory, you will have the opportunity to fully engage with our Support team. You will acquire knowledge and skills in the following areas:
- Content administration of online stores
- Configuration of online store functionalities
- Testing eCommerce functionalities and UX
- Fundamental eCommerce knowledge, terminology, and processes (from marketing to ERP integrations to order management)
- Effective communication with colleagues within the company and Stenik's clients
- Support and consultations – problem-solving and addressing questions from online store owners
- Assisting in managing tasks related to the enhancement of online stores (communication with project managers, designers, and programmers)
Anyone interested in pursuing a "different-from-programmer" career at Stenik must undergo this training and work process. This lays the foundation of eCommerce knowledge, making career advancement and specialization easier.
What skills do you need to start eCommerce training and work at Stenik?
We've listed several points that will guide you in understanding the advantages you have if you decide to take this path:
- Previous professional experience in some form at a web design agency or a firm dealing with ERP and inventory management software - assistant, consultant, project manager.
- Previous professional or amateur experience as a website or online store administrator on platforms/CMS systems like WordPress, Open Cart, PrestaShop, Magento, or similar - whether through previous work or as a side hustle.
- Active user of online stores and shopping mobile applications.
- Ability to correctly define some of the following terms (the more, the better for the start of the internship): user story, SSL, site speed, GDPR, omnichannel, marketplace, borica, b2c, b2b, A/B testing, personalization, API, SaaS, CMS, Cloudflare, SVG, follow-up email, transactional email, GTM, Facebook pixel, product feed, 301 redirect, structured data for Google, SEO, abandoned carts, canonical tag, eCommerce conversion rate, captcha, web service, UX, technical specification, documentation, remarketing.
If you possess such experience, then you have already taken the first steps towards easier assimilation of our eCommerce training, faster completion of the internship, and inclusion in Stenik's ranks.
However, even if you lack this previous experience, it's not a problem. At Stenik, we have eCommerce specialists who started their internships right after finishing school - that is, without prior knowledge in the field.
In our blog, you can find the stories of our interns, the main characters in our "Successful internship stories" section, who began their journey this way.
How can my career develop at Stenik after eCommerce training?
After completing the internship, working as an eCommerce Support specialist, and gaining practical experience, you have several options for career development. It's good if you already have an idea of what interests you and where you want to go, but another option might capture your attention during the training.
The path to becoming a project manager
Our largest team after the programmers is the team of Project Managers, or PMs. This is normal since we have been working on online stores at Stenik since 2004, and we have many projects that we maintain and upgrade.
As a trained eCommerce Support specialist, as time goes on, you will start taking on tasks as an assistant PM, assisting other project managers. When you are ready, you will be assigned your own projects to manage, now as a Junior PM. The goal is to develop your knowledge and skills and, after a few years, become a Senior PM.
Account Manager and Sales Manager
The positions of Account Manager and Sales Manager at Stenik are related to sales, but there is a difference:
- The Account Manager assists the PMs in selling enhancements (new features) for online stores that we have already created and are currently maintaining.
- The Account Manager assists the PMs in selling enhancements (new features) for online stores that we have already created and are currently maintaining.
As you can tell, to sell something, you need to understand how it works – that's why it is necessary to go through the eCommerce training explained above.
UX/UI designer
The designers at Stenik also undergo eCommerce training, but with the difference that they join Stenik with a clear idea of becoming designers for online stores.
If you are already enthusiastic and passionate about this field, have no technical education or experience, but want to develop your career at Stenik – apply for an eCommerce internship with us.
Watch the "Behind the scenes at Stenik" movie and hear what some of our colleagues have to say.
Technical positions (programmers)
The largest team at Stenik is our development department, which is mentored, united, and inspired by our Technical Director, Nikolay Dimitrov.
What would I be doing at Stenik as a programmer?
We can define our programmers as web developers, as we primarily work on online stores, creating things for the web.
Our team of programmers consists of well-defined Back-end Developers and Front-end Developers.
So, your opportunity to start working with us is either:
- joining the back-end development team, where you'll be involved in creating new modules and functionalities related to online stores, integrating online stores with various ERP and inventory software, couriers, payment methods, etc.
- joining the front-end development team, where you'll bring to life the designs created by our UX/UI specialists by integrating them into the eCommerce platforms we use.
As Stenik also provides hosting services for our clients with online stores, team members with an interest in server administration, server configuration, etc., will have the opportunity to learn new things and excel in this area.
Soon, you will be able to read several stories of our programmer colleagues who have been working at Stenik for over 10 years in our blog. Until then, you can see what they share in the "Behind the scenes at Stenik" movie.
What skills do I need to have to start working at Stenik as a programmer?
If you want to start as a Back-end programmer, it is essential to have knowledge of object-oriented programming, as this forms the foundation. It is not mandatory to have worked as a Magento developer or be familiar with the architecture of another eCommerce platform, such as Open Cart, PrestaShop, or others. To join our internship program, where we will train you and turn you into a senior Back-end developer, the minimum requirement is to have knowledge of PHP and MySQL, as we do not start the internship from the ABC of programming.
Similarly, for Front-end programmers, if you wish to start an internship at Stenik as an FE developer, you need to have at least a basic understanding of HTML & CSS and be able to code a design into a browser so that it looks good. We don't work with this outdated method at Stenik, but this is the test task we give to candidates.
Knowledge of JavaScript is also important but not decisive for starting the internship with us. Acquiring JavaScript skills is more relevant to the future development of our Front-end programmers.
How can my career as a programmer develop at Stenik?
The most common and easy start to a career as a programmer is through an internship. The desired progression after the internship would be to continue as a junior developer (whether front-end or back-end) and then advance through mid-level to senior roles.
As a leading IT eCommerce company, Stenik is constantly evolving and adding new technologies to our stack, providing opportunities for our programmer colleagues to learn new technologies, expand their knowledge and skills, or even transition to different roles.
The technologies we use include:
- Web programming: PHP 8, Symfony, HTML5, XML, CSS3, LESS, Grunt, JavaScript, jQuery, RequireJS, Knockoutjs, Vue.js, AlpineJS, TailwindCSS
- Technologies: Web Services (SOAP, REST, GraphQL), Git, Docker, Varnish, Redis, ElasticSearch, Ansible
- Databases: MySQL, PostgreSQL
If you enjoy coding for leading online stores and want to be part of the eCommerce industry's development, become part of our united dev team at Stenik by applying for our open positions.
Watch the "Behind the scenes at Stenik" movie and hear what some of our colleagues have to say.
