I joined Classmethod and after one year I had become a data engineer writing 100 blog posts annually so I looked back on it
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This is Kawabata.
It will be 1 year since I joined Classmethod in July 2026. And this article marks exactly my 100th blog post since joining the company.
I'd like to look back on this past year and share a sense of what it's like to work at Classmethod.
I hope this will be helpful for those considering a career change, especially those interested in data infrastructure and BI from a product-focused perspective.
What I Was Involved in Before Joining
Before joining Classmethod, I worked as a data engineer building data pipelines.
I primarily created data marts for Tableau dashboards, and was an engineer responsible for designing, developing, and operating data marts based on BI-side requirements.
What I've Done During My First Year
At Classmethod, I work as a Modern Data Stack Engineer (MDS Engineer), supporting customers primarily with products such as Snowflake, dbt, Fivetran, and Databricks.
Here are the specifics:
- Pre-sales
- Among the products we handle, I introduce and propose from a neutral standpoint which products can solve customers' challenges and goals, and which product selection would be best
- Training support
- Since simply introducing a product doesn't solve problems, we provide training support through hands-on sessions and lecture-style formats so customers can actually make use of them
- Implementation and technical support
- Similar to training support, we provide accompaniment support until customers can utilize the products
- Consulting on various design and configuration aspects during data infrastructure implementation (ETL/ELT, data pipelines, permission management, network configuration, etc.)
- In addition to implementation support, we also provide technical support for utilization
- In practice, we have customers do the hands-on work themselves, while clarifying potential issues in weekly regular meetings to promote product utilization and resolve challenges
- Similar to training support, we provide accompaniment support until customers can utilize the products
- Speaking at webinars and events
- Presenting online and offline on basic product usage and more
- Exhibition at events
- Exhibiting at events such as Snowflake World Tour Tokyo and dbt Coalesce Tokyo
- Blog writing
Primarily focused on pre-sales and implementation support, I also handle blog writing and planning-related work between project engagements.
Compared to my previous job, my touchpoints and communication with customers have increased dramatically.
A Typical Day
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 06:00 ~ 07:00 | Wake up / household chores |
| 07:00 ~ 08:00 | Drop off kids at daycare / prepare for commute |
| 09:00 ~ 10:00 | Arrive at office / organize tasks / prepare for meetings |
| 10:00 ~ 11:00 | Customer meeting 1 |
| 11:00 ~ 12:00 | Research and verification of Q&A from the meeting |
| 12:00 ~ 13:00 | Lunch |
| 13:00 ~ 14:00 | Customer meeting 2 |
| 14:00 ~ 17:00 | Document creation and technical verification |
| 17:00 ~ 18:00 | Blog writing |
| 18:30 ~ 20:00 | Commute home |
| 21:00 ~ 22:30 | Free time |
This varies depending on project status and event seasons, but I get the impression this type of schedule is relatively common.
What I've Put Effort Into
Customer perspective
At Classmethod, there is a set of behavioral guidelines and values called the Classmethod Leadership Principle (CLP).
Within this framework, I have always had a strong customer-oriented mindset, and have been conscious of thinking about and acting on what is truly needed for the other person.
I get the impression that people who embody CLP behaviors broadly and deeply tend to be more highly evaluated.
Blog writing
My team already had an environment where high-quality articles were being written consistently, and I believe I was positively influenced and was able to adapt to the culture of putting out output.
（The fact that our team writes over 400 articles per year is something that even I, being on the inside, find truly impressive.
）
In other departments, there are people who post every day, which gives you a sense of Classmethod's blogging culture.
The point I'm conscious of is based on the customer perspective mentioned earlier.
I'd be happy if reading an article could spark small insights like, "This could be applied to our company's situation," or "This approach might reduce our operational burden."
- Team members' blogs
What I Want to Do Going Forward
Speaking at external events
I have presented at internal webinars and similar events, but I haven't yet spoken at external events, so I'd like to take action to provide value to a wider audience.
Blog writing
I will continue writing blog posts.
While maintaining my update frequency, I'm also thinking about challenging myself with topics like verification combining multiple products, and themes closer to real-world data infrastructure operations.
My team is product-focused, but we also need to understand both the upstream and downstream of using those products.
Especially in today's AI era, I feel it's a very exciting field with a broad scope of involvement — not only building and maintaining data infrastructure, but also organizing business context for AI utilization and providing support for its adoption!
I think the speed at which you can catch up with the cutting edge and deliver it to customers quickly, as well as the environment where you can take on challenges, are attractive aspects.
While Classmethod's core business is AWS, conversely, other areas have significant room for growth, and I think it's an exciting environment for those who want to challenge themselves with new things!
In Closing
Looking back, thanks to "an environment where you can take on challenges" and "a culture where output is fairly evaluated," this past year turned out to be more fulfilling than I had imagined. I feel that I was able to do a good job of both input and output.
Reaching the milestone of 100 blog posts is one milestone, but there is still so much more I want to share. For the next year as well, I want to keep running on both wheels — delivering value to customers and producing output.
The MDS team I belong to is currently recruiting members for the following two positions:
Infrastructure side (Snowflake, Databricks, dbt, Fivetran, etc.)
A position focused on data infrastructure consulting and implementation support centered on Snowflake/Databricks.
- Those with knowledge of SQL
- Those with experience designing and implementing ETL/ELT processes
- Those who can communicate technical content in an easy-to-understand manner
【See details here】
BI side (Tableau, Alteryx, Omni, dbt, etc.)
A position focused on consulting support in the BI and analytics engineering domain.
- Those with knowledge of SQL
- Those with practical experience using BI tools or data preparation tools
- Those who can communicate technical content in an easy-to-understand manner
【See details here】
If you're interested in working in the way described above, please feel free to apply!