Level Up Your Software Career
Refactor is your expert guide to level up your technical skills and accelerate your professional growth as a software engineer or engineering leader.
Accelerate Your Software Career
Feeling stuck or uncertain about your career direction? Our coaching experiences provide guidance and support to identify your strengths, address areas for improvement, and confidently take your next step.
Individual one-on-one coaching
Learn to harness your full potential, with an emphasis on technical and professional skills like communication. Through one-on-one coaching, Refactor provides the guidance and growth mindset needed to advance your career with clarity and confidence.
Guided coaching programs
Our coaching programs are designed for software engineers to dive deep into areas like Rust, embedded development, web development, software architecture, engineering management and more. Gain the technical expertise you need to advance your career.
Why Refactor?
As a fellow software engineer with 25+ years of experience building many different types of software, I understand the challenges you face in navigating the complex landscape of professional growth. I founded Refactor to provide you with the expert guidance and support you need to level up your technical capabilities and confidently take your career to the next level.
At Refactor, our coaching programs are designed specifically for software engineers at every stage of your career journey. Whether you’re just getting started, a seasoned staff engineer, an engineering manager, or anything in between, we’re here for you.
Our coaches bring an in-depth understanding of technical and professional software engineering skills. With Refactor by your side, you'll gain the clarity, direction, and technical prowess to excel in your role and make a lasting impact. Let us be your trusted partner in unlocking your full potential and achieving your most ambitious career aspirations.
- Jim Hodapp, Founder & Head Coach
Book a Free 30 Minute Coaching Experience and get your Questions Answered
Explore our coaching
Browse our coaching services
Browse our collection of software coaching programs, then choose the one that interests you the most to start with.
How much coaching do you need?
Consider whether a coaching program + community support meets your current needs, or if you have broader, more ambitious growth in mind, dedicated one-to-one coaching may be a better fit for you.
Get your questions answered
Schedule a free 30 minute call to learn more about our software coaching programs. During the call, you can talk through your questions and get a clear picture of how working with a Refactor coach will help you achieve exceptional professional growth. There’s no obligation to sign up.
Select your plan
With specific career issues you want to resolve and your career growth objectives in mind, select the program that aligns best.
Guided coaching programs
You can get started leveling up with our self-guided coaching programs featuring expert coach and community support via per-program Slack channels.
Dedicated one-on-one coaching
Delve deeper into a tailored one-on-one coaching experience. You can always change your membership level as your needs change.
Level up your career
You can begin leveling up with our coaching programs as soon as you’ve signed up for a membership. If your membership includes a dedicated coach, you can schedule your first session to start within a week*.
What are you striving for?
- Grow into an expert in your favorite programming language
- Receive your long overdue promotion
- Land your dream software job
- Become a strong engineering leader (tech lead, engineering manager…)
- Explore a new area of software development with an expert (web, embedded, AI…)
- … insert your goal here
* Subject to availability
What makes Refactor different?
Our coaching programs are designed for software engineers to dive deep into areas like Rust, embedded development, web development, software architecture, engineering management and more. Gain the technical expertise you need to move your career forward.
Self-Guided Programs
Self-guided coaching programs focussing on your technical and professional growth. Our programs are specifically created for you to begin leveling up today, before ever working 1:1 with a coach.
Community Support
Combine our self-guided coaching programs with access to expert guidance in our Slack community, empowering you to level up your technical capabilities and accelerate your professional growth at your own pace within a specific topic.
One-on-one Coaching
Work one-on-one with a highly experienced software coach who understands your challenges and is dedicated to helping you harness your strengths, address areas for improvement, and confidently take your career to the next level.
What they think
Jim is an excellent software coach - detailed, thoughtful, and supportive with a wealth of experience he can draw from.
If you're looking to advance your career through coaching, I recommend reaching out to him!
Chris
Senior Software Engineer, Netrias
I wholeheartedly recommend working with a Refactor coach to any engineer looking to further themselves in their career, or in a case like mine, launch themselves into their software career with confidence.
Sophie
Software Engineer, Microsoft
I can’t over express how much Jim has helped me in my career journey.
I absolutely recommend him to any engineer looking to better understand their own personal formula for maintaining a feeling of inspiration in their work and for achieving their career goals.
Caleb
Senior Software Engineer
Jim is an exceptional career coach. The unbiased and thoughtful advice he has provided to me has been invaluable for my career growth.
I recommend him to any software engineer seeking to reach their full potential.
Nick
Tech Lead, Moov Financial
I did 6 months of coaching with Jim and it has been transformative.
His coaching made me both aware and then work through patterns and mindsets that were holding me back professionally. I recommend any engineer looking to unlock their full potential work with Jim.
Ray
Quality Manager, Rock Quality Systems
I highly recommend Jim and Refactor if you're in the tech industry. Few 'career coaches' earn my approval, but Jim exceeds all expectations.
Jason
Startup Tech Recruiter, talentcookbook.io
Frequently asked questions
Why work with a coach?
Even elite athletes and successful corporate executives work with one or more coaches to become their best professional selves and perform at their highest levels of effectiveness. Working with a Refactor coach provides you with the same advantage to perform at your highest level.
If you currently feel stuck in your software career and don't have clarity on how to help yourself proceed, or you want to become the best technologist you can be, there's no more effective way to move forward than by working with a coach.
What’s the difference between a course / tutorial vs. a coaching program?
The most important difference is that courses and tutorials don’t usually provide you with the opportunity to work with a highly experienced software coach + mentor one-on-one - you are typically on your own, sometimes handed off to an AI or stuck asking questions in a comments section. Refactor coaching is all about working together with a coach that gets to know, understand, and respond to your individual needs by asking powerful questions, adaptive mentorship, and a human connection. AI / LLMs are great companion tools that we encourage you to use to complement the work you do with your coach. Working individually with a human coach strengthens your technical skills and helps you professionally grow in a way that nothing else comes close to providing.
What’s the difference between a coaching program and a membership?
A coaching program is a guide for leveling up in a specific technical or professional growth area. A membership is the kind of coaching engagement you sign up for that provides just the right kind and amount of support and guidance that meets your budget and your professional growth goals. Choose between a self-guided membership with expert support via Slack, or choose the right level of one-on-one coaching with a dedicated Refactor coach.
What should I do if I'm employed but can't afford to work with a Refactor coach right now?
This is why we have self-guided coaching programs available as part of the first plan that give you the flexibility to strengthen your technical and professional skills at an accessible price point.
If our plans still seem financially out of reach for you but you know you want to work with a Refactor coach, please contact us - we’ll see if we can work out a financial plan that works even better for you.
Can I participate in the Refactor coaching program or work with a coach if I don't live in North America?
Our coaches are currently located in the United States, however we are open to accommodating most time zones for scheduling coaching sessions.
If you’re currently somewhere in eastern Asia, Australia or New Zealand, we are happy to create a session schedule that works well for both you and your coach.
If our current pricing is out of reach for the part of the world you live in, please contact us and we'll work together to find a price level that is reasonable for you.
Can I sign up for a Refactor coaching plan if I'm unemployed?
Absolutely. Working with a Refactor coach can help make a significant impact on your software engineering skillset while you interview and work on landing a new best-fit software engineering role.
If you’re currently unable to financially afford investing in yourself by investing in this program, then please refer to the response for “What should I do if I'm employed but can't afford to work with a Refactor coach right now?”
