From Pure Code to Real Influence: Brad Grantham’s “Turning Outward” Talk at QCon 2025
If you’ve ever felt the shift from “I just want to write perfect code” to “Wait… now people want me to talk to customers, present roadmaps, or explain our tech to other teams or executives,” this talk is for you.
At QCon 2025, LunarG’s GFXReconstruct tech lead Brad Grantham gave a practical talk titled Turning Outward: Growing From Code to Influence. In 28 slides he mapped the journey many senior developers are on right now:
- Why raw technical skill eventually isn’t enough
- How to move from being the go-to expert in the room to being the person who shapes direction
- Concrete tools for talking to non-technical stakeholders (clients, marketing, leadership)
- The mindset shift that turns “I only care about clean code” into “I can steer the whole project because people trust my voice”
It’s not fluffy “soft skills” advice; it’s battle-tested perspective from someone who still spends half his week neck-deep in Vulkan layers and replay tools. Grab the slide deck here. Worth a few minutes of your time whether you’re a staff engineer eyeing principal level, a tech lead who suddenly owns customer meetings, or just curious how the quiet coder in the corner becomes the person everyone listens to.
Highly recommended. Enjoy!
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