From Math to Code: A Passion Discovered
At just 23, Carla Spaczai is already thriving as a mid-level OpenEdge developer, but her path wasn’t always clear. “Until my last year of high school, I hated informatics,” she admits. “Everyone kept saying if you’re good at math, you’ll love programming. So I decided to give it a try and that’s when I found my passion.”
Determined to learn, Carla didn’t wait for the usual timeline. “We weren’t supposed to get internships until after the third year of university, but I wanted to start earlier,” she says. That drive led her to Wayfare at just 19, where she had her first hands-on experience with Progress OpenEdge. “I was intrigued by how it combined databases with classic programming principles—it felt like the perfect fit.”
Why Internships Matter
Carla credits her internship as the foundation for everything that followed. “When you jump straight into a job, you’re expected to know things, but back then, I had no idea what OpenEdge was,” she explains. “The internship gave me those first baby steps. I don’t think I could be here now without that experience.”
The program offered structured learning, mentorship, and real-world projects, helping Carla build confidence and skills that would carry her into her current role.
Learning OpenEdge: Simple and Powerful
Carla’s first impression of OpenEdge? Ease and efficiency. “It’s way easier to follow than other languages,” she explains. “You don’t need tons of plugins or steps to connect to a database. With OpenEdge, you just grab the data. It’s fascinating.”
Three things Carla loves about OpenEdge:
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Database integration: “The database is already integrated. If you need something, you just grab the data.”
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Performance details: “Small but important differences like FOR and FIND. When and how you use them impacts performance and I love
learning those details.” -
Flexibility: “I can grab just one file from a big project and run it individually to see what happens, without running the whole
project or digging through the entire app. That’s pretty nice.”
Her Advice for New OpenEdge Developers
“Don’t make it too complicated because it’s not,” Carla says. “We are used to thinking real complex because of other languages when this is giving to you straight what you want.”
Final Thoughts
Carla’s story is a testament to curiosity, courage, and the power of mentorship. From an early internship to a thriving career, she proves that with the right support, and the right tools, young developers can achieve incredible things.
Explore OpenEdge training & certification (free learning path for beginners): Become an OpenEdge Developer
Jessica (Malakian) Newton
Progress Software empowers organizations to achieve transformational success in the face of disruptive change. Our software enables our customers to develop, deploy and manage responsible AI-powered applications and digital experiences with agility and ease.
Bio Overview
With over five years of experience in product marketing, Jessica has developed a strong foundation in application development and database management software. Her entire career has been at Progress, where she began as an intern in 2020 and have since contributed to multiple products, including the Progress Corticon business rules management system and others.
Jessica specializes in Go-To-Market strategy, execution and management for the Progress OpenEdge platform—leading both campaigns and new product launches, as well as content development, market and persona research and other product marketing activities. She consistently delivers results that drive customer retention and foster innovation. Her public speaking skills have been recognized, notably when she placed first in the Pi Sigma Epsilon South/Atlantic Regional Speakers Competition.
Her goal is to empower customers and partners to fully realize the value of their OpenEdge technology—enabling them to modernize, innovate, and achieve greater business impact by maximizing existing investments and seamlessly embracing new capabilities. Whether it’s migrating to the latest version of the OpenEdge applications or leveraging the Progress Data Platform, she is dedicated to showing organizations how to transform their technology into a strategic advantage. Currently, she focuses on multiple initiatives for the OpenEdge platform, including modernization, expanding the developer base, AI integration, security and more, helping customers and partners succeed in a rapidly evolving landscape. Outside of work, Jessica enjoys writing and reading, which help her stay creative and balanced.
Areas of Expertise
- Product Marketing Strategy
- Go-To-Market Execution and Management
- Content Development
- Market and Persona Research
- Public Speaking
Credentials & Publications
- Pi Sigma Epsilon South/Atlantic Regional Speakers Competition – First Place
Connect with Me
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicamalakian/
- Contact Me / Request a Collaboration: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicamalakian/