Top 10 Code Mentors (2026)
Discover the top 10 Coding Mentors in 2026. Expert coaches with proven success in delivering coding advice to applicants, employees, and companies alike.
Posted January 10, 2026
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Table of Contents
Breaking into the coding field becomes a simple code to crack with the right coach. The mentors below are a curated group of proven engineering leaders, hiring managers, and hands-on builders who’ve helped candidates. From front-end performance and large-scale systems to interview mastery and career navigation, you’ll find a coach whose background, identity, and approach align with your goals. See all coding mentors here.
Michelle B.
Experience: Senior Software Engineer with 15+ years spanning engineering support to leading extensive development and distributed systems projects. A self-taught engineer and art school grad, Michelle is also a prolific speaker and author who’s presented at 30+ conferences.
Specialties:
- Career acceleration for engineers at all levels
- Distributed systems and large-scale development
- Team collaboration, productivity, and ROI
- Support for international and LGBTQ candidates
Michelle combines deep technical breadth with coaching through nonlinear growth. If you’re changing fields or pushing toward a bigger scope, her track record of empowering diverse engineers makes her a high-impact partner for building the skills and confidence to thrive.
"Michelle is an excellent coach. I appreciated her flexible approach to my coaching needs, as she tailored our sessions to address a range of topics and real-time challenges I was facing. Her insights were invaluable—whether it was guiding me on elevating my career, helping me prioritize my values and take ownership of my path, or providing tactical support like resume reviews. Michelle’s feedback was both strategic and actionable, and I highly recommend her to anyone looking for a thoughtful, empowering coach!"
- Keri M., Coached by Michelle
→ Book a free intro call with Michelle
Elias S.
Experience: Staff-level engineering lead with a decade of experience building high-performance systems at HubSpot and Amazon. Built the first Java client for Slack and served on the customer advisory board of leading companies. Former hiring manager with experience running interviews from entry-level to director.
Specialties:
- System design, observability, and high-scale streaming
- Interview prep hiring manager insight
- Accelerating promotion
- Pragmatic feedback loops and continuous improvement
If you want standards-raising guidance from someone who’s both shipped at scale and sat on the other side of the table, Elias is ideal. He blends technical depth with candid coaching on how to iterate on yourself and your code, perfect for anyone serious about landing in big tech.
"Working with Elias has been a transformational experience. I came to him as someone with little to no knowledge of programming or software engineering experience. From our first engagement to now - Elias has provided me professional guidance in how best to position myself for a career change into software engineering and technical guidance on specific implementation details of different applications I'm working on. I can confidently say that I would not be on this path if I had not approached Elias about my situation. He is empathetic, knowledgeable, and pragmatic. He asks surgically precise questions that can cut right through all of the emotional noise and stress that comes with investing in a career change, bringing a level of clear thinking that has been so critical in shoring up my own sense of decisiveness and confidence. I think anyone looking to grow as a software engineer or looking to become one as I am stands to learn a lot from Elias - if not from his robust technical expertise then at least by adopting his way of thinking."
- Aaron A., Coached by Elias
→ Book a free intro call with Elias
Cannon F.
Experience: Amazon SDE Intern and software engineer at Leland with hands-on AI integration and process automation experience. Background in marketing automation and web development.
Specialties:
- Breaking into software engineering and internships
- AI integrations and workflow automation
- Web development fundamentals
- Early-career roadmaps and skill-building
Early-career and transitioners benefit from Cannon’s practical and up-to-date perspective on modern stacks and emerging tech. If you’re targeting your first offer, want to stand out with AI, or need a clear plan for skill acquisition and momentum, Cannon will help you move fast on what matters.
→ Book a free intro call with Cannon
Jiashuo W.
Experience: Amazon intern turned LinkedIn engineer who rose from junior to Tech Lead, then became Principal Engineer at Leland. Brings a strong ECE foundation and extensive mentorship experience with junior engineers.
Specialties:
- Promotion pathways
- Product feature delivery at scale
- Career strategy for international candidates
- Interview prep and on-the-job performance
Jiashuo has lived the journey many candidates want: breaking in, leveling up, and leading high-impact work. He’s especially strong for international candidates seeking clear guidance on both interviews and day-to-day execution.
"I would like to highly recommend Jiashuo as an excellent career coach. His expertise in software engineering, along with his fluency in both English and Chinese, was incredibly valuable to me. Jiashuo's guidance helped me navigate the complexities of the interview process with confidence. His extensive experience and insightful advice were instrumental in my success during the interviews. I am truly grateful for his dedication and the positive impact he has had on my career journey."
- Rui C., Coached by Jiashuo and landed a role at Amazon
→ Book a free intro call with Jiashuo
Steven F.
Experience: Former LinkedIn Staff Software Engineer and now Co-Founder at Resonance Systems. Grounded in more than a decade of end-to-end engineering.
Specialties:
- Front-end engineering and modern web architecture
- Page performance and Core UX improvements
- Code quality and maintainability in large apps
- Career transitions into high-impact roles
If you want your front-end work to feel fast and reliable, Steven’s a standout. He pairs LinkedIn-scale rigor with startup pragmatism, making him a great fit for engineers who want a roadmap toward technical leadership.
→ Book a free intro call with Steven
Zen L.
Experience: Veteran engineer across Amazon, Google, and Microsoft. Led ML-driven inventory optimization at Amazon and has worked in cloud management, security/compliance, and blockchain initiatives. Ph.D. in Human-Computer Interaction.
Specialties:
- Applied ML in large-scale products
- Cloud architecture, security, and compliance
- Resume and behavioral interview coaching
- Soft and hard skill development for international candidates
Dr. Li blends elite engineering with mentorship that meets you where you are. She’s a compelling guide for candidates pivoting into cloud/ML or seeking polish across resume, interviews, and on-the-job impact. Helpful for those who value structured growth and industry context.
"Zen has deep expertise across a wide range of engineering domains and offers valuable perspectives on both academic and industry career paths. She asked thoughtful, tailored questions to my background that helped clarify my goals and provided in-depth insights that made a real difference in how I approach my next steps. I would highly recommend working with her if you need help navigating your career in software or any engineering field."
- Coached by Zen
→ Book a free intro call with Zen
Abhi V.
Experience: Amazon Software Development Engineer and prior internships at JPMorgan Chase and Capital One. Coaches with unfiltered advice across resume, behavioral, and coding prep.
Specialties:
- Coding and behavioral interview mastery
- Resume differentiation and storytelling
- Internship recruiting and early-career strategy
- Breaking into Big Tech with clarity and focus
Abhi is an excellent match for students and early-career engineers seeking a tactical plan to stand out. He’s navigated competitive pipelines firsthand and offers clear advice that translates into stronger interviews and better offers.
"Abhi is by far the most impactful mentor I've ever worked with in terms of advancing my career. I went through the required schooling, the relevant experiences, but I was stuck at translating these into job opportunities. Abhi went above and beyond in mentoring me and ultimately improved my resume and prepared me for interviews. It's not just his background and experiences that are impressive, but that he will do his best to understand your circumstances and give you the best possible guidance to help you succeed. Thank you Abhi, for not only helping me advance my career but also boosting my confidence and drive!"
- Joseph C., Coached by Abhi and landed a role at the NIH
→ Book a free intro call with Abhi
Logan N.
Experience: Former Amazon and Goldman Sachs engineer, now building at OnePay. He brings a cross-disciplinary lens from economics/finance and computer science to help candidates succeed in both big-company and startup settings.
Specialties:
- Systems design and scalability
- Transitioning between Big Tech, finance, and startups
- Early-career navigation and role changes
- Practical coding and problem-solving
Logan is a steady hand for candidates eyeing fintech or a jump into startup life. If you’re seeking someone who’s delivered in high-stakes environments and can map your skills, his guidance will help you land in roles that fit.
"Logan was an amazing mentor. He helped me with a few of my technical interviews that I was really worried about. I had a few questions lined up and he took the time to prepare solutions before we met so he could give me an in depth explanation without taking too much time."
- Neesh W., Coached by Logan and landed a role at eBay
→ Book a free intro call with Logan
Carter M.
Experience: Software engineer with experience at AWS, Shopify, Disney, and Grubhub. Host of a podcast interviewing leading engineering authors. Coaches engineers through technical design, debugging, and interview excellence.
Specialties:
- Coding and behavioral interview preparation
- Personalized resumes and storytelling
- System design and architecture reviews
- Debugging complex production issues
Carter is a clear, thoughtful mentor who bridges deep practice with constant learning. Choose him if you want sharper code and a more innovative approach to interviews and promotions, grounded in real big-tech and startup experience.
→ Book a free intro call with Carter
Cesar M.
Experience: Microsoft veteran who started as a Software Engineer and grew into Senior Program Manager. Has 10+ years coaching Big Tech developers and is known for a pragmatic approach rooted in leadership and the full software lifecycle.
Specialties:
- Coding interview prep and system design
- Career transitions in Big Tech
- Leadership growth and product mindset
- Confidence, clarity, and goal-setting
Cesar combines credibility with care, he’s coached across the stack, and he’ll give you the steps to move forward. Choose him if you value straightforward feedback and a mindset shift that translates to better outcomes.
"Before starting to talk to Cesar, I felt like I was standing on shaky ground, both in my professional and in my personal life. At work I was insecure, felt like an imposter, was second-guessing myself and doubting my abilities. At home I was frustrated, always in conflict with my partner and didn't know how our relationship can go any further. If I were to mention *the* most important thing I learned from working with Cesar it would be to always go to the root of a problem. Whether it's something that I'm feeling, whether it's a conflict with another person, the thing that's in my control is to pull my sleeves up and get digging. Start with understanding and empathy and get to the root. That's where we start our work. Also, words to live by from Cesar: THERE MUST BE A WAY. I feel like anyone could benefit from talking to Cesar, whether it's someone struggling with something that seems basic, like finding motivation, or someone who is interested in stepping up their game and performing at the next level."
- Coached by Cesar
→ Book a free intro call with Cesar
Find the Best Coach for Your Code Journey
Expert guidance can compress years of prep into weeks. Explore the coaches above, then book a free 15-minute intro call to get your questions answered and map your next steps, or browse all coaches here.
Not sure who to pick? Hop on a free strategy and coach-matching call with the Leland team and get paired with the right mentor for you. Find the right coach and start building your coding career today.
Read More:
- How to Prioritize and Manage Deadlines for Software Engineer Deliverables
- Software Engineering Specializations & Which One is Right for You
- How Entry Level Software Engineers Can Embrace Responsible Technology in the Digital Age
- New Grad Software Engineer's Guide to Making Their Mark in a Competitive Industry
- How to Navigate the Gender Gap as a Woman in Software Engineering
Top Coding Mentors – FAQs
What’s the difference between mentorship for early-career coders and guidance for engineers already in Big Tech?
- Early-career mentorship is a journey of empowerment, focusing on breaking into the industry and mastering the fundamentals like resume building, internship recruiting, and first-round interviews. This guidance is designed to inspire and motivate, paving the way for a successful career in software engineering. Mentorship for experienced engineers is more about accelerating promotions and transitioning into management tracks.
I’m transitioning into software engineering from a non-technical background. What kind of support can I expect?
- For those transitioning into software engineering from a non-technical background, rest assured that there is comprehensive support available. Several mentors on this list specialize in career changers. They can help you build a structured learning roadmap and guide you through side projects or bootcamp work. They’ll teach you how to showcase your background as an asset when applying for developer roles, instilling confidence in your abilities.
Do coding mentors only focus on technical skills, or can they also help with soft skills like communication and confidence?
- Coding mentors do both. While they cover technical areas like debugging and coding challenges, many also coach on collaboration, public speaking, and imposter syndrome. These soft skills are critical for both landing positions and thriving in team-based environments.
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