Welcome to 2026

Every new year has a lot going on at the start of it. New projects, new beginings, new resolutions. One thing that does not change, is that we should be gathering together to share learnings, and help one another grow. So, now that the absolute chaos of January is over, it is time for us to look at some real challenges we all face on a regular basis.

First Meetup of 2026

Our community asks, and we do our best to listen. At least one person was kind enough to ask Liza if we could talk about the fact that women are not (traditionally) known for asking for raises, and that we do this thing where we apologise for things which aren’t our fault. Now sure, not all of the time, but I know I’m guilty of these things. So we went looking for someone with the experience to speak to the topic with authority. I am overjoyed that our little network works and we have found the lovely Liesel Bester to come speak.

The Competence Tax

You’ve already earned it. You’re already doing the work. So why are you still apologising, softening, making yourself smaller for people less qualified than you? Liesel Bester (Lies, for short) talks about the competence tax women pay, the protection racket of politeness, and what happens when you stop making yourself smaller.

She’ll unpack “performing deference” - how it shows up in daily life through real examples - and what happens when you’re expected to meet people where they are while they’ve done none of the work to meet you where you are.

About Liesel

Liesel Bester is the Interim CEO of Runninghill Software Development, a South African team augmentation company specialising in insuretech, fintech, energtech and enterprise development. She’s building Runninghill to do more than place developers; she’s creating a platform where South African and African developers can navigate the AI transformation and connect with the companies driving Africa’s growth. She understands both the technical challenges developers face and the infrastructure boom unfolding across the continent. Her focus is on what actually matters: equipping developers with what they need to thrive in an industry that’s fragmenting into entirely new specialisations. She believes African developers shouldn’t just adapt to this shift, they should lead it. Based in Cape Town, she’s passionate about strategic thinking, leadership philosophy, and ensuring that the next wave of infrastructure being built in Africa is powered by African talent.

Other News

In other news, we are absolutely delighted that Code& is officially part of the DevConf community sponsorship program. That means we will be at the conference, with swag, bringing visibility to this community. If you want to be part of that (and haven’t got your ticket yet) then make sure to use the code &code at checkout. DevConf is a great place to learn, converse, and generally grow as technologists. It isn’t just for developers.