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Revisiting the Cloud Resume Challenge: Picking Up Where I Left Off

Revisiting the Cloud Resume Challenge: Picking Up Where I Left Off
Photo by John Schnobrich / Unsplash

As a career switcher in tech, I've earned various cloud certifications for the past three years. While these certifications have been valuable, one of my fears is becoming a "paper tiger"—having credentials without the hands-on skills to back them up. To counter this, I'm revisiting an old project: the Cloud Resume Challenge.

In this blog post, I'll share my experience with this challenge, why I'm doing it, and what I hope to accomplish.

Why Build Projects?

Before diving into the challenge itself, I want to emphasize why personal projects are crucial in tech.

Building a Portfolio

While certifications prove knowledge, a solid portfolio demonstrates applied skills. A portfolio can give an edge in job searches by providing tangible examples to discuss with recruiters and hiring managers.

Learn, Create, and Share

I've absorbed plenty of knowledge and shared insights via videos and blog posts over the years. However, I haven't created enough personal projects to reinforce that knowledge. Since I can't always showcase work projects due to confidentiality, personal projects help bridge that gap.

Let Opportunity Find You

By learning, creating, and sharing, opportunities come more naturally. Instead of constantly chasing opportunities, this approach increases the chances of being discovered by the right people.

What is the Cloud Resume Challenge?

The Cloud Resume Challenge is a structured project that gives aspiring cloud professionals hands-on experience. It doesn't teach you step-by-step; instead, it provides a roadmap to help you figure things out independently.

I initially started this project using Azure, and the challenge consists of several steps:

  1. Get Certified – The first step is earning the AZ-900 certification.
  2. Build the Frontend – Create an HTML/CSS version of your resume and host it as a static website in Azure Storage.
  3. Enhance Security & Performance – Implement HTTPS, a CDN, and DNS for better security and performance.
  4. Add JavaScript – Implement a visitor counter that updates a database.
  5. Create a Backend API – Use Azure Functions with an HTTP trigger to update the visitor count in Azure Cosmos DB.
  6. Write Backend Code – The guide suggests using Python, but I implemented mine in JavaScript since I was finishing a bootcamp.
  7. Testing – Validate that the API correctly updates the database.
  8. Infrastructure as Code (IaC) – Define resources using ARM templates or Terraform (which is more in demand today).
  9. Source Control & CI/CD – Automate deployment with GitHub Actions for both frontend and backend.
  10. Document the Process – Write a blog post (like this one!) to share what was learned and overcome.

Where I Left Off & What's Next

When I initially tackled this project, I completed steps up to basic API testing but paused before implementing Infrastructure as Code and CI/CD. Now, I'm picking it back up to:

  • Implement Terraform for automated cloud resource provisioning.
  • Set up CI/CD pipelines to streamline frontend and backend deployments.
  • Create a system diagram to visualize the architecture and practice diagramming skills.

This challenge is an excellent way to gain full-stack cloud experience, as it requires working with frontend, backend, databases, APIs, security, automation, and DevOps practices. More than that, it reinforces the importance of hands-on learning.

For 2025, I'm reminding myself not to be a paper tiger and to focus on making things, not just learning about them. I recommend taking on this challenge or a similar project if you're on a similar journey.

Let me know—have you done the Cloud Resume Challenge? What was your experience like?