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Luiz Ferreira - lizfer.social

My Amazon Connect Developer Certification Journey

| written by Luiz Ferreira

Back in mid-2000s, in São Paulo, I landed my first job as a call-center agent for a job-listing website. Throughout the next decade, I worked in many different positions (agent, SME, queue admin, supervisor), what gave me a comprehensive understanding of how customer service should be provided. Even though I changed paths at some point, I always brought my people skills acquired from those days to other tables I worked.

tecRacer allowed me recently to be in touch with the rich and complex CX universe by introducing me to one of the hottest services AWS provides: Amazon Connect. Learning about this service made me reconnect (inevitable pun, sorry) to this almost-forgotten universe I was part of, allowing me to have a easier deep-dive journey.

I embarked on this intensive three-month journey by travelling from the industrial landscapes of Hannover to the vibrant streets of Barcelona, all in pursuit of mastering Amazon Connect. Today, I’m proud to announce that I’ve successfully earned my Amazon Connect Developer certification - and more importantly, tecRacer now has its first certified Amazon Connect professional in the Iberian Peninsula.

Amazon Connect Developer

The Certification Challenge

The Amazon Connect Developer certification exam is comprehensive and demanding. It covers:

What made this certification particularly challenging was its practical focus. It’s not enough to understand the theory - you need to demonstrate real-world problem-solving abilities and architectural thinking.

Study Resources and Preparation

My preparation involved multiple learning channels:

  1. Official AWS Documentation: The AWS Skill Builder has a specific learning and badge plan for the Developer certification
  2. Hands-on Labs: Nothing beats practical experience
  3. Workshop Materials: Detailed notes from Hannover and Barcelona sessions
  4. Practice Exams: Testing knowledge and identifying gaps
  5. Real Project Work: The tecRacer POC provided invaluable practical experience

The beginning: tecRacer POC

Theory and workshops are one thing, but nothing beats real-world application. During my certification journey, I had the opportunity to contribute to a Proof of Concept (POC) project at tecRacer that perfectly showcased the power of Amazon Connect integration.

My part involved creating a sophisticated automation workflow:

  1. S3 Trigger Architecture: When files arrive in designated S3 buckets, Lambda functions are automatically triggered
  2. Dynamic Task Creation: These Lambda functions analyze the incoming files and create appropriate tasks in Amazon Connect flows
  3. Intelligent Routing: Tasks are automatically routed to the right agents based on content analysis and business rules
  4. Real-time Processing: The entire workflow operates in real-time, ensuring immediate response to customer needs

This hands-on experience was crucial for understanding how Amazon Connect integrates with the broader AWS ecosystem.

Hannover Immersion

After the POC, I had an immersive Amazon Connect onboarding in Hannover delivered by senior tecRacer colleagues. Our German team have been involved in many Connect projects, so I was standing by the shoulder of giants, pretty much.

We covered:

Barcelona: Hands-on Learning and Networking

The second phase took me to Barcelona, where theory met practice in the most engaging way possible. The Barcelona workshop, provided by AWS, focused on advanced implementation scenarios and real-world problem-solving.

The networking opportunities in Barcelona were invaluable. Connecting with other developers, architects, and AWS specialists provided insights that you simply can’t get from documentation or online courses.

I attended two sessions: Amazon Q in Connect (learned how to apply AI functionalities to improve customer support) and Contact Lens (operation analytics to improve QA). I’ll share further details on a tecRacer blog post - stay tuned!

Why This Matters

This certification represents more than personal achievement - it positions tecRacer as a player in Amazon Connect implementation across the Iberian Peninsula. As the first tecRacer consultant certified in Amazon Connect in this region, I’m excited about the opportunities this opens:

For Our Clients:

For the Region:

Key Lessons Learned

This journey taught me several valuable lessons:

  1. Integration is Everything: Amazon Connect’s true power lies in its ability to integrate with existing systems and workflows
  2. Customer Experience First: Every technical decision should be evaluated through the lens of customer experience
  3. Scalability Matters: Design for growth from day one - contact centers can scale rapidly
  4. Security is Non-negotiable: In contact center environments, security and compliance are foundational requirements
  5. Continuous Learning: The platform evolves rapidly - staying current is essential

Conclusion

The journey from Hannover to Barcelona, through intensive workshops, hands-on projects, and rigorous certification preparation, has been transformative. Amazon Connect makes sense to me - solves many issues that “the old me” suffered while working in customer support. Glad to have participated and excited for what we will build.

For organizations in Portugal or Spain looking to modernize their contact centers or implement sophisticated customer engagement solutions, tecRacer now has the certified expertise to guide you through this transformation.

Interested in learning more about Amazon Connect or discussing your contact center modernization needs? Feel free to reach out - I’d love to share insights from this journey and explore how we can help transform your customer engagement strategy.