Quinton Maki

I’m Quinton Maki, a Software Engineer II at Amazon Web Services. My path into tech wasn’t traditional—I didn’t go to college right after high school. Instead, I worked for several years before enrolling in Hack Reactor in 2021, where I graduated at the top of my class and later taught coding. Soon after, I joined AWS and earned a promotion to Software Engineer II in just nine months, the fastest promotion in my organization.

Mentorship is one of the most rewarding parts of my career. I’ve guided more than a dozen engineers, helping them build confidence and sharpen their skills. I believe growth comes through failure, persistence, and asking the right questions, and I try to model that in my work every day.

Outside of tech, I’m passionate about snowboarding and spend most winter weekends in Lake Tahoe with friends I’ve met through the Sports Basement bus community. I also learned to sail in San Francisco and enjoy being outdoors, whether on the water or the mountains. Giving back is important to me, and I’ve volunteered at food banks and coached youth runners, carrying forward lessons from my own time as an athlete.

For me, success isn’t about titles—it’s about progress, balance, and staying true to my values while continuing to learn and grow.