From Java to .NET — Helping Varian’s development team reskill with confidence

When Varian’s software teams went through a reorganisation, one challenge stood out: a group of highly experienced Java developers needed to shift into .NET development to support a new technology stack. Varian, part of Siemens Healthineers, develops advanced cancer care solutions and their software plays an important role in improving treatment outcomes.

Reaktor Ecosystem company Splended designed a .NET learning sprint combining theory, hands-on coding, and guided practice. To lead the training, they brought in Michal Kudanowski, a freelance trainer with deep real-world experience in .NET and C#.

Michal’s approach was straightforward: keep everything practical and connected to the developers’ daily work. He introduced each concept through examples, then immediately turned it into an exercise. The team particularly valued his ability to adjust on the fly moving from “copying code from the screen” to sharing exercises through version control so participants could focus on understanding rather than typing.

What Worked

• Developers described the sessions as “super-practical” and “exactly what I needed to
• start developing with C#.”
• Michal’s clear explanations and friendly style helped even those from front-end
• backgrounds engage fully.
• The mix of discussion and coding made complex topics: dependency injection,
• middleware, security feel relevant and usable right away.

What We Learned

Time is always limited, especially when a team has mixed backgrounds. Participants suggested adding more structured hands-on exercises and written task descriptions for independent practice, feedback we’ll use to refine future learning sprints.

The Outcome

By the end of the program, Varian’s developers had learned the fundamentals of .NET and had also begun to apply those skills in their real projects. The re-skilling initiative showed how the right mix of structure, flexibility, and expert guidance can make a technology shift achievable.