For the JavaLand x Women in Tech series, Ixchel Ruiz has interviewed female speakers of the upcoming JavaLand 2026 at Europa-Park. These speaker spotlights give you the opportunity to get to know the speaker better and get their valuable input and insight on current topics. You can find more background information regarding the Women in Tech movement as well as Ixchel's motivation behind it in our previous article.
Session Title:Glue work makes the crew work
Time: Tuesday, 10.03.2026 | 14:00 – 14:40
Room: Salle Petit Paris
Language: English
Focus: Methodology & Culture
We measure a lot in software development. Velocity. Story points. Cycle time. Lines of code. Backlog items closed. But what about the work that makes all of that possible?
Onboarding new team members. Creating standards. Keeping people aligned. Making sure information actually flows. Even organising the coffee break that turns a group of individuals into a real team.
This is the work that rarely shows up in a Jira board, yet it holds everything together. Sophie Küster’s session at JavaLand 2026 puts a spotlight on exactly this: glue work, the invisible work that keeps teams functioning, connected, and successful.
Meet the Speaker: Sophie Küster
Sophie Küster works at cronn GmbH and is a familiar face in the Java community. JavaLand holds a special place in her personal speaker journey, since it was the conference where she gave her first talk live and in person after the long period of online-only events.
Sophie speaks openly and thoughtfully about how teams work, not just technically but socially. Her focus is on what makes teams strong in the long run: empathy, collaboration, shared standards, and the everyday efforts that turn good engineers into great teams.
Why Sophie Brought This Conversation to JavaLand
Sophie is speaking about glue work because it is constantly happening, constantly needed, and still constantly overlooked.
Glue work includes everything that helps a team stay productive and healthy, from onboarding and establishing processes to creating personal connections and encouraging communication. It is essential, yet it is often seen as “less important” than writing code or delivering features. As a result, it becomes less visible, less rewarded, and less promotable.
Sophie’s goal with this talk is clear. She wants to encourage everyone who does glue work to ask for recognition and to stop treating this contribution as optional or secondary. She also wants teams and organisations to understand that glue work is not a nice extra. It is part of what makes teams successful.
The One Idea She Wants You to Take Home
Glue work is essential for the cohesion and success of a team. It is time we finally recognise that.
This is the message Sophie wants the audience to remember. Glue work is not “soft” work. It is real work, and it is the foundation that allows technical work to happen smoothly and sustainably.
What Makes This Talk Especially Relevant Right Now
Sophie frames the topic through a lens many developers are currently thinking about: automation and AI.
AI can fix your photo. It can help you write a test concept. It can even plan your next trip. But there is one thing it cannot do: glue work. Because glue work depends on empathy, trust, and human connection.
That is why this talk feels especially timely. As we discuss how much of our work can be automated, Sophie reminds us of what remains deeply human. If teams want to thrive, glue work needs to be taken seriously, not left to chance or to whoever happens to care the most.
Her Perspective: Women Supporting Women
Sophie’s perspective as a woman in tech is both warm and powerful. Her favourite quote captures it perfectly:
“Behind every strong woman are five other strong women who proofread her email real quick when they had a second.”
It is funny, but it is also deeply true. Sophie credits “women supporting women” as a key factor in her career. She expresses strong gratitude to the women who supported her, including mentors, friends, and role models, and she makes a point of paying that support forward.
It is a perspective that fits the session perfectly. Glue work is often about making others stronger. Helping them succeed. Making sure they feel supported. Sophie shows how that same mindset also shapes careers and communities.
Why JavaLand Is the Right Place for This Talk
For Sophie, JavaLand is more than just a conference. It is where she found her voice as a speaker in front of a live audience. It is also a place where the community is real, visible, and vibrant.
She is looking forward to learning from the community, speaking again, and being part of the Studio team. And yes, she is also looking forward to the party. Because conferences are not only about sessions. They are also about shared moments and the connections that make the tech world feel human.
Join the Conversation
This session is an invitation to recognise the work that keeps teams together.
If you have ever onboarded someone, created a standard, helped resolve conflict, built bridges between people, or simply made the team feel like a team, then you have done glue work. Sophie’s talk will help you name it, understand it, and make it visible.
Bring your experiences, your questions, and your stories to JavaLand 2026 and join the conversation.
This article’s grammar and syntax were refined using ChatGPT and DeepL. The content reflects the speaker’s ideas, hopes, and statements.
