Top 12 Lotus Notes Developer Skills to Put on Your Resume

In today’s shifting enterprise-collaboration world, standing out as a Lotus Notes developer (now commonly HCL Notes/Domino) means showing a toolkit that proves you can handle legacy nuance and modern demands. Choose your skills with intent. Make them obvious. Let your resume whisper depth and speak results.

Lotus Notes Developer Skills

1. LotusScript
2. Formula Language
3. XPages Development
4. Domino Designer
5. JavaScript
6. LEI (Lotus Enterprise Integrator)
7. RESTful APIs
8. Java
9. HTML/CSS
10. IBM Notes Client
11. Workflow Design
12. SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript)

1. LotusScript

LotusScript is a VB-like scripting language baked into the Notes/Domino platform. It drives agents, business logic, data manipulation, and deep integration with Domino objects. Still the workhorse for classic apps.

Why It's Important

LotusScript lets a Lotus Notes developer automate the grind, wire up custom behaviors, and shape applications to fit real business rules. Powerful, flexible, and close to the platform’s core.

How to Improve LotusScript Skills

1. Rebuild fundamentals: Revisit core syntax, error handling, classes, and Notes/Domino object usage. Focus on readable structure.

2. Adopt standards: Pick consistent naming, modular agents, and defensive error patterns. Your future self will thank you.

3. Project-driven practice: Add features to an existing database. Replace manual steps with agents. Measure the before-and-after.

4. Lean on the community: Explore OpenNTF projects and community examples. Read, refactor, repeat.

5. Go advanced: Learn class-based design, web services, and integration patterns. Think reusability, not one-offs.

6. Keep current: Track HCL Notes/Domino release notes and dev blogs. Small platform changes can unlock simpler solutions.

How to Display LotusScript Skills on Your Resume

2. Formula Language

Formula Language is Domino’s compact, high-level way to compute values, react to UI events, and automate field and view logic. Blazing fast for the right jobs. Perfect for concise rules.

Why It's Important

It turns routine tasks into one-liners, drives validations and computed fields, and complements LotusScript with quick, declarative logic across forms and views.

How to Improve Formula Language Skills

1. Master @functions: Date math, text wrangling, selections, role checks, and conditional UI—get comfortable with the workhorses.

2. Prototype fast: Try formulas in isolated forms and views first. Short feedback loops reveal better patterns.

3. Study built-in designs: Inspect templates and system databases to see battle-tested usage.

4. Blend with LotusScript: Use formula logic for UI and field behavior; reserve LotusScript for heavier lifting.

5. Document intent: Complex formulas deserve comments and examples, right in design notes.

How to Display Formula Language Skills on Your Resume

3. XPages Development

XPages is the JSF-based web framework inside Domino. It lets you build browser-ready apps with JS, CSS, and server-side logic that speaks Domino natively. Legacy data, modern face.

Why It's Important

It extends classic Notes apps to the web without abandoning your Domino models, security, or replication. One platform, more reach.

How to Improve XPages Development Skills

1. Deepen JavaScript and CSS: Strong client-side skills pay off inside XPages controls and themes.

2. Know the data sources: DominoDocument, DominoView, REST services—bind cleanly and keep queries lean.

3. Reuse wisely: Build custom controls and themes. Centralize, version, and share.

4. Learn the lifecycle: Understand request phases, partial refresh, and where SSJS, Java, and EL fit.

5. Lean on OpenNTF: Study reusable controls and patterns. Adapt them to your standards.

6. Source control everything: DDE plus Git workflows reduce risk and encourage code reviews.

How to Display XPages Development Skills on Your Resume

4. Domino Designer

HCL Domino Designer (formerly IBM Domino Designer) is the IDE for building Notes/Domino applications—forms, views, agents, XPages, script libraries, and more. It’s where everything comes together.

Why It's Important

This is your primary workshop. You model data, craft UX, wire logic, and deploy changes for both Notes clients and the web.

How to Improve Domino Designer Skills

1. Own the basics: Forms, views, agents, security, ACLs, replication. Solid ground first.

2. Dissect templates: Examine shipping templates and sample apps. Real design patterns hide in plain sight.

3. Blend languages: LotusScript, Formula, SSJS, and Java each shine in their lanes. Use the right tool.

4. Explore XPages and REST: Bridge Domino data to the web and external services cleanly.

5. Shortcut proficiency: Learn DDE keyboard shortcuts, search, source control hooks, and on-save scripts.

6. Keep pace with HCL releases: New Designer features and fixes often remove old pain points.

How to Display Domino Designer Skills on Your Resume

5. JavaScript

JavaScript powers interactivity on the web and, in Domino, threads through XPages, SSJS, and client-side logic. It’s the glue for dynamic UI and smarter forms.

Why It's Important

With JS, your Domino apps feel alive—validations, async calls, conditional UI, and snappy responses that users actually notice.

How to Improve JavaScript Skills

1. Modern syntax first: ES6+ features, modules, classes, arrow functions—write clearer, tighter code.

2. Asynchronous mastery: Promises, async/await, fetch patterns. No more callback tangles.

3. Framework awareness: Know when lightweight vanilla JS beats a framework, and when React or Vue earns its keep.

4. Build relentlessly: Small utilities. Widgets. Form helpers. Ship and refine.

5. Debug like a pro: Live with browser devtools open. Performance panel, network traces, breakpoints.

6. Stay curious: Follow JS newsletters, talks, and community threads. Trends move quickly.

How to Display JavaScript Skills on Your Resume

6. LEI (Lotus Enterprise Integrator)

LEI, now known as Domino Enterprise Integrator (DEI), connects Domino with external databases and systems. Think scheduled transfers, real-time lookups, and workflows that span platforms without duct tape.

Why It's Important

It unlocks data mobility. Your Notes apps can read, write, and sync with enterprise sources while keeping Domino security and governance in play.

How to Improve LEI (Lotus Enterprise Integrator) Skills

1. Tune connections: Use connection pooling and right-sized fetches. Reduce chatty round trips.

2. Stay patched: Keep Domino and DEI current for stability, security, and performance wins.

3. Pick the right flow: Direct Transfer for bulk moves, Replication style for near-real-time needs.

4. Script smartly: Add logic with LEI scripting when transformations get tricky.

5. Monitor aggressively: Log, alert, and baseline throughput. Tune with evidence, not vibes.

6. Protect data: Enforce least-privilege access and TLS. Audit trails matter.

How to Display LEI (Lotus Enterprise Integrator) Skills on Your Resume

7. RESTful APIs

RESTful APIs expose data and actions over HTTP in a predictable way. For Domino, they bridge your apps to modern stacks, mobile clients, and services without custom protocol headaches.

Why It's Important

APIs extend Domino’s reach. Integrations become cleaner, upgrades safer, and front ends more flexible.

How to Improve RESTful APIs Skills

1. Design by resources: Model nouns, not verbs. Use the right HTTP methods and status codes.

2. Version early: v1 today prevents breaking changes tomorrow. Clients will thank you.

3. Secure the door: OAuth or token schemes, HTTPS everywhere, strict input validation.

4. Perform under load: Cache smartly, paginate results, compress responses. Monitor latency.

5. Error with clarity: Helpful payloads, correlation IDs, consistent formats.

6. Document relentlessly: Keep reference and examples close to the code. Treat docs as part of delivery.

7. Know Domino options: Explore Domino REST capabilities provided by HCL alongside custom endpoints when needed.

How to Display RESTful APIs Skills on Your Resume

8. Java

Java delivers robust, portable components inside Domino—agents, libraries, and integrations that scale. When logic gets complex or needs reuse, Java fits.

Why It's Important

It opens doors to richer libraries, object-oriented structure, and cross-platform reliability while still playing nicely with Domino data.

How to Improve Java Skills

1. Own the core: Collections, generics, streams, exceptions. Write intention-revealing code.

2. Practice deliberately: Solve problems, refactor old agents to Java, and measure improvements.

3. Ship real features: Integrate external services, batch jobs, or data processing pipelines in Domino.

4. Mind interoperability: Know when to call Java from XPages/SSJS and how to expose services cleanly.

5. Keep learning: Track LTS releases and new language features. Small upgrades, big wins.

6. Validate expertise: Courses and certifications help structure growth and signal proficiency.

How to Display Java Skills on Your Resume

9. HTML/CSS

HTML structures content. CSS shapes its look. Together they define the web front end your Domino data deserves.

For a Lotus Notes developer, think: forms and views reimagined for browsers, responsive layouts, and design systems that don’t crumble on mobile.

Why It's Important

Great UX wins adoption. With clean HTML/CSS, your Domino apps feel modern, accessible, and consistent across devices.

How to Improve HTML/CSS Skills

1. Start with fundamentals: Semantic HTML, cascading rules, specificity, accessibility basics.

2. Responsive first: Master Flexbox and Grid. Design for small screens, then scale up.

3. Preprocessors wisely: SASS or LESS for variables, mixins, and maintainable stylesheets.

4. Performance matters: Ship fewer bytes, optimize images, and defer what you can.

5. Deliberate practice: Clone simple layouts, build style guides, iterate on a design system.

6. Debug faster: Live-edit with browser devtools and audit layout shifts and repaint costs.

How to Display HTML/CSS Skills on Your Resume

10. IBM Notes Client

IBM Notes Client—now HCL Notes—is the desktop front end for mail, calendars, and Domino applications. It’s both a user workspace and a developer’s proving ground for client experiences.

Why It's Important

You design, test, and refine application behavior right where users live. Getting the client experience right reduces tickets and boosts engagement.

How to Improve IBM Notes Client Skills

1. Tailor with Designer: Use Domino Designer to shape forms, views, and actions that feel natural in the client.

2. Optimize views: Keep columns lean, indexes efficient, and selection formulas fast.

3. Automate routine work: LotusScript agents and @Formulas remove manual steps and lighten the client load.

4. Use XPages where it fits: Deliver modern web UIs while still accessible from Notes when appropriate.

5. Enable DAOS: Domino Attachment and Object Service trims storage bloat and improves performance.

6. Follow best practices: Security-first designs, clear navigation, and consistent interaction patterns.

7. Stay updated: Track HCL Notes and Domino release updates for fixes and new capabilities.

How to Display IBM Notes Client Skills on Your Resume

11. Workflow Design

Workflow design turns business rules into dependable, auditable flows in Domino. Requests move. Approvals happen. Data lands where it should, when it should.

Why It's Important

Good workflow design reduces errors, clarifies responsibilities, and speeds cycle time. Users feel the difference immediately.

How to Improve Workflow Design Skills

1. Start with people: Map real user journeys and edge cases. Build for what actually happens, not just what’s documented.

2. Trim complexity: Fewer steps, clearer transitions. Simpler flows survive change.

3. Reuse components: Centralize script libraries, roles, and notification patterns.

4. Automate the grind: Use LotusScript and @Formulas to auto-assign, validate, and notify.

5. Design for speed: Minimize lookups, index views thoughtfully, and cache when safe.

6. Test in loops: Pilot with real users, capture feedback, iterate quickly.

7. Document decisions: Keep workflow diagrams and change logs close to the design elements.

8. Track platform changes: New Domino features can simplify steps you once coded by hand.

How to Display Workflow Design Skills on Your Resume

12. SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript)

SSJS runs JavaScript on the server within Domino, especially in XPages. It manipulates Domino objects, executes business logic, and returns computed results without exposing internals to the browser.

Why It's Important

It marries familiar JS syntax with Domino’s server-side power, enabling dynamic pages and secure operations that stay behind the curtain.

How to Improve SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript) Skills

1. Solidify core JS: Types, scopes, modules, and error handling. Reliable basics, fewer surprises.

2. Learn Domino bindings: Know how SSJS touches documents, views, and directories efficiently.

3. Structure wisely: Split logic into libraries, use helpers, avoid giant scripts.

4. Combine with Java: For heavy lifting, call into Java classes and keep SSJS lean.

5. Profile and cache: Measure server execution, cache safe results, reduce repeated lookups.

6. Study examples: Review community patterns and refine them to your standards.

How to Display SSJS (Server-Side JavaScript) Skills on Your Resume