When I realised it had been a month I couldn’t quite believe it. Since starting here, time has escaped me and the days fly past. It’s surreal to think how much I’ve learnt, yet there’s still much more learning to be done.
I joined the team after finishing university as a mature student. I knew who Viva IT were long before I started. I had noticed their presence at various PHPem meetups and the unconferences. They were the guys in the bright orange hoodies always looking very cheerful. When I was made aware they were hiring at a meetup right after I’d finished university I jumped at the opportunity.
My initial impressions of the Viva IT team were very encouraging. Viva IT is all about passionate people who love what they do and their enthusiasm for quality software development is inspiring. We adhere strictly to the agile methodology and look out for everyone else without fail. Witnessing and being part of the interactions between the team makes working there a pleasure, as you’re always being looked after. No one’s work is more important that anyone else’s. It’s the team that does the work, not the individuals.
At first I’ll admit I was daunted by the sheer pace of the team. Not just that, but the vast yet tried and tested array of tools were a lot to take in. I spent my weeks leading up to my first day franticly trying to learn them, but without someone there to help it wasn’t viable. Since then the team has assisted me in learning these tools and frameworks at a pace I couldn’t imagine. I’m able to follow the procedures required to submit to the codebase and make sure it’s tested, all under agile methods.
It’s been a great month and I know it’s only just starting. What’s to come is what gets me up in the morning, knowing that I’ll be learning at the cutting edge, and contributing to products that I’m proud to be involved with. Products that help others with their routines and tasks, helping them achieve their goals with as little obstruction as possible. As my time continues here I can’t wait to learn and grow as a developer, and help contribute to very high quality code.
