Nov 24, 2020
Meet: Ellie, Engineering Team Lead at Perlego
…and resident ‘Chief of Fruit’
What do you do at Perlego?
I’m both a developer and a team lead for one of our Web squads. As a team lead, I need to make sure every other engineer in the team has what they need in order to do their job. I guide others in the team and help onboard new joiners ensuring they understand the systems they are working with. I also help unblock any issues my team faces and lead Iteration Planning (where we go over how much time we can dedicate to different tasks over the next two weeks).
A usual day for me starts with a Team DS (Daily Standup) where we go over our plans for the day — it’s also a nice chance to have a chat with my team before the working day begins. I then have a Team Lead DS where we all go over any issues our respective teams have that may be affecting others. This is also a great opportunity to gain different perspectives on the problems. After that, I get to coding! I can be working on a variety of things that always makes for an exciting day — from projects to research on discovery pieces and technical guidance.
When I’m not managing my team I also enjoy getting involved with company culture by organising social events and providing the team with our weekly fruit basket 🍒
What do your parents think you do?
I’m not sure they even know what I do!
What did you want to be as a kid?
When I was a kid I really wanted to be an inventor — I didn’t have anything particular in mind but I just imagined it would be really cool to be a scientist in a lab, with a white lab coat and test tube handy. I later moved onto wanting to be an actress before I realised I had terrible stage fright!
What’s the superpower that makes you a great Engineering Team Lead?
It would probably be talking to everyone in the company and being able to form relationships across teams that now helps me communicate as an Engineering Team Lead. Not sure if that’s a superpower, or just me enjoying having a chat!
“I’ve never joined a company where I felt so comfortable with the people I work with so quickly.”
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give your younger self?
I would tell my younger self, at the beginning of her career, to have more confidence in her abilities. When you first start out as a developer, you find yourself pushed into the deep-end — it’s important to have faith but also be willing to ask others for help.
Tell us 3 quirky things about yourself?
👩🎨 I used to be a part-time face painter
🐃 I once road a buffalo through a pond
🎪 I’m currently learning aerial skills
One thing you love about Perlego?
Definitely the people! I’ve never joined a company where I felt so comfortable with the people I work with so quickly. It really shows in all the fun activities we do, like the team lunches we had whilst in the office or the virtual happy-hours we have now.
Your favourite book on Perlego.
This might sound like a strange choice, but it would have to be The Theory of Computation which is a textbook I used a lot at university.
What energises you at work?
If I’m in the office it would be to go for a coffee with colleagues or a walk at lunchtime. When I’m working from home, heading to the kitchen for a cup of tea isn’t quite the same but I still try to go out for a daily walk.
What’s it like to be an engineer at one of the UK’s fastest growing startups? Chris tells us about his typical week at Perlego 👨💻
Want to improve your soft skills and become a Team Lead like Ellie? Here are some books that might help you:
If you are interested in joining our team, checkout out our job openings 👀
