One of our ‘insiders’ will be giving us an insight into their career, and what it’s really like to work for YLD.
What is your name?
Joe Schofield, Joey, Joe Scho, Joeinho, Joe Sho — depending on who you ask!
What is your role at YLD?
Software Engineer in London! 👨🏻💻
What did you do before joining YLD?
I was studying Computing at the University of Greenwich. Before my final year, I completed a one-year placement at IBM, which is where I found my one true love in Node.js. ❤️
Once I’d completed my studies I worked in retail for two weeks before being approached by YLD! Two weeks is more than enough time spent in the retail industry, it’s exhausting! 😴
Why did you decide to have a career in Software Engineering and what advice would you give to someone going through the same route as you? I knew I wanted to go to university, and I’ve always been good with computers — so a degree in Computing was the obvious choice for me! It was at the University of Greenwich that I wrote my first few lines of code. 📝
My advice would be to go to meetups* if you can, get involved in the culture and see that there’s more to Software Engineering than you’d expect!
If you’re in the middle of nowhere — make plans to go to a conference at some point!
*There is always pizza. 🍕
Why did you decide to have a career in Software Engineering?
I love the way software works. I found it so amazing that I could write some stuff that creates a visual thing on a page! From there I wanted to see what I could do with my new superpowers. 💪
Luckily, I was offered a placement year at IBM — which taught me much of what I know today — and gave me a good insight into the Software Industry. It was then that I was sure I wanted a career as a Software Engineer (or a poet). 🐝
What’s the best advice you’ve been given in your career?
Do 👏a 👏placement 👏year!
My lecturer at university recommended it, and I actually didn’t apply at first — it was only when IBM re-opened applications later in the year that I applied! I learned a huge amount of technical and non-technical skills, in a way that a university can’t teach you.
What are you most proud of in your career?
Becoming a software engineering consultant. When I told my family I’d been successful in applying to YLD they were so pleased that I would be working in the industry I wanted to work in! 🎉
I’d had a few unsuccessful interviews at smaller companies before meeting the wonderful YLDers, and instead of being disheartened I decided to just keep going! 😤
What are you currently working on?
I’m working on a video on demand service! I’ve been on the project pretty much from the start and it’s great to see how much progress we’ve made! 🏈
My team have been creating the services to support gift code redemption and the user subscription flow using a plethora of payment methods. 💸
How does working at YLD differ to the companies you’ve worked at before?
Culture. Culture. Culture. 🖼
YLD are obsessed with making every employee feel special. I really feel supported by them to grow in areas that I want to learn. Also, there are so many events to meet up with other YLDers working on different projects, so I can catch up with all the awesome people I don’t see every day. 🌟
What tech are you excited about at the moment?
The quest for the ultimate CI/CD workflow! CI/CD just makes developing software so much easier. And there are some really great tools available.
I’ve actually just been reading about GitHub Actions, a new tool which can be used for many processes, including CI/CD. 🤖
What are you looking forward to in the future with YLD?
Growing with the company, not physically. I’m 5'7" and have given up hope of that changing… YLD really encourage me to better myself and to do things that scare me — like talking at a meetup! 🗣
What is your professional long-term goal?
I’d love to create (or help to create) an open-source tool that is widely used! The Javascript community thrives on open-source, and it’d be nice to give back! 🥅
You can find Joe online here:
#worldsbestteam
Written by Emily Rising — Talent Associate at YLD.
