How long have you worked for Brightspot? What brought you here?
I started at Brightspot in 2018, after connecting with the company at a career fair in my last semester at the University of Maryland. I didn’t know much about Brightspot at the time, but I got talking to the recruiting team and it really interested me. Then, when I interviewed at the office, I saw the environment and the people. The whole interview process was relaxed, but the company also seemed fast-paced and everyone was eager to learn. I just liked the overall environment and the work that was going into the company. That made me decide to work here.
What do you enjoy most about your role as a developer? What do you find most challenging?
I love coding! Working as a front-end engineer as part of the platform experience team, I get to contribute to the core product of the company. I get to think about how people interact with the CMS and how I can improve the user experience for them. With every feature I work on there’s always something new to learn about the technology and the product. There is never a dull moment! I had never used a CMS before Brightspot, so going into it there was so much to learn, which was overwhelming. But over time it has become easier and I have my team to thank for that. People here are always ready to help with whatever questions or issues you might have.
I know that you’re part of Brightspot’s Ops Desk team. Can you tell us more about that project and what that experience has been like?
I joined the Ops Desk project back in 2020 when we just started building its front end. Since then we have added many features and improvements to the user interface. It’s been gratifying to see people in the company using the tool. We did a recent release and heard good things about it and the experience in general. It’s been great!
In addition to your work on Ops Desk, is there a particular feature you’ve built or problem you’ve solved that you are most proud of?
One of the features I worked on in the last year was preview-to-edit with John Pencola. It was something that was not implemented before and the complexity of integrating it with the CMS made it challenging. It was exciting that we were able to get the first version out in time for the 2022 Brightspot User Conference.
Do you have any advice for college students or those who are starting their careers in software development?
Definitely be open to learning. Be curious and always ask questions. Don’t give up if you do not get things right with the first try. You have to keep improving on things, and even when you fail, just keep asking the right questions and keep learning.
How have you grown professionally since starting at Brightspot?
Working here helped me improve my technical and subject-matter expertise, and that has given me the confidence to work on different features and the challenges that come with them.
Besides the people, what is your favorite part about working at Brightspot?
Well, I would say the environment and the general working culture. There’s good work-life balance here. It’s very collaborative and a place that is conducive to learning and bringing new ideas to the table.
What are your favorite activities or hobbies to do outside of the office?
I love watching movies and, especially now that the fall weather is here, I love to go hiking. I also love traveling.
What was the last book you read? Would you recommend it?
The book I am currently reading is Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson. It’s a really interesting book and I definitely recommend it for people to read.
What fall activity are you most excited about?
I enjoy hiking, especially in the fall colors. I just love the pretty colors of the leaves so I am looking forward to that during the fall.
