The first thing I wanted to ask is what do you do at Verve Ventures? Can you give us some details?

I play two software engineering roles at Verve Ventures. One is as a quality assurance (QA) tester and the other as a front-end software developer. As a QA tester, I write and execute the automation testing to make sure the existing features are not broken and work as they’re supposed to. When I find bugs or issues, I report them to the other developers, so that we can quickly isolate and resolve software issues before a product is released.
As a front-end developer, I am in the learning stages. I implement a few smaller components as starter projects, while fixing minor bugs. Now, I am looking forward to owning larger features, as I am getting more familiar with our platform.

What do you like about testing?

Software developers look for a solution to reach a goal. Once they find and complete it, they are eager to switch to a new task. Testers thoroughly verify the resulting products, taking into account all the different combinations and checks. This is what I enjoy about QA testing, that I can improve the software development process, prevent defects and make sure our platform is as perfect as possible.

Does automation make testing easier or more interesting? Which is better in your view?

It all depends on what is being tested. Sometimes, manual testing is required. Other times automation testing is better because it allows you to test the same scenario multiple times without the intervention of a manual tester. It saves time. However, even though all processes are done automatically, automation still requires some manual effort to create testing scripts.
Features like logins, or the accreditation process benefit from automated tests that carry long-term value and come at a one-off cost. Features like UI widgets on mobile screens are better served through manual tests, as UI layout changes often, thus the maintenance cost is higher.

I saw that you did not study computer science at university, but you hold a degree in electrical engineering. How did you become a QA tester?

It is quite an exciting story. After I moved to Seattle in the US with my family, I landed a series of interesting software jobs. I started off as a game tester for XBox games at Microsoft, then switched to work on mobile testing. Afterwards, I moved on to a testing position at Samsung Electronics America. When I relocated to Switzerland with my family, I decided to do something I had long wanted and learned a new programming language. I joined an intensive web development bootcamp in Zurich. This was two years ago. With the skills I learnt there and the ones I already had, I was able to secure my current position at Verve Ventures during this COVID-19 pandemic.

Which bootcamp did you join?

It’s called Powercoders. It’s specifically tailored to refugees and migrants to Switzerland. It allows people from a lot of backgrounds to learn programming and gives them an opportunity to join the IT field where there are a lot of jobs available, but not many people with the right skill set.

I saw that you worked for some very big companies like Microsoft and Samsung. What’s the difference between working for a corporation and a smaller company like Verve Ventures?

In large companies people get the chance to specialize and fully develop a specific area. And it’s likely you’ll only get to know the people in your own department that you work with day in and day out. I was part of big testing departments, for example, where everyone around me was a tester.

Working for a smaller company can give you a much wider exposure, because everyone has more than one set of responsibilities. If you want to participate in a project, you can simply say, I want to work on this feature. Then you can discuss it with the people involved and actually have the opportunity to do it.

At Verve it’s very easy for me to just come in to work and discuss things directly with not only the IT team, but anyone at Verve. I love having a broader perspective over the entire company and what we do. You can get to know everyone from interns all the way to the CEOs. It’s amazing.

You mentioned growth, what areas are you hoping to grow in?

I would like to reach the level of intermediate software developer, who designs and implements the components and new functionalities of our products. So that I can contribute more to our platform.
The first area I want to improve on is my knowledge of Angular and GraphQL for frontend development and, later on, Scala for backend development. Eventually I would like to take full ownership of features, even when this involves many other things beyond coding.

How have you found working at Verve Ventures so far?

I have been very happy working at Verve Ventures! It has offered me a great deal of learning opportunities in an interesting domain and wonderful teammates, leadership, and a friendly work environment. I feel like Verve treats me like a family, not just an employee.

I also enjoy the flexible work arrangements. I can choose what time to work, where to work, even if it’s in a different country. This helps me to better manage my work-life balance, reduces stress and increases satisfaction. I am lucky to be in the Verve family!