We’ve reached week 7 of our Employee Spotlight. Glad you’re here!
It’s been so rewarding to share the conversations we had with some of our team members. We hope you’re enjoying them as much as we are!
One of the great things about Aequilibrium is the chance to work on different technologies and develop skills. Today’s chat is with someone who joined the company a few weeks ago and is already experiencing our learning culture.
Tom Cho (aka Tom Cat) | Front End Developer
Meet Tom! He joined the Front End Team from Toronto and he’s excited to move to Vancouver sometime soon. No one can resist that Van City charm!
“On my first day on the project, I was provided with open source links. This is amazing and a great way to use the latest technology to achieve results very fast. Aequilibrium seems to be more modernized and fast-paced compared to other companies.”
Tom is a big soccer fan, and even played at the competitive level in the regional leagues!
First things first, why did you want to work at Aequilibrium?
I wanted to put myself into a new environment. I was looking for the faster-paced environment of smaller companies, different from large corporations that I’ve worked for in the past. I got an interview and I took the opportunity to ask questions that would reveal if the company fit my interests. One of my questions was: Would I have the chance to work with a different tech stack? The answer was yes, and that if I wanted to work in back end, then why not? There are not many boundaries here. That was a good answer, I thought. Another reason I wanted to work at Aequilibrium is because I want to move to Vancouver — I’m currently in Toronto.
As a Front End Developer, what is your typical day like?
Aside from a few meetings, I have lots of free time to do my work. I start my day logging into Slack, which is our office now. I generally have a couple of meetings with the product team members, and we discuss project planning and any issues and roadblocks. Ben, the Director of IT, reached out to me asking if was interested in doing internal projects, and I said yes! The best part is that he asked me to pick one. I choose the most interesting one. Although we use more React in this project, which I have little experience with, he allowed me to work on it to develop my skills and work with a new tech stack.
Tom enjoying a Blue Jays game in Toronto
What’s the most rewarding part about working here?
Definitely the part where I have the opportunity to work with technologies. I was offered the opportunity to work on a project utilizing technologies that I have little experience with. Everyone has been very friendly and supportive and they insist that I should reach out to them if I have any issues. I haven’t had any roadblocks so far, but I have a strong belief that if I did it would be resolved fairly quickly.
How is your current job different from the previous jobs you’ve had?
In a large corporation, I focused on given tasks related to my skills. The company also restricted using external resources, such as open source libraries. At Aequilibrium, this is not the case. My first day on the project I was provided with open source links. This is amazing and a great way to use the latest technology to achieve results very fast. Aequilibrium seems to be more modernized and fast paced compared to other companies I’ve worked for. Also, having the chance to pick a project just gave me a stronger sense of ownership, which is so great.
Tom exploring the pyramids in Mexico
How would you describe us?
Four things: No boundaries. Very friendly. Start-up like. Passionate/Smart.
Interested in joining the Aequilibrium team?
Check out our Careers Page and don’t forget to stay social with us!
Read this article on Medium.
