Welcome to Part 2 of our Employee Spotlight Series!
We hope you enjoyed getting to know Abolfazl last week, and we’re excited to share more! Today, we want to share a more in-depth conversation we had with one of our Team Leads.
Chris Allinson | Mobile Team Lead & iOS Developer
Meet Allinson, our Mobile Team Lead. Chris has been with Aequilibrium since 2019 and is making a lot of people’s lives easier when using certain mobile banking apps 🙂
“Consultation allows me to contribute more to the way things are done as opposed to just feeling like a worker bee.” – Allinson, the Magician!
Tell us a bit about what you do at Aequilibrium.
I started here in Dec 2019, and am responsible for iOS development efforts for Aequilibrium’s largest client. Also, as Mobile Team Lead, I hold one-on-one meetings with other mobile team members discussing various things such as how their current project is going, how their team members are interacting with one another, some issues/blockers they are facing on their project, and some things they want to learn over the next couple of months. I also lead the various internal mobile R&D efforts, and all of the technical interviewing for the available iOS roles.
How were your first six months?
My first 6 months were smooth sailing, starting with some training on the Backbase platform, being placed on the project, and leading internal mobile R&D efforts.
What inspires you the most about your role?
The ability to make an impact on my current project and team, as well as internally at Aequilibrium via tech shares and other open forums. There are also various R&D efforts into new technologies which provide a win-win for both the business as well as the developers (increasing overall engagement).
What is it like to work from home?
Working from home is very similar to working from the office due to the fact that the project I am on is already for a client that is located in a different country. Our daily standup meetings and other scrum rituals simply continued in the same manner, except that everyone was joining the meetings from their own computer. Some limitations of working from home include not being able to actually see if someone is at their desk etc., which can lead to some latency in responses as before I could just approach someone with any questions I may have.
Tell us about your career path in the professional services sector.
I started out as a webmaster for a small real estate company, dealing with their website and existing PHP-based products. On the job, I was introduced to iOS development way back when iOS 3.0 was the standard, and the iPad and iOS 3.2 were just being rolled out. This blossomed into an iOS Developer role at the same company, as well as a promotion to Product Developer as I already worked closely with the owner of the company brainstorming other apps we could make that leveraged the platform we were working on.
I then moved to an agency that had big banking clients such as CIBC and RBC. After working there for 3 and a half years I moved on to a startup for a short while, then accepted the Lead iOS Developer role for LoyaltyOne. After LoyaltyOne, I moved on to RBC where I took on their Lead iOS Developer role. Next, I moved from Toronto to Burnaby for a role at autoTRADER as a Senior iOS Developer for a full year.
I then moved to downtown Vancouver and accepted a role at Aequilibrium as their iOS Chapter Lead. This was an exciting experience as I was able to both develop on a fairly large banking application, handle all of the interviewing related to iOS development, but also help drive R&D efforts adding more tools to the Aequilibrium tool belt! Recently I have been promoted to Mobile Team Lead, which is quite similar to the iOS Chapter Lead role, just that I now hold one-on-ones with all of the mobile developers.
Chris super concentrated playing Kronos Unleashed! Yas!
What is different about working in the professional services sector?
The professional services sector is very different from other experiences I have had (such as working in the produce department of a grocery store) in that you are seen more as a subject matter expert rather than simply a resource. Consultation is a part of my day-to-day, allowing me to contribute more to the way things are done as opposed to just feeling like a worker bee.
What is different about working in the bank and finance sector?
Fintech is more security-focused than other industries. Risk mitigation is of utmost importance, leading to a slower pace, but also to greater stability and quality.
What is great about your team?
The team I’m currently working with, we work very well together, leveraging collaboration technologies such as Slack and WebEx Teams to communicate. We face a fair number of obstacles, but very quickly outline/communicate them to one another and help each other as much as possible to overcome challenges.
What advice would you give to someone who is starting their career in the bank and finance/professional services sector?
Enjoy the slow-paced nature of risk mitigation, and learn as much as you can along the way in terms of security, quality, processes, and other technologies to consider.
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.
