Our developers, very simply, do magic. At least, according to the content strategist currently writing this piece, it certainly feels a lot like magic. Watching our clients’ concepts and ideas come to life is nothing short of amazing, and our developers are there behind it all, making it a reality. With this, we had a question: “What is it actually like to be a developer at Buckeye?” We sat down with engineers Oscar, Scott, Matt, and Andrew G. to get the answer.
To start, what made you want to join Buckeye Innovation in the first place?
Oscar
The company’s trust in its employees. With a fully remote work environment, the only way we can successfully operate is through trust and respect. The leaders in this company understand that everyone has aspirations, challenges, and many things going on in their life. As such, work life balance at Buckeye is extremely important. This was apparent even during initial interviews.
Scott
Prior to working at Buckeye, I was a cofounder of a few startups. I’ve always enjoyed the atmosphere of innovation and being willing to quickly iterate in order to solve problems. I’m also the sort of person that can’t stand working on the same thing every day, I have to be learning something new or else I’ll get bored. Buckeye was the perfect blend of being able to work on a huge variety of projects, getting to constantly learn new technologies, and doing that all in an innovative atmosphere.
Matt
I chose Buckeye Innovation over other companies because of the way the team presented itself. Brad (Buckeye’s founder and president) has always been a very genuine person and everyone was very open and caring. The interview questions and forms were very lighthearted compared to other companies, and I like working with people who aren’t afraid to break the mold a little.
Andrew G.
Three reasons stick out most to me: 1) Working with like-minded people; 2) Facing challenges; 3) The ability to learn new technologies in the software engineering ecosystem.
How is your experience as a developer at Buckeye different from your experience in previous positions?
Oscar
I feel that I have finally found a company where I can be myself, continue to grow, and not be held back by policies or leadership that seeks to control its employees. I feel like I am treated with respect and dignity, and that empowers me to want to do my best.
Scott
Every other position that I’ve held has been a freelance-type position – working at Buckeye has been a breath of fresh air when it comes to being able to collaborate with people. It’s awesome to be able to bounce ideas off of one another and come up with better solutions than I would have been able to come up with on my own.
Matt
You really have an opportunity to fill the role you want to be in. The nature of the work requires us to move a little quicker and make changes a little faster, and we aren’t afraid to try something new and see if it makes the process better for everyone. That means anyone on the team can see an issue, propose a change, and follow that change through regardless of their title or responsibilities. You could say we get a lot of chances to start things fresh and try new approaches.
Andrew G.
My experience has been really great. It’s collaborative, insightful, pleasant, and rewarding. Other companies I’ve been with in the past made it challenging to really enjoy what I was doing. Working with Buckeye shows me just how important our mission statement is, and how to really tap into that mindset with everything we do.
What do you most enjoy about working for Buckeye?
Oscar
The people. Everyone at Buckeye shares very similar cultural traits. We all value trust, honesty, respect, and dignity for one another. We all want to be better versions of ourselves and realize that working together we can accomplish anything.
Scott
My coworkers – it’s genuinely fun to get to solve problems alongside each other.
Matt
I couldn’t ask for a better group of people to work with.
Andrew G.
I most enjoy being challenged to go above and beyond for our clients. I can’t think of a more impactful way to spend my day than being helpful in that regard.
What kind of projects have been most interesting to you since working as a developer for Buckeye?
Oscar
I really value projects that have a meaningful use towards helping people. One of my favorite projects is Opportunity Port, an application designed to help people in underserved communities get legal aid to seal their records and get back on their feet to be a contributing member of their community.
Scott
The projects where companies rely on us to be an innovation partner with them. It’s so much fun to work together with our clients to come up with the best possible solution to their problem. When we are seen as innovation partners instead of just a development / design / content agency, then we’re always able to come up with a great solution that is both fun to build and has the greatest impact to our client.
Matt
My favorite projects are the ones that have a tangible impact on the community at large. We get to work on all kinds of cool projects, from mobile apps to automating processes that used to take people hours and hours of manual labor, but the ones that directly impact people in need feel great. We just finished work on a website that makes personal finance more accessible, and I can’t wait to hear back on how it’s being used once it launches.
Andrew G.
Since I’ve really only been a part of a small number of projects to this point, I would say the most interesting one I’ve been involved with has been JWE. LMS systems can vary greatly in so many ways. I think we took a really unique approach to deliver exactly what the client was looking for. It feels good to be a part of the process.
As you look forward to the future and how the company is evolving, what are you most excited about as it relates to your role as a developer?
Oscar
I’m really excited about the team we’re building. We’ve come a long way in developing processes and systems that make our lives easier and allow us to have a more meaningful impact for our clients. We’ve grown our team with very talented individuals that will play a key role in our growth. Together we form a well-oiled machine!
Scott
I’m looking forward to the possibility of partnering with our clients on a deeper level than we have before. We haven’t been able to take on some potential clients in the past because of finances, which has been disappointing because their ideas were innovative. There could be possibilities in the future of partnering with potential clients (whether by equity or in-kind services) to where we can work on them, even if they wouldn’t have fit in the normal mold of being able to pay us upfront.
Matt
My role has grown significantly since I joined the team, and I feel proud of the part I’ve played in improving the way we work. As the team continues to grow and evolve, I have the opportunity to help build a truly great working environment with some great people. Every project we get right is so rewarding to me because we’ve put so much effort into learning from our mistakes, and I can’t wait to see what we can make happen in the future.
Andrew G.
I am absolutely looking forward to the future. I’m most excited about working with my team to build new applications. New projects always propagate new ideas for me in this creative/collaborative/idea driven environment I tend to get really excited about.
If you had to briefly summarize what it’s like to be a developer with Buckeye, how would you describe it?
Oscar
Energizing, innovative, and an amazing opportunity to learn and get involved in every aspect of web development and software engineering.
Scott
Challenging – but in a good way! We’re constantly confronted with new types of challenges. And we get to learn new things every day in order to solve those challenges.
Matt
We tend to work on more things at once than your average team (and more types of work too). There’s always something new and challenging going on. The pace is balanced by our meticulous attention to quality of life. The team is beyond dedicated to keeping things low stress and keeping the work/life balance healthy.
Andrew G.
Low stress, rewarding, challenging, and exciting!
