What are the main responsibilities of your position? What’s a typical day like for you?
Being a developer, I mostly work on adding features and fixing bugs, while trying to avoid doing the inverse by “fixing” features and adding bugs! It’s a nice variety of different tasks that always keeps me on my toes and always allows for learning.
When did you join SoftlinkIC and what do you like most about working here?
I joined Softlink IC in January of 2024. I really like the company culture here. The IT and development industries are fraught with impossible deadlines and unrealistic expectations from bosses and managers who don’t really understand what the software product does, let alone what goes into making it work.
Softlink IC has none of that, and it really feels like everyone is heard, and projects and deadlines are approached with a realistic, down-to-earth view.
What was the last book you read (or listened to)?
I’m currently reading Heretics of Dune. I’m a science-fiction nerd, so I’ve been aiming to read the entirety of Frank Herbert’s Dune hexalogy (the other 17 written by his son, Brian, are a truly daunting task, so I’m counting them out for now).
What’s one thing about your job that surprises people when you tell them?
Other tech industry workers are surprised when I say that I have a development job without the “grind culture”, but normal people (not that tech workers aren’t normal) are more often surprised by the number of interesting things that I get to deal with developing library software.
On face value, from the job description, no escaping it, my job sounds pretty dull, but it’s actually really engaging, and I get to learn a lot and use a wide variety of skills to solve potentially unexpected kinds of problems and challenges.
What is your favourite type of food? (If there’s a list, even better!)
Pasta Bolognese probably – but ask me tomorrow and it’ll be sushi; it oscillates between the two pretty frequently.
Which 4 people, alive or dead, would you love to share your favourite food with and why?
- My partner, Clare, whose inclusion is self-evident.
- Murasaki Shikibu, author of The Tale of Genji, which is one of the first novels written, and importantly one that can still be read in full to this day. I wasn’t a huge fan of the book itself, but the history of the novel and the woman who wrote it would be an interesting discussion.
- Paul Harris, the founder of Rotary. Rotary has been a huge part of my life for the better part of a decade now, and I love engaging with my community through my Rotaract club. I know several people who have been awarded Paul Harris Fellowships for their service, and would like to meet the man who set it all off.
- Tom Scott, considered to be one of the original “explainer YouTubers”. He has had a lot of unique experiences in his life, and there’s a reason he managed to run his “Things You Might Not Know” series for 10 years straight.
If you could be anyone else for a day, who would that be and why?
If I could be anyone for a day, I’d probably choose the head of a major intelligence agency like the CIA – but not for the reasons you might think. I’d spend the whole day digging into all those wild conspiracy theories to see which ones, if any, are actually true.
Are there aliens? Is Bigfoot real? Do they really know where Walt Disney’s frozen body is? I’m not even into conspiracy theories, and honestly, I think the job would be super stressful, but in 24 hours, I bet I could uncover something bizarre and maybe even a little funny.
What is one place in the world on your bucket list you most want to visit? Why?
I’d really like to visit some of the historical regions of China. The country has cities, temples, and landmarks that are truly ancient and fascinating, and places like the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and the Terracotta Army have always stood out to me.
They represent such a deep history and level of craftsmanship that you don’t often get to experience firsthand. Seeing that kind of long, continuous history in person would be incredible, especially in contrast to the relatively “new” culture of post-colonial Australia; Acknowledging, of course, that the First Nations people of this land lay claim to the world’s longest continuous living culture, and that their arts, history, and craftsmanship go back further still.