Bilot has recently welcomed a new crop of Junior Developers to the company. We interviewed the guitar-playing, cat-loving, soon-graduating trainee trio to find out how they found their way to Bilot.
Hey guys! Quick introduction: what do I need to know about you?
Juha: My name is Juha and I’m 24 years old. I’m studying in Haaga-Helia and I will graduate this summer.
Leo: My name is Leo, I live with a cat, I would like to learn guitar, I’m always happy.
Alexander: My name is Alexander and I am very excited to join the Bilot family as a Junior Java Developer Trainee!
What’s your background? How did you get into coding?
Juha: When I was 16 years old, I had my first touch into coding in vocational school. I learned basic coding with Java and I felt like I was really good at it. After that school I still wasn’t sure what I want to do with my life, but when I started studying in Haaga-Helia it was very clear; I want to be a software developer! In my studies, I have learned a little bit of many areas. My strongest area is in the front-end coding, but I have also coded some web-applications with Java.
Leo: I always had ideas for programs but no skills to develop them, so I enrolled into Haaga-Helia.
Alexander: My way to programming started quite unexpectedly and coming more from an artistic background. I was always doodling in my sketchbook and from there I started to get into computer graphics. While working in CG visualization studio, I began to learn game engines such as Unity and UE4, and this is where I first encountered programming. I found it very interesting to write scripts and add logic behavior to 3D assets, and probably since that time I defined my career as a developer.
What made you interested in Bilot as a company?
Alexander: I think that consulting really suits my personality. I find it very interesting to work from one project to another, to always keep my skills sharp and at the same time always challenge myself. So, I started to investigate the market and that is how I found Bilot.
Leo: I saw a recruitment ad for trainees in mol.fi and got in through Academic Work. I thought the recruitment ad was really laid-back and well-written and you could feel a “Bilot atmosphere” through it.
Juha: Actually, Leo was my recruitment ad! He’s my classmate from Haaga-Helia, and he told me a lot of good things about Bilot since he started here before me.
What were your first impressions of the company?
Alexander: Amazing feeling to be around the people who enjoy what they do!
Juha: I was impressed by your nice office and good people!
Leo: I was surprised that the people here were normal(ish). [Editor’s note: HEY.]
You’ve been here for about a month now. What are some main things that you have noticed about life at Bilot? What work have you been involved in so far?
Leo: People hang out and have fun all the time and do some work at the same time – or the other way around? I’ve done some images for a webstore documentation, and right now we’re starting on a real live customer project.
Alexander: For the last month I have been getting to know the SAP Hybris technology and got a chance to have a SAP training in Warsaw for a week. Like Leo said, currently we’re involved in a project for a big manufacturing customer.
It is awesome to be surrounded with professional people who are always willing to help and explain something. Sometimes I look at the people around me, and I often notice that they are smiling!
Juha: I have been in the office only one week because of the training trip in Poland, but I have noticed that people communicate a lot and the atmosphere is relaxed. I also noticed that you have very athletic and good floorball players, when I got my ass kicked by Bilot veterans… I need a lot of practice to get on their level.
So… do you like it here?
Leo: So far it has been a-w-e-s-o-m-e-!
Juha: After 2½ years of working in a warehouse alongside my studies, I really do!
Alexander: Yes! I feel myself very lucky to be surrounded by such a team.
Good to hear. Once again, welcome to Bilot! Now get coding.
And so they did.
Bilot Junior Developers following along with Commerce lead Jussi.
Interested in working at Bilot with Leo, Juha, Alexander and the rest of us? Check out our open positions » and apply today!
