TechLead-Story: Christian Gorbach, CTO at Smarter Ecommerce (smec)
TechLeadStory
Christian Gorbach
Team
Size and Roles:
- The Dev team comprises approximately 30 individuals, with distinct teams focusing on software products, Dev Infrastructure, Solutions Engineering, and Data Science.
- There are plans to expand with a new software engineering location in Vienna and establish another team remotely.
Organization and Methodology:
- The organization follows a self-organized and agile approach.
- Began with Scrum and XP elements in 2008, evolving into a more Kanban-oriented methodology.
- Combines routines like Planning Poker and Retros from Scrum with the focus on value flow from Kanban.
Distinctive Team Aspects:
- Emphasizes a developer-friendly culture with minimal micro-management.
- Incorporates Tech Talks, 'Freaky Friday' unallocated time, an open-house policy, and engagement with external tech meetups.
- Prioritizes Test-Driven Development (TDD) to ensure quality and has a substantial test battery of over 50,000 unit, integration, and external tests.
- Practices true DevOps, with developers managing their own software, leveraging modern tools and a cloud-based stack.
Recruiting
Integration in Recruiting Process:
- Offers candidates a 'Schnuppertag' or trial day to experience the workplace.
- Utilizes coding challenges, closely aligned with actual tasks, for senior-level positions.
Onboarding Procedure:
- Assigns a buddy from outside the new hire's team for orientation.
- Conducts a comprehensive three-month onboarding program, tailored to individual needs.
- Involves code reviews as part of daily routines, aiding in the early stages of contribution.
- Offers German language courses for expats.
Qualities Beyond Technical Skills:
- Seeks individuals who share the company values: Excellence, Passion, Integrity, Cleverness (EPIC).
Technologies
Technical Challenges:
- Scalable system architecture.
- Integration of DevOps and Design-Ops concepts.
- Incorporation of machine learning (AI).
Technologies in Use:
- Java 8, Scala, Groovy, Node, Python, Git, Gitlab, IntelliJ, MySQL, Elastic stack, Google Cloud, Spark, Akka, Spring, Boot, Gradle, Spock Framework, Angular 8, GraphQL, Docker, Kubernetes, Ansible, Prometheus, Grafana, and more.
Evolution of Technology:
- Evolved into a polyglot environment, notably with the decision to embrace cloud services.
- Transitioned to a Microservices architecture, coupled with Docker containerization and Kubernetes management
Dev Interview Info
