TechLead-Story: Lukas Künzel, CTO at ms.GIS

Team

Size and Roles:

• Dev Team at ms.GIS consists of 30 individuals, with approximately half dedicated to software development.
• Focus areas include geospatial, classic data science, backend, cloud infrastructure (dev-ops!), web and cross-platform mobile development, embedded (hardware near development), and classic client-server applications.
• Each developer is expected to cover at least two areas.

Organization and Methodology:

• Project-oriented work structure, with the Kanban method being the preferred approach.
• Digitalized Kanban process supported by online collaboration tools for streamlined workflows.
• Flexibility in working hours and remote work options.

Distinctive Team Aspects:

• Emphasis on collaborative work, avoiding isolation.
• Daily exchange among employees of various disciplines is a common practice.
• Close collaboration between Seniors and Juniors, fostering continuous learning and staying updated on the latest trends.
• Tolerant and equal working environment with flat hierarchies and strong team spirit.

Recruiting

Integration in Recruiting Process:

• The CTO is actively involved in the recruiting process from the beginning, focusing on recognizing the potentials of candidates and inspiring them to join the company.

Onboarding Procedure:

• New developers integrated quickly into the team, encouraged to engage in their preferred tasks.
• Seniors provide guidance initially, and processes are designed to be simple for a short adaptation period.

Qualities Beyond Technical Skills:

• Seek Team-Players enthusiastic about solving technical challenges, contributing creative ideas, and committing to long-term collaboration.

Technologies

Technical Challenges:

• Identifying and integrating the right technologies into a comprehensive solution is a current challenge.
• Recognition of the need to contribute to open source and collaborate within the wider software development community.

Technologies in Use:

• Daily work involves JavaScript, React, Material UI for web applications, Xamarin.Forms for cross-platform mobile apps, Erlang for fault-tolerant and highly scalable backend tasks, C for hardware near development, and technologies like Apache Kafka, PostgreSQL, Elasticsearch for data storage.

Evolution of Technology:

• Shift towards open source technologies over the last three years.
• Constant adaptation to emerging technologies, with developers contributing to open source where their expertise lies.
• Dynamic changes in technology over the company's 20-year history, evolving to address new challenges.