Big screens, rows of code and quietly working on your own, is that how you think software teams look? Well here at EF-group we have taken a slightly different approach, our software development team is complimented with a whole group of support roles that help steer the ship and break the stereotypical view of what a development team looks like.
There is a perception that software teams are developers, coders and individuals working quietly alone from a list of requirements, for us it is a different picture, and the strength of our success lies in the breadth and depth of the skillset that sits within our software solutions team.
Our Software Operations Director, Charlie Huntington, caught up with us to share what makes our in-house development team so unique.
It’s more than just code.
At the core of our team sits a group of incredibly skilled and talented developers who are responsible for translating requirements and turning them into shiny new features. Sitting amongst them is an equally talented support network made up of a Solution Architect, Scrum Master, Operation’s & Delivery Manager, Quality Analyst, Client Support Executive and UX/UI designer.
Whilst our developers focus on enhancing our innovative software platforms, Freshmarkets and CaterCloud, and release new features and functions, our Ops and Delivery Manager, Ashley, is responsible for the delivery of key projects within our platforms, planning resources for those projects, and ensuring client requirements have been gathered and understood.
Complimenting Ashley is our Scrum Master, Paige, who has overall responsibility for our sprint plans and development runs and ensures feature release cycles are to target and released on time. Paige holds regular planning meetings to check on the sprint status and ensures the team are focussed on delivering the agreed features.
Here at EF, our digital development roadmap is multi-faceted with a combination of items from different workstreams, we take our clients’ needs heavily into consideration and often, our key feature enhancements are born from conversations with clients who need solutions to daily challenges within their sector. We work collaboratively with clients and develop our solutions with them in mind, it’s then the job of our UX/UI designer, Debbie to create easy-to-use, seamless customer experiences on our interactive platforms that work just as our clients need them to.
Once the new features are live, in comes Jade, our Client Support, Jade is directly in touch with our Account Managers and internal Customer Support teams and is on hand to talk through any iterations or tweaks to any of the improvements we are working on. Whilst the core functionality of our platforms is the same for all our clients, our solutions are tailored to offer enhanced features to suit different sectors, especially for our Care and Senior Living and Education clients.
Our developers are directly responsible and tuned into the build of all new systems developments but by adding the additional support roles it really bolsters our tech team and allows us to spot hidden opportunities whilst connecting directly with our customers.
Since we acquired Air Publishing Limited in 2021, we have made significant investment to grow and develop the team at our London-based office, and this has given us a competitive advantage with our future proofed, industry-leading software solutions. Our focus remains on the continued user interface improvements and feature enhancements to improve usability and drive more efficiencies for our clients, and we have some exciting innovations on our roadmap which we will be sharing over the coming year.
gemma spilling
