My decision to join Softwire was made with very little to go on. I liked everyone I'd spoken to at the interviews, I had found said interviews difficult but enjoyable, so I reasoned that I would enjoy the work; and I quite liked the idea of working for a relatively small company in the centre of London. I had also browsed the Recruitment section of the website, where the employment package looked great and the case studies all enthused about how great a place Softwire was to work - but then they would, wouldn't they?
Five months in and my instincts have all proven correct: Everyone here is very friendly and fun; the work is mentally stimulating and satisfying; the company is small enough for knowledge and information to be shared and for your contribution to be important from day one, whilst being large enough for there to always be someone around to help; London is a great place to be, whatever you're into. In fact, I found that everything I’d read on the website was true.
To start with, Softwire is right to claim that it’s a very employee-friendly company. The working hours are flexible and there's hardly ever a need to work late. The morale events are always great fun and the working environment is possibly the biggest reason why this is such an excellent place to be - but more on that later. Considering all this, it is very easy to make your friends who have gone into banking, law or accountancy jealous, without even mentioning the fact that you're getting paid just as much as them or more!
You don't find the traditional computer geek at Softwire - of course we all share an appetite for problem-solving, and we're all happy sitting in front of a computer, and if you join us then these things will no doubt apply to you too. But everyone here has got something interesting to say for themselves, with hobbies including football, poker, photography, music, kickboxing, rock climbing, novel-writing, comedy, athletics, travelling, golf... I'm sure I'll find out many more as my stay here continues. There is never a shortage of willing opponents on the pool table, football table, playstation and darts board in the games room, and there's always a different set of people going to the pub for a few after-work drinks. Indeed at my welcome drinks I was impressed by the ease of transition from a bunch of work colleagues to a big group of friends (a transition aided by the blurring of the distinction during office hours, as much as by the fact that the drinks were all free), and I ended up in a local curry house learning strange new tricks involving a glass of Sambucca and a box of matches.
As well as funding our hangovers, Softwire provide countless entertainments throughout the year. As I write I have already experienced a team meal, two (count 'em!) Christmas dinners, both of which were truly excellent fun, and a poker night, and am looking forward to a wine tasting event, go-karting, a three-day company holiday to Budapest and the legendary Softwire birthday party ("Now in its sixth amazing year" - The Framley Gazette). It really is an exciting time to be joining Softwire, not only so you can get in on these festivities, but also because it is a company on the up, and with some big clients coming in, the work is about to get even more interesting.
Ah yes, the work. Like many of the new recruits, I have joined the Reservwire team. This is a massive online travel booking system, and you really do get thrown in at the deep end, albeit with the rubber ring of an excellent support network. I am finding out new things about this product every day, at the same time as improving my coding skills, and have yet to find it boring. The rest of Softwire works on shorter-term projects, which provide a new range of challenges on a regular basis.
A typical day involves talking to clients, discussing high-level designs with colleagues and getting your hands dirty with the coding, in languages such as C#.Net, ASP.Net, HTML, XML, SQL and more. There is also the opportunity to get involved in sales and recruitment, and plenty of other jobs which are shared around the office. The company sets a large store by employee happiness and as well as all of the things detailed above, this means that everyone's opinion is important, with meetings and email discussions giving us all a chance to influence the policy and direction of the company.
As a final word, please remember that wherever you decide to work, the thing that will influence your happiness the most is the atmosphere and attitude in the workplace. If you like the idea of a company that manages to be ultra-productive whilst being relaxed, friendly and fun, then I can guarantee you'd enjoy working at Softwire.
Chris Harris
