Get to know Kamil

Kamil Koczan: I am a Junior Software Engineer who works mainly with Flutter technology right now. I work on many of our applications, but I am mainly focused on NaviPay and the parking management web application. It is not all about writing code. I am also responsible for the deployment process of our applications, and as a software engineer I have a real impact on how applications look and how they work. In the last couple of weeks, I also tried to attend recruitment processes for new Flutter Developers who want to join us. As you can see, I can’t stay in place, I am still moving forward with the NaviParking company, and there is more and more knowledge and responsibilities that I have to face. The way I work is kind of exciting because you never know what your next big challenge will be. 

KK: I am from Generation Z, so I don’t really know the world without computerised and smart solutions. In the area of mobility, there is still a lack of those because every bigger city is still facing the problem of congestion, not enough parking spaces, too much car usage and air pollution. For me, smart mobility is a way to improve the user experience in moving around by using new technologies and innovative solutions. It is important, especially right now, because the population is growing, and we have to invest in smart mobility to not live in crowded and polluted cities. 

KK: As I said before, I can’t imagine my life without computers, but to be honest, in the past, I didn’t want to connect my life with the tech industry. Everything changed when I started to study Biomedical Engineering, and it showed me that IT is not only about applications, but it’s also about people who are using them. I realised that I can use my PC and knowledge to build something that can improve people’s lives in some areas.

KK: Tough question! It’s my first job in the industry, so I don’t really have the opportunity to compare startups and big corporations, but there is one thing that stands out when I think about working at a startup. It’s that employees have an impact on product creation. I can feel that I am an important piece of the company and not only a person to finish tasks at the JIRA board. It gives me the opportunity to build knowledge not only about software engineering but also about how the company is working and what I can do to improve it. 

KK: For me, sustainability is a concept that tells us about finite resources. As people, we have finite resources in social life, at an economic level also generally speaking in the environment we live in. Sustainability is a way to keep harmony between these three areas that I mentioned. One of the thesis of sustainability is popular nowadays as a “Work-Life Balance” that is all about how to live in symbiosis with work and no more live for work. I am trying to be sustainable in my job by not fully focusing on one skill and trying to be flexible in what I am doing. Outside of work, I am trying to follow the “Work-Life Balance” movement. 

KK: Mostly the people I work with because I can learn a lot from them. They are willing to share their knowledge about software engineering and life. From my work perspective, it is that I have a real impact on our products. However, from a company view, of course, the innovations that we want to bring into the market!

KK: I have to say it’s programming because it takes the majority of my time each day, but to be more specific, I would say the best is to create something new eg. implement brand new functionality or start another project where you have to plan how to structure that and describe pros and cons of your solution. I would say it is the architectural part of my job that I love the most. Apart from programming, I also like the meetings with my team. Somebody can say that meetings are boring and they want to code on their own, but I really like to put away code for a bit and think about other functionalities that we can build together.

KK: Like I said before, the best part of my job is to organise the project architecture, so I would say that my favourite thing I’ve worked on was creating almost from scratch a new parking management web application. It was a challenge for myself and the team I work with to structure it so that it can be robust, easy to maintain and of course, stable.

KK: That’s an easy question for me to answer. It’s the number of topics that I still don’t know, but I want to. For me, the best motivation is to realise how many things I already learned in comparison with a lot more that I get to know in the future.

KK: I don’t really know how it is to work from the office because I joined in the middle of the pandemic. My “home office” is also the place where I sleep or take a rest. From that perspective, it’s not as great as I thought it would be because, it’s very tough to put a job away and forget about it for a while. I worked from our Gliwice office two times, and it was the best experience because I could leave my job in the office, and of course, I met people I work with every day. However, I’m still thinking that a remote job is so much better than being in an office, but I have to say it depends on the organisation of the workplace.

KK: I have to say that I have a problem not working because it’s common for me to work after hours eg. coding my own projects, reading brand books, and watching software engineer conferences. It’s kind of a hobby too, but I’m trying to limit those activities and then engage in something different. My biggest hobby since 2019 is my return to watching Formula 1. I follow every training, qualification and race if I have time for it. I listen to F1 podcasts, read articles and so on. I also play darts and cycle, but I do it mainly with my friends, so it’s not as often as watching F1. The last thing can sound strange because I am not a traveller or a cook, but I really enjoy sightseeing with food experience. I love to travel and taste something delicious!