Lyubo

My background

Prior to joining ZigiWave, I was working for a company called Tek Experts, as a support engineer. I was working with one of the most complicated HP softwares, which is now OpsBridge. My job had a lot to do not only with the software, but with the underlying infrastructure that comes with it. This was a good place for me to enter the IT world and learn the fundamentals for software products. This is when my real interest in IT developed. I became a mentor for the new members of my team and started to lead  trainings. There was so much to learn, and I discovered that learning in IT never ends.

Shortly after that I realized this job was not enough for me anymore, as I wanted new challenges. A guy I met in Tek Experts introduced me to Do It Wise, which is the mother company of ZigiWave. I moved there and started working on ZigiOps which was back then called Integration Hub.

When I started, our product was just starting, too, and the first thing I did was QA. Together with that I got involved in the pre-sales process  I helped clients do their POCs and all types of configurations they needed for a given integration. I worked with them finding the logical flow of the integrations, preparing their mappings and scenarios, overcoming logical issues and, of course, as a result, achieving what they specifically wanted.

Then I overtook the whole support of the software. I started working on new integrations, too. One of the first integrations I had the opportunity to research and design is OBM & ServiceNow CLIP with support for HA. It is still one of the most interesting and popular integrations we have today.

Now is my 7th year in ZigiWave and I can say I have really been through everything. From troubleshooting support cases, leading POCs and implementations, to extensive QA for finding hidden bugs to taking decisions for the design of integrations, UI and UX and all the technical stuff you can imagine.

My role at ZigiWave

As an R&D Manager, I am now mostly focused on our team and our ability to deliver. My goals are to help everyone find the stable ground, when in need, showing empathy and referring to our good practices, weve established through the years. I challenge the team to expand their skills and improve our practices. I also make sure everyone is aligned with and shares our common goals and values. We respond to our customer needs, by delivering in the most flexible way we can. It is very important for me to see that each team member is motivated and satisfied with their work.

Sprints were created and we started working in a SCRUM manner, so I am also effectively acting as a SCRUM master.

I maintain our backlog and make sure we stick to the plan we created. I discuss all the challenges with the team and help them focus on the things that will make the Software Development Life-Cycle smoother.

Currently, I am also sharing the Product Owner position with our CTO, being a focal point for product related questions.

The Zigi team

We strive to be as open as possible in discussions, solving problems together, we communicate a lot and help each other a lot. Together, we explore the different angles of the integrations, go in depth to foresee challenges that might come out in the process, and take decisions that will help us avoid problems.

From a technical perspective, weve established a smooth flow for onboarding a new integration to our platform. That is mainly performed by our Integration Engineers and the Development team.Our Integration Consultants stand on the front line to assist with every customer request, be it a software support call, a customization, or consulting on expansion of their integration solution.The quality of our product is an essential part of our journey, so everyone in the team contributes to QA.

Last but not least, we are constantly working on improving the user experience with our Designer.That builds a tightly coupled team with a common purpose  building a better product in a lean and mean way!

My advice to someone just starting at Zigi

My advice would be  just be open to new challenges and learning. At ZigiWave you will learn much more than in most other IT jobs, as here you will have the chance to see and touch a lot of different systems, softwares and all the things that build up the enterprise environment. This allows us to have unique various knowledge about the industry.

Most of the people who work at ZigiWave, when they hang out with other IT friends and start talking about what technologies and softwares they work with  other people would say Wow, all these things! and they have just started, mentioning only a little part of it all.

I am welcoming our new team members with an open heart and inviting them to become part of our Zigi family. Here everyone will feel the vibes of a constantly moving and growing organization in a friendly environment. The field we operate in covers a huge part of the IT ecosystem and we continuously expand it which provides us constant new challenges. We are definitely an organization which is responding to change, so help us help the world be more productive!

How I deal with difficulties at work

When there is a problem or a question, I just need to start working on it. I don't worry about hardship. We have a lot of information nowadays, and we can start with it. I start with what I have, and advance step by step, until the problem is solved. There is nothing unsolvable.

... And in my life, in general

My approach is pretty much similar at work and in life in general. I try to be as informed as possible, get all the available information, and then make an informed decision. I always make time to learn about the question in some way. It could be alone through internet sources, or through asking friends, or even consulting with a specialist.

How do you celebrate success?

I do not celebrate that much. I am happy for the little things in life. I dont need to make a big deal of something I achieved.

My favorite activities

Spending time outside with my family  going for a walk in nature, or in the park. Also reading a good book, or watching a nice movie, which I dont have time for, since my son was born.

Recharging and de-stressing

Things have changed through the years. Two years ago, one of the most important things in my life happened  my son was born. My world outside of work is now related to him. Since then I don't have much time for hobbies or other activities for rest. Most of my free time I spend with my family, taking care of and playing with my son. So I kinda got used to stress and am just living with it.

My sources of inspiration

Different things, depending on the subject.

For example, these days I am quite interested in the topic of relations between people, and especially when children are involved. When my child was born, I started reading a lot about childrens behavior and how to properly communicate with a kid. I am always impressed when I see a parent communicating with a child in a very effective way, or when a kid is helping another kid and reacting very maturely to a problem  this inspires me and makes me think.

Books and movies I like

Sometimes when I get up earlier in the morning, while the little one is still asleep, or on weekend afternoons, I enjoy reading a book. I am mostly reading self-development and career-development books, and also books for children psychology and how you can properly communicate with children. Right now, Im quite interested in relations and interaction between people and especially when you have a child to communicate with.

As for movies, my favorite ones are the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. They help me relax and I used to love watching movies a lot. However, for the last 2 years, since I have a child, I don't have time for the cinema.

Favorite place in the world

I can't pick just one, but I love being in nature.

A day in my life

If I wake up earlier, I might read a little bit before my son wakes up. Then, when he wakes up  we do his morning routine, have breakfast and then I take him to the nursery school. Then I get back home, and the first thing I do is make coffee.

After that my workday starts. First, I check all emails and messages. Usually there are some questions in my inbox from the team, so I respond to them with priority. I review the most important things for the day, like status updates and things where my help is needed for making decisions. I help the team with these things.

Most of the time I am on calls and in meetings  with colleagues and with clients. There are days when I just go from meeting to meeting and I am constantly with my headsets on.

I have lunch and sometimes I might go to the nearby park for a short walk during lunchtime, just to move a little bit.

When I finish work, the first thing I do is call my wife to see where she is with the child, and I go to them. We spend some time outside and then go home to have dinner. Then we put the kid to sleep, and sometimes I fall asleep before him.

After he is asleep, I enjoy some quiet time with my wife. I like to read a bit if there's time before I go to bed.

The things Im looking forward to

At work

• All kinds of challenges which will help me become more and more qualified for my job.
• Spreading the passion for continuous improvement with an agile mindset.

And outside of work

Weekends. Weekends are the time when I spend the whole day with my family, and I love that. We usually spend the weekends outside, going in nature or in the park, or the zoo.

We play together, and in the afternoons I can drink my coffee, reading a book, while the kid is asleep.