A Day in the Life of a UDig Senior Software Consultant

Ever wondered what a day in the life of one of our consultants was actually like? Not what you see on our website or anything like that, but a REAL account of what they’re up to. This series will give you all the details! 

Our first “Day in the Life” subject is Andrew Ross, a senior software development consultant located in our Innovation Studio just down the road. Here’s what a typical day for him (actually his last Tuesday) is like.  

Morning 

Most days I get to the office around 9AM (or a little after). I bring my coffee from home because I like to let it cool during my drive. Once I get into the office I’ll oftentimes turn on a live twitch stream. I need to have something playing in the background or I can’t focus so it’s either that or music. I like a little bit of all music but i’m really down with Bluegrass right now because it’s high energy enough but doesn’t fully grab my attention where I can’t concentrate on my work.  

In the morning, we usually have a stand up with our project team members where we talk through any issues we may have been up against. Our project is a convention management system for a large organization that holds a bi-annual convention at which members meet and vote to determine organizational goals and procedures. Today I spoke with AJ and Dave about some data issues we’ve been having and the beginning stages of wrapping up phase one of our project. We also discussed the deliverable we have coming up in a few weeks and made sure everything was on track.  

After the stand up, I like to really get down to business and get in the weeds coding until lunch.  

Everyone is always playing basketball right behind my desk so it’s easy for me to get distracted and join in. A little pickup basketball never hurt anyone…or any project! Right? 

Lunch Time

Normally I like to go out to lunch and I like to make sure it’s someplace fun. On this particular day I went to lunch with one of our interns to chicken fiesta. When I don’t go out to lunch with someone in the office I’ll pick something up and watch 30 minutes of a show I’m into while I eat. Lately I’ve been watching a lot of Game of Thrones (obviously) and Preacher.  

Afternoon 

When I get back, I go right back into coding, do not disturb mode. If I’m not completely zoned in I have a few go-tos for procrastination to sprinkle into my work time. Reddit is my first go to, then Youtube, and then Twitch. I’m also an avid fidget spinner user, it’s kinda my thing around the office, and by “my thing” I mean everyone comes and steals them off my desk. I always have some kind of fidget or toy when I’m talking through a problem and usually through meetings as well. I have 6 or 7 various kinds of fidgets scattered around my house and my desk at any given time. My obsession with them has gotten so ridiculous that my wife said I’m not allowed to buy any more (they kept finding their way into our washing machine). This afternoon, I did a quick code review with Andrew Duncan who helped me break through a couple of challenges I was facing. 

After Hours

At the end of the workday I wrap a few things up and then head to the gym #fitness! Likely I’ll meet up with someone I work with on the weekends too. Coming from a huge company before working at UDig, the atmosphere and my work environment has totally changed. Everyone is a lot more relaxed here and closer. All of my colleagues are more willing to go out and do stuff with each other which is a really nice change of pace. That’s my day in the life!