A day in life of... Software Engineer

Ivan Varga, Software engineer

Hi Ivan, first introduce yourself and tell us what you do at Base?

The position is officially called "Software Engineer". In practice, this means that in addition to programming on a daily basis, I take care of the technical feasibility of projects in terms of system architecture and the architecture of software modules themselves. I also work on maintaining the quality of source code, design of software development processes, installation and upgrade processes in production. Of course, I'm not the only one, we have quite a number of projects, so I share these responsibilities with a few other colleagues.

What qualities are necessary for business success in IT?

In addition to mastering a specific technology, it is necessary to have the ability to solve problems, possess analytical thinking, and the ability to work independently. I would add that an IT company is not only made up of IT people, so there is a need for top people from other fields as well.

What are the biggest advantages of working at Base?

Everyone who works here is treated as a human being and you work with top teammates in every aspect, but every other company swears by that, so I would actually point out that Base is one of the few companies in Croatia that has a reputation of working on multi-year development of Blockchain-related products.

How would your colleagues describe you?

They've been calling me "dad" lately. I hope it's something positive.

Considering your many years of experience, we can say that you are already a "veteran" of the IT scene. How much has Osijek's IT sector changed in the last 10 years?

First, I would not put myself in the category of veterans, Osijek has enthusiasts and professionals who have been dealing with computers since the 90s and even earlier. Some of them today run successful IT companies, i.e. have successful careers. If we look at what has really changed since 2012, I think the only thing that has changed is the number of companies, i.e. employees. Osijek already had everything else, from talent and knowledge, companies that do business with the whole world and follow the latest trends, to healthy business cockiness. Today there is more of everything. The numbers show that the IT sector is becoming one of the core industries in the city.

Which trends in technology do you like and which ones are you not so keen on?

Trends, i.e. upcoming technologies, bring innovation. Our job is to track them and use them at the right time in the right place. One trend in software application development that I like and that has been successful for years that is reducing the number of lines of code while allowing more creativity. The second is software infrastructure provisioning automation. For negative trends, I'd say they just don't have a big enough impact to stick around long enough to do much damage. The fact that the IT industry is growing year after year shows that the major players are managing to find a way forward.

What is your backup occupation, what would you be doing if you weren't a developer?

I would do something related to music, sports or in the sector that helps people. Those have always been my interests.

Do you have any advice for students entering the job market?

I don’t think they need any advice. Today, students are connected and very well informed. They have a clear understanding of what is needed to succeed, from insisting on practice to the fact that they are quite aware of companies in which they want to build their career and that company choice will actually give them an answer to the question of which technology is worth tackling.

What are your hobbies?

I recently started hiking. Physical activity and getting away from screens and people are obvious benefits, but hiking is also the only way to experience the incredible scenes that nature provides and to put things into perspective. Trust me, you can't experience that through the posts you see on Facebook and Instagram.

We know you're a big gourmand, inspire us with one cool recipe for the end

I like fine cuisine, that's true. I would recommend something that we recently tried at home, the amazing Gennaro's classic spaghetti carbonara . So easy to cook, with simple ingredients, and the flavor couldn't be more layered and rich. Enjoy! :)