Name: Paul Cummings
Job Title: Software Engineer (DevOps) at Bazaarvoice Belfast
What does your typical day look like?
Start off right with a cuppa tea then look at some graphs, break things, fix things, and innovate where possible. All this while working as part of a team to build the best products for our clients.
What are you currently working on?
As part of our Catalog team, I’ve just finished working on migrating the first of our services from running on AWS EC2 to our in-house Kubernetes cluster. It was great getting the chance to use tools like Terraform, and getting more familiar with Docker as part of this.
What inspired you to join this company in particular?
The people, the culture, and the fact that they offered me the chance to push myself out of my comfort zone with no previous tech background. (I joined Bazaarvoice after participating in a DevOps Academy that they ran in partnership with Ulster University).
What’s your favourite part about your work?
The people. Getting to work with an incredible team of people to solve lots of interesting problems, sure you couldn’t beat it.
What would you say to other people considering a job in this industry(tech)?
Go for it. In my experience, it’s an industry that helps you to utilise your strengths while providing opportunities to improve your weaknesses. If you want to learn, then not a day will go by without learning something new. There are so many opportunities and plenty of career paths within tech that you’re sure to find something that suits.
How do you see this technology impacting on our lives?
It allows us to make informed decisions on what we purchase so that we can spend our hard-earned money on the right things!
Who inspired you to work in this field?
My wife, Lia, as she gave me the kick I needed to leave a job I wasn’t happy in, to pursue
something new!
What do you consider to be the most important tech innovation or development in recent years?
Probably electric cars. They’re not super recent but are definitely becoming more mainstream, although they still have a long way to go. I think they’ll have a big impact on the environment and I think some of the self-driving stuff is very cool.
What tech gadget could you not live without?
I have a wee audio interface that lets me play my bass through headphones so I don’t disturb the whole house! Some job.
Read more about our Tech Trailbazers on Sync NI here. Find out more about Bazaarvoice Belfast's job opportunities on our Jobs page here.
