Million ways you can grow with us at Qubiz (ep.3)

One of the best things in the past decade was to see our team grow, both in number and in expertise. No matter when they joined us, it’s exciting to see their careers evolve together with the company. Today, we present you another inspiring career story, as part of our ongoing mini-series on Qubiz team members’ professional journeys (click here for previous episodes).

Stefan – great things come to those who persevere

Stefan’s story is one of the best examples of how to make the best of the opportunities you come across. He joined our testing internship in 2014 and quickly proved that he would be a nice addition to our QA team. The next year he was one of the mentors 0f the new interns. And he didn’t stop there:

How did you rise from a junior to a team lead role?

In a boring way – I did my best every day.

By my best, I don’t just mean taking care of my tasks. I was (and still am) proactively learning new things and looking for new ways to contribute to the project.

So my rise was not a meteoric one, but it was steady.

What was the biggest challenge posed by this role?

Working out a structure, a procedure that fits my way of working. I had to remain productive while learning how to be effective in my new role. The project didn’t stop so that I could get familiar with my new tasks, I had to learn on the go.

Who were your go-to colleagues during the transition?

I felt that the whole team was supporting me like they were rooting for my success. I’d like to give a shout-out to Cristi, Simona, and Simina. Cristi was my QA guide, I learned so much from him. I couldn’t have done it without him. Simona was the one I took over from the team leadership responsibilities, as she was preparing for maternity leave. She was very open and helpful. Simina, our delivery manager is one of my leadership mentors. She taught me the ins and outs of the role.

In the project, you have both a hands-on and leadership role. How do you balance the two?

Balance is a very elusive thing. It requires continuous attention and dedication. In my case, I defined a structure for my workweek, and I do my best to stick to it. We also agreed with the team the day-to-day areas where I will continue to be involved. This helps me to stay connected to the project.

You are also involved in other initiatives…

Yes, I’m a proud member of the team that organizes the Qubiz Testing Challenge – our annual company-wide testing competition. My other passion is biking, and I’m glad that we started the Qubiz Bike Ride competition in 2017. BTW, we just announced this year’s date: 12th of October.

How does the future look for you?

I’d like to help the team become more autonomous so that unforeseen changes would not affect it. This is quite the challenge since more than 30 people are working on this project. In the meantime, I’m working on my soft skills. I want to be more and more natural in communication and in recognizing my team’s needs.