The Scalefocus Mobile team is excellent, and they know it. Apart from being the largest mobile development unit in Bulgaria, they are a bunch of professionals who like to stay on top of their game. Technology is all about knowing what’s new and these peeps not only know—they share their insights with fellow professionals through their very own tech reports. Find out what keeps their ambition strong and how they enjoy life once their computers are off.

Introduce us to your team – how many specialists are there and what do you do?

The Scalefocus Mobile team is probably the largest mobile development community within a company in Bulgaria. More than 50 people in 3 countries and 7 locations develop native applications for our customers. Our work is interesting and comes with a certain responsibility because we have clients who rely solely on our mobile expertise without an internal team. This means we provide consultancy in addition to building mobile architectures for users around the world.

What technologies do you use?

Kotlin and Swift are the main languages ​​we use, but we’re not afraid of Java and Objective-C, either. Overall, mobile technologies are mostly defined by Apple and Google. Every year, there are new versions of Android and iOS with many added functionalities. That is also why we constantly learn new things and strive to become a stronger team. Twice a year, we produce iOS and Android reports analyzing the main changes in these platforms. They are especially relevant because programmers write them for other programmers and for business managers.

What projects are you working on?

We have the privilege of working for industry leaders from around the globe. Often the mobile apps we develop reach hundreds of thousands of users worldwide. The main industries we are experts in are FinTech, Healthcare, Boutique Apps, IoT and e-Commerce.

How do you work and how often do you go to the office?

The work model within the Mobile team is quite flexible. We have divisions in Bulgaria, North Macedonia, and Türkiye, but we all function as one wholesome unit. It does take some effort on the part of our technology leaders who are great at bringing people together. They actively organize initiatives in and outside the office. At least once a year, Scalefocus holds a get-together of colleagues from all locations so we can meet up and have real-life fun. The company’s policy is really quite flexible, and teammates can do their job from every corner of their country. It’s up to one’s personal preference when to go to the office and which office that would be.

How does a typical workday look like for people in your team?

The day looks differently for different team members, but it usually includes client meetings discussing the progress of a certain functionality. There are also meetings dedicated to adding new functionalities, and of course a lot of time writing code. Once a week, the whole team gets together to chat about technology trends, a new library that impressed us, or just to enjoy a joke or two. Additionally, Scalefocus has many internal trainings that anyone can sign up for. They are both technical, to help colleagues create more advanced code, and soft skills related, turning us into better communicators.

What other teams and departments do you collaborate with most frequently?

Our team mostly works with backend teams like Java, .NET, PHP, Go, as well as the QE team. We also have projects with our IoT team.

Tell us about something your team is proud of.

We are proud of the dozens of successful mobile projects for international clients. Every year, we give junior developers with little to no experience a chance to get started as iOS or Android professionals. Over the years, we have given a start to people who currently hold senior and management positions within the company. We are proud of our culture of support—someone is always there to help. What makes us a team is that we share both the good and the bad times.

What do you like doing together outside of work?

We love being together and having fun outdoors. Technology managers always have ideas about activities that appeal to everyone. We also have business trips to different locations. Last year, we organized a mobile hackathon where colleagues had to make a working mobile app in the span of a single day.

What brings your team closer together?

What brings us together is our great company culture, as well as our shared values. Everyone is different and this allows us to complement each other’s skillsets and personalities. Also, weekly technology meetings help the team communicate freely outside of formal meetings. The fact that you are part of something bigger, of the largest mobile community in Bulgaria, is very motivating and inspiring.

How do new people fit into your team?

It’s a priority for us that everyone in the team feels heard and accepted. We know that starting somewhere new can be stressful. That is why, in addition to their direct manager, all newcomers have a mentor who takes care of their introduction to the team in these important early stages.

How would you answer the question, “If you are…….…, come join our team”?

If you like programming, learning new technologies, helping others, sharing your experience and most of all—having fun in the process, come join our team!

 

Dragan began his software career at a time when smartphones were just entering the market and touchscreens were an exciting innovation. 13 years later, he is still as passionate about the profession as he was in the beginning. He first started as an Android developer and has now been part of the Scalefocus iOS team for 2 years. It’s important for him to upgrade his skills and, in addition to learning new things on the job, he likes to explore tech topics in his free time.

With two children, aged 7 and 2, Dragan doesn’t have too many spare hours in his day, but when he wants to recharge, he plays rock songs on his new electric guitar. He picked up playing as a hobby when he was a student and has no formal education, but over the years he keeps returning to it.

Dragan’s proudest achievement is the Grand Stevie® Award-winning project SoundVision, a device and a mobile application with an ML object recognition service helping visually impaired individuals. It started as an internal discussion of innovation ideas, and Dragan, together with another member of his team, was part of the project from inception to completion.

As a child, Argetim often went to his parents’ garage where his father’s motorcycles were parked. He admired the beautiful machines and imagined riding them. When he became a teenager, his dream came true. At 15, he was already actively participating in competitions in Bulgaria and Greece.

After multiple accolades and first places, he decided it was time to exceed his own expectations. That’s is how he found out about the Spanish Motorcycle Championship — the most competitive national championship in Europe. With a lot of effort, he found a team to join with. In 2016, he finished eighth among uncompromising competition. Unfortunately, in 2017 he had to retire from his racing career due to insufficient sponsorship. To this day, it’s one of his most significant achievements — Argetim is the first racer from the Balkans to take part in the Spanish Championship.

Although motorcycles are his biggest passion, he does all kinds of other activities in his spare time. He has been playing the guitar and the piano since he was a child, and in the winter, he practices seasonal sports such as skiing and snowboarding. Argetim has been part of the Mobile team at Scalefocus for a year now and his teammates call him the iOS rising star. He has experience with various other technologies like Android, Front-end, backend, JavaScript, Java, C#, Python, AI, as well as with blockchain. He is also interested in electrical engineering, robotics, and IoT.

Zhelyazko is one of the most experienced members of the Scalefocus team and the first Android engineer in the Mobile unit. He joined the company 10 years ago when it was only 9 months old after leaving his technology position in the corporate world. Back then, he accepted a challenge that continues to make him grow every day. He has held various positions within the organization but decided the one suited him the most is Technology Team Lead. He is responsible for a small team and can actively take part in projects and stay ahead of the latest developments in his field.

He believes that Scalefocus is an excellent employer because of its loyalty to people, the investment it makes in their development and the freedom it gives them to try new roles and find the best fit for them. In his work with clients, Zhelyazko proactively offers solutions and functionalities that could solve their business problems most optimally. He acts as a part of their teams and clients often want his involvement in their next projects. Zhelyazko likes to spend his free time with his daughter who will be a first grader next year.

Finally, how would you describe your team?

We’re the Mobile team at Scalefocus, and we’re proud of it. We have traditions, experience, interesting projects, and we can’t wait to show you. 🙂