Getting to know…Alina Melnyk

09/02/2022

We’ve recently onboarded quite a few new starters onto our Development Team, Alina has joined as a Senior Frontend Developer, so we caught up with her to get to know her a little better.

Hi Alina, how are you settling into Ampersand?

Hi! It’s going quite well, I’m getting to know the team and how everything works here! The atmosphere is very friendly and welcoming. 

What were your first impressions of Ampersand?

I noticed how passionate people are in their roles. It’s not just their job, they truly enjoy what they do each day. This made me want to be part of such a great team! 

What was your path into the development world?

It started at university where I studied Computer Science. Once I learnt about frontend, I realised it was something I wanted to do for a living.

Are you an ecommerce “pro” or an ecommerce “newbie”?

Somewhere in-between. I have worked on a few ecommerce projects in the past but I’m very excited to learn more about it from the Ampersand team as they have developed their own approach.

Is there anything exciting coming up in the frontend world? 

Of course, frontend changes every single day and that’s the beauty of it. The web development trends 2022 directly depend on the needs of users and their preferences. There’s rapid growth expected around the use of artificial intelligence tools, such as voice navigation and control, elements of 3D and augmented reality. These tools can significantly improve the online shopping process. For example – to provide an opportunity to conduct online fitting of shoes or clothes. 

What’s your favourite part of your job so far?

My absolute favorite thing about my job is an opportunity for creative work. Every day, I face new challenges which require using non-standard solutions and continue to learn new ways of solving problems.

How is life treating you post lockdown?

Everything’s slowly going back to normal, but it seems like the lockdown has such a big impact on our habits that life will never be the same. It was hard at the beginning, however I discovered I can work from every place, not just the office as remote work also has plenty of advantages.

As Ampersand is now a hybrid working model, what does this look like for you? 

This working model is great, I can choose if I want to work from home or visit the office. I like coming to the office a few times a week where I can meet my colleagues and enjoy office life.

Alina’s commute to the office.

Will you be attending any of the Ampersand socials?

Of course, I’ll definitely use this chance to meet my colleagues in person! As most people in Ampersand are still working remotely I have only met some of them in person, so I’m looking forward to meeting the rest.

What perk do you enjoy the most at Ampersand?

I love how Ampersand encourages their employees to be active members of the company by constantly organising competitions, events, games etc. This is something we definitely need as it helps to unite the team no matter how far away we are from each other.

If you want to join Alina as a new starter, check out all of our software engineer roles here.