Employee Spotlight: Joshua Clark
June 05, 2024
Meet Joshua - One of our backend software engineers, who has a passion for learning, anime, and spending time with his daughters
Hometown: St. Louis, MO
What is your role at Perenso and what does it entail: I am a backend software engineer and it's my responsibility to write code that maintains and shuffles around the data that powers our websites and apps.
How long have you been at Perenso: Nearly two years (Anniversary in July)
What is your favorite thing about working at Perenso: I really like the people I work with! We're all very committed to delivering the best version of the product to our clients, and we're constantly striving to improve and reimagine our work. We're a very capable team and it makes for a fun and challenging work environment.
How did you end up at Perenso: I found an interesting job opening online that looked a little bit out of my league, but, nevertheless, I put in a bit of extra effort and wrote a cover letter to try and stand out among many candidates. I actually missed the email inviting me for an interview, but when I reached out a few days later, I hadn't yet missed my chance. Still to this day, I consider myself quite lucky to have landed here!
The most exciting thing you’re working on: I'm always working on exciting projects, and it often changes week-to-week. For example, I'm working on a number of exciting features for our Event Explorer mobile app that will allow Vendors to collect information about the products their potential customers are interested in, and also an overhaul of our Agenda page, that will help attendees find seminars and other events taking place at the show. However, for me, the most exciting project is an ongoing effort to automate testing and improve the time it takes to deploy changes to our development website. This effort will help make my job a lot easier and give me a lot of confidence that changes for one feature won't break another feature.
Are you a bookworm or a binge-watcher? What is your favorite tv show or book? I'm very much a binge-watcher of anime. I watched over a thousand episodes of One Piece in just a few months, and I watched several hundred episodes of Naruto in around the same time. I would have to say that the sequel to Naruto, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is my favorite.
What is your favorite way to spend a weekend? My favorite weekends are the ones where we don't have any plans and can relax at the house. I often do things like watch YouTube videos and try to challenge myself to learn new skills. Currently, my obsession has been with learning how to play chess at a high level. I've recently discovered a rich depth to chess that has revitalized my interest in it. I'm also working with my daughter to teach her the basics and it's a fun thing for us to do together that we both enjoy!
Name an item on your bucket list. I'm excited for the day I get a chance to visit Japan! I want to ride on the bullet train and practice the small amount of Japanese I've been able to learn.
Which season is your favorite and why? In the past, I would have said the Summer, but I've become quite fond of Spring as we plant flowers and trees around my house. I enjoy sitting outside in the mild weather before the mosquitos have a chance to come out. I also love a relaxing rainy day inside!
What are you most looking forward to this year? My daughter's first day of kindergarten! Her new school will be within walking distance of our house and I'm also planning on taking her on my bike some days.
Interested in the mobile event app feature updates that Joshua is working on?