Every month, we like to shine the spotlight on our team members who make the biggest difference for our subscribers. This month, we interviewed Ashley Barclay, one of our Senior Developers! Learn more about Ashley, a vital, hard-working part of team Liftoff, in this Q&A-style interview!
Liftoff: What’s your “origin story?”
Ashley: I’m from a small town in Alabama, so I can say it’s 100% natural curiosity that got me into tech. I started out just playing video games and editing markup in middle school for fun. Naturally, I jumped into everything computer-related I could, including all available computer classes, and I was even regularly pulled from classes to set up my high school’s computers.
A software development-specific college was the only choice for me! So, I took off to Utah to attend Neumont University in Salt Lake City and graduated with my bachelor's at age 20.
My first job was in a “work-them-to-death” type environment at a medical company in North Carolina. I left as soon as my contract was up, despite them making me a really good offer to stay. Money can’t buy your sanity! Haha!
I next got a gig at a printing company in my home state, which is where I originally met Michael and Andrew! The company was okay, but it’s the people that were awesome. We kept in touch after I left to join a gaming company. I was in the gaming space for years and enjoyed my time there. When Andrew reached out about his new company and what an awesome product they were building, I was super excited to hear all about it! They brought me on board in 2015 and, as they say, the rest is history!
Liftoff: Tell me about what you do!
Ashley: I spend half of my time working on the Liftoff platform and the other half on a legacy client they have from pre-Liftoff days. I enjoy the amazing teamwork at Liftoff and getting to implement new features that the clients need and are excited about! The requests are also thoughtfully defined, and everything is set up so efficiently that there isn’t any wasted time or frustration! What more can you ask for, really?
Liftoff: Let’s talk features. What’s your favorite feature of the platform and why?
Ashley: I think my favorite feature of Liftoff is webhooks! This is because they allow for easy, seamless integration with other apps.
Liftoff: What do you like to do in your free time? What makes you happy?
Ashley: I love hanging out on video games (PC) and cooking in my spare time. I also have a couple of tiny cute rental houses that I work on during the weekends with my dad. I live on a walking trail, so I enjoy jogging with an audiobook to relax in the afternoons and on weekends as well!
Liftoff: Do you have any parting thoughts you want to share with the audience?
Ashley: I’ve never experienced being involved with such an understanding, polite, and professional group as the Liftoff team. The compassion that management has for the team’s happiness and well-being is rare and truly heartwarming! They really give you a sense of absolute teamwork, as you are never alone on anything if you need help. I think this has really played a key part in creating such a great platform and community!
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