"I was searching for an employer who would value me as a person, not just as someone who could produce code."
I am Jeroen Weener, a 27-year-old software engineer passionate about basically anything except traveling. My passion for programming started in the back of the class in fourth grade during my French classes. I was intrigued by the graphical calculator and started to program it. French wasn't my favorite subject, but programming the calculator provided solace for me. I started with simple programs such as tic-tac-toe, then proceeded with graphical 'intense' games such as Memory, and eventually built a program to assist in math, economics, chemistry, and physics.
This program would automatically calculate formula outcomes, draw geometry examples and provide a lookup table for terms. I sold this program to peers for 6 euros during breaks. I devised my own 'anti-piracy' measurements to prevent unpaid redistribution, which actually led to my first real software bug. When providing someone with the program, I entered a code that stored the tangent of a value in memory (the tangent served as some sort of obfuscation of the value). During startup, the code would recalculate the tangent and compare it against the stored value. However, if the user switched the calculator setting between using radians and degrees between receiving the program and running it, the checksum would fail, as the tangent outcome would be different.
My passion for programming grew, and I went on to study Technical Computer Science at the University of Twente in Enschede, followed by a Master's degree in Cybersecurity. During my studies, I also served as a student assistant and taught mathematics in high schools. Between my Bachelor's and Master's, I spent a year as chairman of RoboTeam Twente, coordinating the creation of soccer robots to inspire and educate the next generation in robotics and AI. My journey as a software engineer has been an incredible and challenging experience. The thrill of writing code, debugging, and finding solutions to complex problems drives me to continue to pursue my passion for programming.
Working in Twente is going well. It feels very similar to my hometown Assen in terms of its size. In the east, there's more of a "we" feeling, while in the west, I get the feeling that people are more focused on themselves. Here in Twente, there are many local events and more intimate settings, which I really enjoy.
When it comes to my career as a software engineer, I was searching for an employer who would value me as a person, not just as someone who could produce code. I was searching for a company with its heart in the right place. Baseflow's philosophy aligned perfectly with my own personal values. The company's goal is to provide its employees with a great working environment and to grow not for the sake of growth, but mainly to provide us with new and exciting projects.
To make sure Baseflow's promise was not "too good to be true", I attended one of its Rust Meetups in disguise. By showing up without mentioning that I was applying, I could test the waters and experience the culture without potentially running into recruiter-like conversations. I had a great evening and was awed by the atmosphere the people created together.
My first few months at Baseflow have been great. I am amazed by the level of trust and independence I experience in my days. I feel comfortable joining discussions and meetings and contributing my thoughts. The most important aspects of company culture, in my opinion, are respect, appreciation, and trust. It's important to feel like a person within a company and to be seen as one. The trust to be able to do something and to figure it out on your own is crucial. This is all captured in Baseflow's people-first culture and I am thrilled to be part of it.
