Meet Cezar:
A Development Lead’s story helping colleagues shape their own paths
As a realistic dreamer who thirsts for knowledge, Cezar has been at Endava for six years and is now a Development Lead, as well as a career coach and mentor. Find out how he helps people become the best versions of themselves through self-discovery.
How did you come to join Endava? Tell us about your career journey so far.
My roller-coaster journey started roughly 12 years ago as a Junior Developer and continues today as a Development Lead. I’ve had the opportunity to work on various projects, ranging from simple to complex, involving one person to 30 or more people, from ‘legacy’ to ‘greenfield’.
One of the most challenging projects spanned over a year and a half. It meant turning a proof of concept into a production-ready application, offering both complexity and a lot of freedom, all within tight deadlines. Each milestone meant an additional budget and higher confidence towards the finished product. Apart from the technical challenge, maybe a far more critical factor was the human factor, as it required synchronisation between teams across a 9-hour time difference.
The one-weekend proof of concept finally received the total vote of confidence from the investors. It contributed to a finished product that now improves energy consumption and ensures cost efficiency with the potential of impacting millions of people. This was a valuable lesson for me, as things may seem impossible at first glance, but thinking everything through and taking small steps often helps to overcome significant challenges.
Along the way, I came across a lot of opportunities to learn from those around me, as well as to pass on part of my knowledge to others. Endava offered me the perfect environment to build my confidence and speak up. Whether in internal sessions or even presenting at conferences such as Codecamp, I dare to say that I no longer suffer from stage fright as much as I did years back.
As a technical and final interviewer, I've developed my communication skills because, over time, I've interacted with people with diverse professional and personal backgrounds.
As a compensation reviewer, I had to manage people's expectations by their performance and ensure the proper feedback reached them in time and was factored into their future interpretation and expectations.
As a Delivery Manager, I got the opportunity to interact more directly with customers and ensure delivery across multiple projects, each with its own challenges regarding time, budget or team shape. Additionally, it helped me see beyond the everyday tasks, looking into further opportunities to engage with the client.
What is your professional driving force and motivation?
The main driver for me is definitely the thirst for knowledge. From a technical perspective, this means experimenting with various technologies and ideas within the projects where I work, not settling for ‘safety’ but analysing the pros and cons for the best outcome.
Also, being part of multiple layers within Endava, I connect with people across all these layers. My role as a career coach contributes to my joy of working because I can accompany others on their paths as they unfold, helping them become better professionals and team members through self-discovery.
My role as a career coach contributes to my joy of working because I can accompany others on their paths as they unfold, helping them become better professionals and team members through self-discovery.
How would you describe the culture at Endava?
The Endava culture is like a living organism, continuously adapting and evolving without losing its core values.
What advice would you give to a someone joining Endava?
Think of something that you want, aim high, but take baby steps, then be the best that you can be every day, and inevitably, you will get what you want from any situation.