Andreas Benz is the latest member to join our dynamic IT team. Andreas is originally from Switzerland but he fits right into the Kiwi way of life.

Andreas has diverse skills and is working across the business in improving our internal processes as well as our product delivery – which is good for our clients.

Studied at: Zurich University of Applied Sciences (https://www.zhaw.ch/en/university/)
Resides in: Wellington

Jacqui: Can you describe a typical day at work?

Andreas: My role is within the Infometrics IT Team. We have a daily 15min stand-up meeting at which we coordinate work in our team and hold ourselves accountable for the goal that we have mutually set for our 2-weeks sprint. I prefer to code in the morning and do less code-heavy work in the afternoon such as designing new features, eliciting requirements, testing recent implementations, learning about emerging technologies and so on.

Jacqui: What is the nature of your work at Infometrics and how do clients benefit from what you do?

Andreas: I help the IT development team to build a great product. For me the Infometrics slogan “economics put simply” means providing data-visualisations that are easy to understand, with an intuitive and flawless user experience and adhering to accessibility standards so that our products do not exclude users with disabilities.

Jacqui: What are you currently working on?

Andreas: To our surprise around 25% of our users access the product through mobile devices so I have just reviewed all our pages to make sure they are responsive and can be used on small screens.

Jacqui: What has been your most rewarding work experience?

Andreas: It’s the small dopamine shots I get when I could solve a problem and the solution works just as it is supposed to, provides value that can be seen in the world, and I found a way not only to make it work but also to solve it in an elegant way.

Jacqui: What has been your most challenging work experience?

Andreas: Everything I do is challenging and that’s why it’s so rewarding. There is no limit to learning. I have just joined the team so familiarizing myself with the codebase makes me feel like an explorer of a new continent.

Jacqui: What is your background and how has this influenced your work at Infometrics?

Andreas: A common career pathway is to start with engineering and transition into management. My way is the opposite. I started in project-, process- and product-management positions and decided to shift into tech as I enjoy being creative and to have a tangible result at the end of each day. Of course, I am glad to bring in my expertise in business administration to shape the work we are all doing beyond the code I write.

Jacqui: What advice would you give a younger version of yourself?

Andreas: To have a growth mindset. There is this saying of “whether you think you can or you can’t – you are right!” Don’t think about what’s limiting you. Think about what you can achieve if you are willing to put in deliberate practice. Don’t let others determine what’s right for you. Find out what matters to you.

Jacqui: What are your other major interests?

Andreas: I love the view from the top aka mountaineering, rock-climbing, essentially everything that leads to a nice outlook.

Other than that, I used to conduct choirs and orchestras and still enjoy singing in a 150 person symphony choir at this time.

Jacqui: What is an intriguing fact about you?

Andreas: There was a week in my life when on Sunday my house got flooded, on Thursday it burned down and on Friday someone stole my car number plate while I was shopping for some basic essentials. These incidents led to my decision to travel the world and build a new life here in New Zealand, on the other side of the planet, where I found my partner.

Jacqui: Thank you Andreas. I think the account of week in your life that led you to NZ must be one of the most dramatic I’ve ever read! We wish you a far more peaceful life in Wellington and look forward to following your career at Infometrics.