Growing with DOCOsoft

I graduated from Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin) in 2018 with a degree in Computer Science. That same year, DOCOsoft was recruiting at a careers fair, and I applied for a software development role. I didn’t get that position, but a DOCOsoft developer reached out a week later, offering me a technical support role reporting to our CTO Garbhan Murphy. And that’s where my journey with DOCOsoft really began.

After a year or so working in Dublin, I had the chance to move to London, which seemed like a great opportunity. DOCOsoft offered me a week-long trial to see whether I liked it. During that time, I got to stay in the London apartment of our CEO Aidan O’Neill, just over the Thames from our offices in the City. I commuted back and forth across the river on the Thames Clipper every day, and made myself useful by watering the plants. It was a great experience. Having got a taste of working in the City, I decided to make the move official.

In Dublin, my work had been mostly remote, interacting with clients via calls. But in London, I got to meet the clients face-to-face. That allowed me to start building closer personal relationships and see the broader scope of our user base. It was definitely quite an eye-opener to understand the scale of the clients we were serving: global (re)insurance businesses handling businesses worth billions day-to-day.

Ironically, my office-based experience in London was rudely interrupted by the Covid lockdowns just a few weeks after it began. Covid changed the way we all work for the longterm, but happily it wasn’t too long before I was spending at least some of my time back behind a desk in DOCOsoft’s London offices.

After some time in support, I felt ready for a new challenge. I ended up working closely with our Head of Development Anthony Freeman, essentially as his personal developer, creating apps to boost productivity internally and supporting our developers in London. That experience set the stage for my transition into DevOps. In reality, I’d been bridging the gap between the development and operations teams for some time before the formal recognition that I was in DevOps. Eventually, I transitioned fully into that role, leaving the support side of things behind.

As I moved into a more senior DevOps position, the biggest challenge for me was letting go of the hands-on development aspect of my work. I had to shift my focus from producing my own work to guiding the team. Now, my role is about helping others grow, recognising their strengths, assigning tasks that play to those strengths, and giving them ownership. I’ve learned it’s not about micromanaging but providing space for people to learn safely from their mistakes, to grow and gain in confidence.

The fact that they mostly work remotely has meant that me being in the UK hasn’t hindered my ability to connect with the team back in Ireland. I’ve been able to build closer relationships with the London team, which has been great. I’ve also had the opportunity to get involved with the Irish community here in London. There’s even an Irish Gaelic football team, which brings a bit of home to the UK.

Living in London definitely has its upsides. Rent here is cheaper than Dublin, and there’s an abundance of parks, something I really appreciate as I grew up in the countryside on a farm. It’s hard to get anywhere fast by car here, but cycling is also much safer, and my commute now is only about 20 minutes.

The support I’ve had from DOCOsoft has been incredible throughout my career. They assured me that if I didn’t enjoy London, I could always return to Ireland. That gave me a lot of confidence when I made the move at 22. There’s always been room for growth here, and I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve had.

Now, as part of the middle leadership team, I spend a lot of my time helping others develop their careers. It’s been a rewarding journey, and I’m looking forward to what’s next.