What led you to software development?
Like a lot of people my age, I had the dream of creating video games, so I chose the Computer Science path. In addition to that, I knew that programmers were in high demand, and finding work wouldn’t be that difficult. I had an internship my senior year of school developing test automation scripts and noticed that I was pretty good at it, and I enjoyed it.
What is your favorite thing about being in software development?
I get to create and be creative for my job. Exercising the will to create something that didn’t exist before, refining it, making it better, and contributing to a larger project is what I want to be doing.
What is one thing that would surprise people about software development?
Probably that we aren’t sitting in front of a bunch of 1’s and 0’s all day and that we all have to look up information to help us finish whatever project we are working on.
What kinds of things do you think we should be doing to encourage more people to pursue a career in software development?
We certainly need more women in software development. I’m not exactly sure how to do that, but I would say that I know a lot of people that don’t write software think it’s magic and are very intimidated by the idea of being a programmer. It would help to kill any stigma out there that it’s just for men and to kill the idea that it’s only for the smartest students.
What brought you to CIBO?
I have some connections here from previous employment engagements. That was the initiation connection. Then I learned that I could be part of a project that brings more light to the effects our farming strategies have on our environment. I’ve always been very interested in being a positive change for the environment, and working at a company trying to do so was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.
What are your primary responsibilities at CIBO?
Building structures in our software development process that prevent bugs from leaking to our customers. If/when bugs do make it to production, strategizing so that the bug never shows up again. Primarily test automation development related work that we leverage to simulate how our users will interact with our software.
What do you find the most rewarding about your work here?
Being part of a company that is actively working to reduce the amount of CO2e that is being put into the air.
About Tim Mader-Brown
Tim Mader-Brown is the SDET Manager at CIBO, a science-driven software startup. Prior to CIBO, he worked at Field Nation, RedBrick Health, and MakeMusic. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Philosophy from Bethel University.