Meet Joakim, Full stack developer and head of marketing

Who are you and what do you do at Calkin?

My name is Joakim and I work as a full stack developer. I also look after our marketing.

What does a normal working day look like?

I work remotely, so I usually get started once I am back home after dropping the kids off at after-school club. Then we have a daily sync with the tech team where we talk through what is happening and whether anything new has come up.

Since we are a startup it ends up being quite varied. It can be anything from building new features and fixing bugs to interviewing users about what they think of Calkin, or suddenly sitting with something on the marketing side. I am a problem solver at heart and I like jumping in wherever I am needed. So startup life suits me very well.

Calkins tech team

On working in a small team

What is it like working in such a small team?

It is great. We have a really good bunch of people, and in a team this small you genuinely feel heard. It is easy to raise ideas, discuss what we should be betting on, and to say when you think something is not worth spending time on.

You also work with a friend you knew beforehand. How is that?

That's right. Bilbo and I have known each other a long time and we have worked together before as well. It is honestly great fun to be doing it again. You spend a lot of time at work either way, so getting to do it alongside a close friend makes the everyday a lot more enjoyable.

Joakim and Bilbo at an after-work gathering at Brunells Konstsmide.

What sets Calkin apart from other startups or workplaces you have been at?

Ideas have always been encouraged at the places I have worked, but at Calkin it can move very quickly from an idea to actually starting to build it. It is a really good feeling to see something you came up with yourself being used by real customers shortly afterwards.

Is there anything that is more challenging about working at a small company?

As I said, I like that the role is flexible and that you get to jump into all sorts of things. At the same time it means you sometimes end up outside what you are used to. I am very comfortable in development, but when you suddenly find yourself doing something completely different it can feel a bit like being out on thin ice. It is a little daunting at times, but it is also a big part of what makes the job fun.

On building inside Excel

What is harder about building a tool that lives directly inside Excel than people might think?

Because we live inside Excel, we talk directly to Excel's COM APIs. Those calls are not free in performance terms, and if you do not handle them properly you can quickly make a large workbook noticeably slower.

Is there something you have built that you are particularly proud of?

I am a bit extra proud of Explain Formula. I think it makes it so much easier to actually understand how a formula works, especially when you are sitting with something long and messy that is otherwise hard to get a grip on.

What has surprised you most about how people actually work in Excel?

How many errors people have in their important files. I used to assume that files used for decisions were always in top shape, but I have come to understand that there are enormous files out there with a surprising number of errors and plugs.

Looking ahead

What are you looking forward to most in the job?

I am looking forward to growing as a company. Bringing in a few more colleagues, and more customers to work with.