"I have learned a lot of technical and soft skills but the most impactful was something I call business empathy. It is a skill of putting myself in the shoes of my client or colleague to better understand their needs."
Tell us a little about your career journey – what was life before Resident?
I got a Masters in Applied Mathematics while pursuing an alternative career as bartender and PADi diver. After 2 years of being a cogwheel in a corporate machine I left Poland to support my wife’s career opportunity. Instantly I fell in love with the Garden of England and started a job as a payroll specialist which I pursued for 4 years until I landed the position of Payments Manager. I felt I had learned all that I wanted in that business, so I embarked on a new chapter of my life: Resident.
And then Resident came along, tell us a bit about your time with the company?
It has flown by and been the happiest 6 years of my professional career to date. I have met lovely people who have now become my friends. There were a lot of challenges but with such a brilliant support group, none was overwhelming. Now I feel not only a part of this software but also a family member.
So, now we know a bit more about you - tell us, what exactly does a Product Owner do?
In short: whatever is needed 🙂 To elaborate, my main responsibility is to be a modern day translator, converting feedback from business to dev team. After that is done there is ‘only’ keeping eye on delivery, tests and more feedback.
During your career what have been the most valuable lessons you’ve learned along the way?
I have learned a lot of technical and soft skills but the most impactful was something I call business empathy. It is a skill of putting myself in the shoes of my client or colleague to better understand their needs. It allows you to work more efficiently and understand even the most difficult emotions.
You must have seen many changes in your time at Resident – which stands out the most to you and why?
There were so many of them and some of the most impactful things were done behind the scenes. I will just give two examples. The most impactful (and causing the majority of sleepless nights) was integration with bank feeds. My personal favourite is Mail Merge which I created from scratch.
What excites you the most about Resident’s future?
It would be a small confidentiality breach to give too many details but let’s say I am a big fan of all restoration shows.
The ways in which people learn, purchase, research and interact have hugely changed since the pandemic. Do you think Clients’ wants and needs from a software perspective have had to shift because of this too?
It feels like we were one step ahead of those strange times so this major shift to remote work made clear the importance of solutions we are offering for transparency in property management businesses.
You told us earlier what a Product Owner does, but what one thing would surprise people to know is a big part of your working life?
I am not sure there is such a thing as my job is really making sure the job is getting done correctly. Right on time every time.
Oh maybe meme exchanges before our daily calls. Although I am quite sure that is not in my job description…
So, penultimate question now - what is it like to work at Resident? Give us the scoop…
Just expect the unexpected. Keep calm and eat elephants, The best way to do it is bit by bit. Oh, you need to remember nothing is personal.
For anyone who might be considering a future as a Product Owner, what advice would you give?
Be open minded to new skills and knowledge. Although curiosity killed the cat you will surely fail in the job without it.
