I’m Anita Mander, a Principal Project Manager and I’ve been with Bit Zesty for nearly two years. I’m keen to share a bit more about what it’s like to be a project manager here at Bit Zesty.
A typical day
No two days are ever the same but a day for me might involve:
- A standup meeting with the rest of the project management team to discuss our priorities for the day and how to manage our development resources.
- Monitoring progress and budgets across the various projects that I’m responsible for and driving them forward to completion.
- Catch ups with developers on the status of activities and discussing any blockers/concerns, performing QA/testing and keeping clients updated on our progress.
- Dealing with incoming requests from clients. These might be support requests for bug fixes, new features or projects that need to be scoped, documented as user stories and estimated.
- Other meetings, which might include internal briefing sessions or calls with clients to discuss a project’s status or particular features.
The positives
I enjoy the variety – both in terms of the types of projects I work on and the different responsibilities I have. It keeps me engaged and I find that I continuously develop my own skills and knowledge due to this.
I’m trusted to work autonomously and take ownership of my projects. I always feel that my contribution across any part of the business is appreciated and valued.
Remote working is also a bonus since it does away with the long commutes I’ve been used to in the past!
The challenges
Project managers at Bit Zesty are responsible for a number of clients who usually have more than one project running at the same time, so it is a juggling act to keep on top of all of your projects and make sure that you’re serving all of your clients’ needs – but as long as one is well organised, it’s totally doable.
Our team of developers come with different strengths – some are generalist, while others are more specialist, so we want to make sure we make the most of their strengths and choose the best people for the task at hand. This means there can be a bit of negotiation between the project managers to balance all of our priorities and agree how we can meet the client’s needs in the most efficient manner. Also, our client priorities can sometimes change so we need to be flexible and re-assign resources as needed.
The culture
We are hard-working and aim for high standards. Quality is of the utmost importance. The team at Bit Zesty is down to earth, passionate about what they do, friendly and supportive. Someone is always willing to help in any way that they can. We’re highly collaborative and nimble in our approach and it’s an inclusive environment to work in.
Advice for a prospective project manager
If you’re looking for variety, a challenge and a chance to grow and develop then a project manager role at Bit Zesty might be right for you. Most importantly, if you are someone who likes to understand the products you are looking after inside out, are always on top of things and enjoy speaking with clients and fellow team members, you will excel at this role.
PS. Brush up on your quiz and gaming skills as you’ll need these if you want to impress on the company days (but don’t worry our Managing Director is happy to come last – her words, not mine!).
Life outside the office
I love to travel and explore new cities and cultures when possible. Meeting up with friends and family and trying out new restaurants has always been a regular pastime of mine and I hope to get back to this post-pandemic. At home, I’m a Netflix devotee and love crime dramas. I also have a keen interest in interiors, so you’ll find me down the Pinterest rabbit hole planning my next space!
We’re hiring! Bit Zesty is currently looking for delivery team members. Take a look at our careers page to apply.
