Devbridge, a US programming services company, has opened an office in Warsaw this May and promises to continue to expand actively throughout the region. At the end of 2021, one of the region's largest transactions meant Devbridge became part of Cognizant Softvision, a global company that develops customized digital products.
According to Viktoras Gurgždis, Vice President of Devbridge and Head of the Lithuanian Division, the scope and volume of work for technology companies are growing very rapidly. As such, there was no hesitation about forming a team in Poland, which currently employs more than 50 highly qualified specialists.
"We will continue to actively search for employees in Poland. We'll do so as we have every opportunity not only to expand further into the neighboring regions and increase investments there, but also to attract talent, instill the company's work culture and models, and share best practices. We are planning development across the region and we will also strive to recruit in an agile manner. All this is to focus on product development to help our global customers achieve their desired results,” the company's VP says.
We will strive to bring together talent from across the region
According to Viktoras Gurgždis, focusing on impeccable product quality and building and fostering a strong expert base has allowed Devbridge to grow from a team of just a few people to one of the global leaders in software development, and to open offices in Chicago, London, Toronto, Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipeda.
“The key driver for the company's development is our community of nearly 700 professionals, who aim to help our customers see business processes through the prism of creating innovative digital products. Our growth trajectory is very clear: we aim to grow by at least 25-30% each year. The market in which we operate is small. Professionals know each other, so they easily assess what kind of team we have. People want to work with talented colleagues and implement complex projects. When seeing strong future co-workers, people realize they'll receive all the support they need. At the same time, they will be able to make bigger and better decisions," Gurgždys says out of his own conviction.
An office unites employees
According to Łukasz Pijanowski, Lead of the Engineering Unit, a spacious and comfortable office will help strengthen communication between colleagues working in different cities throughout Poland.
"The Polish IT market is very large. We have grown very fast this year, so the new office will be the space that will bring colleagues together more often to engage in lively discussion. As a manager, my goal is to further improve each employee's workspace and create a cozy and comfortable atmosphere for office teamwork. The office location and infrastructure were also important. We chose the south side of Warsaw, which connects to the city center and allows us to get to the airport comfortably from the office. We often have to travel to customers in the USA or to other company divisions. As such, a convenient and fast drive to the airport was also an important criterion for us,” says the Lead of the Engineering unit whilst listing some advantages.
Not only hiring but also developing professionals
L. Pijanowski believes teamwork in the company is very important, so the goal of the new office is to create a cozy, comfortable, innovative space where it would be pleasant to work.
"We are still a relatively young organization in Poland, but we are very active in recruiting experienced engineers across the country. Although the office opened its doors in Warsaw, our employees have the choice of either working remotely or coming to work at the office. Our work's main priority is teamwork and the impeccable quality of the IT products we develop. Each project is very different, so employees improve by immersing themselves in the technical and customer details of the business. Therefore, we are confident that lively discussion and close cooperation will be increasingly important for our work model and teams," Mr. Pijanowski emphasized.
Opening of an academy for young programmers
At the beginning of this year, Devbridge also opened the Sourcery Academy for Developers in Warsaw. Here, after passing a test, the most motivated young people started their studies. The Academy participants learn according to a unique learning program developed by Devbridge programmers in Lithuania.
Sourcery Academy for Developers is a training program for anyone who wants to develop their programming competencies and integrate more quickly into the technology job market. The program lectures and analysis of case studies focus on problem-solving. Thus, the program participants will not only learn to work in a team but also solve problems when developing digital products.
For a decade, Devbridge has not only been actively contributing to the development of future professional programmers but also preparing professionals from other fields seeking new career challenges. At the free Sourcery for Developers Academy initiated by the company, participants have been taught the basics of programming not only in Lithuania but also students from Poland and West Africa have already used this opportunity. It is hoped that the curriculum developed and improved by Devbridge professionals in Lithuania will not only help to qualitatively prepare young people for the labor market anywhere in the world but also broaden their self-acquired theoretical knowledge.