Meet the team: Matthew

A real-life conversation: we get to know the developer behind the fantasy football fanatic, WordPress developer Matt!

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1. What is your role at 93digital?

WordPress Developer.

2. What does an average day for you look like?

Days can differ depending what I am scheduled to work on in a given day. First thing after escaping the morning tube and finding the safe haven of the office is to check for any emails and slack messages and deal with anything that can be sorted off the bat. I will then usually warm up by reading a quick article on something development related before ‘plugging in’ (putting my earphones in!) and immersing myself in my work.

3. What’s the most challenging part of your job?

Working within the time-constraints of projects. I am a big advocate of code that has been carefully considered, well structured and clearly commented as this helps to make a site reliable, maintainable and extensible. But this can be a challenge as it is time-consuming and not always worth it in the long run. For instance you may fall too far down the rabbit hole working on a certain feature to the point that the extra time used, may not actually be worth it (for example, building something with the consideration that it might be extended in the future, but in reality it’s unlikely that it will) – it will also leave less time for the rest of the project!

4. Any advice for those who want to do what you do?

Go for it! If you have a keen interest in technology, especially programming and/or UX then web development is right up your street. I have always championed web development as a career and advised others to consider it when asked – although I am a bit biased and really enjoy what I do!

5. What future design and/or technology developments in the industry are you excited about?

I guess the big buzzword at the moment is Gutenberg. Gutenberg is the key new feature of the upcoming WordPress 5.0 release and will make a considerable difference to how content in the CMS is managed by admin going forward.

Another would be the constant improvements in the capabilities of web browsers. We are often constrained by the limitations of older browsers as they don’t support more modern CSS and JS techniques. But as time goes on these browsers are either being updated or consigned to history allowing us to use these techniques more freely which makes development easier and often improves the UX of a site.

6. What are your passions/hobbies/interests?

Football (not the most original, I know!). I’m a Fulham season ticket holder so attend most home games and a handful of away games a season, it’s been pretty rosy in the garden of Craven Cottage of late and I’m just hoping that continues this coming season back in the Premier League.

I’ve also got a keen interest in technology, which I guess is a bit of given considering my role here! I enjoy tinkering with computers as well as trying new development practices in my spare time.

7. What’s your favourite thing to read in print / online?

Medium and Smashing always have loads of interesting articles relating to web development. Away from tech, I often browse sports websites and blogs as well as a bit of 9gag for some light relief.

8. Tell us a random fact about you…

I can pull off a half decent Welsh accent. It usually improves after a couple of pints! (Editor’s note: Having heard it last Friday at the pub, It’s …..OK.)