Meet Peter Clark!

Meet Peter Clark!

Starting as a Graduate Developer in 2019, Peter learned on the job before quickly progressing up the ranks to Developer a few years later.

After a busy day implementing new features on our software, One, Peter will switch off with a whisky in hand and watching a good sports game!

To find out more about Peter’s progression at Arnlea and what he gets up to in a day of being a Dev, read our interview below…

1. You joined Arnlea in 2019 as a Graduate Developer, how did you find that experience?
Terrifying! I had only ever worked in bars and kitchens before and never had a “proper” 9 -5 job. Initially, I felt very out of my depth, a bit like an imposter really, but I got good support when I first started and after a few months I settled in.

2. If you could give your graduate self one piece of advice back then, what would that be?
Not to worry so much about people at work thinking you have no idea what you are doing. People are there to help you succeed, not watch you fall.

3. How has your role changed over the years?
I came into the company as a Graduate Developer, then a year later moved onto a Junior Dev role. Another year later I became a ‘regular’ Dev, which is where I am at now. The biggest change has been going from fixing bugs on our old product to creating a brand new product which is much more interesting, creatively speaking!

4. Can you describe a typical day? Every morning I start with a catchup meeting with the rest of the Devs about what we have done the day before and what we are planning to do that day. Then I’ll either be working on fixing issues that have been raised or implementing new features. I’ll also spend a good few hours browsing through various whisky websites, but only when my work is done of course!

5. What do you like about working at Arnlea?
Arnlea gives me full trust: when I’m working on a task, I am trusted to be left alone to get on with it, but when I do need help or clarification, I can reach out because everyone is friendly and willing to help. Management has also been supportive of any issues I have had and helped me to develop into the Dev I am now.

6. What’s been your biggest challenge while working at Arnlea?
There’s a certain legacy product that I won’t name that had some issues and I had never seen it or worked on it before. So it took quite a lot of figuring out how it actually worked and how to solve the issues, I hope I never see it again!

7. How do you stay up-to-date with the latest tech trends?
Mostly through YouTube videos, usually while eating my lunch but sometimes (depending on the content) when I am trying to fall asleep.

8. You are a big whisky connoisseur: if you could only drink one brand of whisky for the rest of your life what would it be?
This is the hardest question to answer by far! I’m a big fan of the sherry cask whiskies and right now Glenallachie is producing the best stuff so I’d probably say them. Although if you ask me in a week’s time I’d probably have a different answer!

9. What else do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
I have got a 5-month-old puppy at home so that takes up most of my time at the moment but in the summer I like working on my garden as it’s a really good way for me to switch off from work. I’m a big sports guy so I’ll usually be watching football, golf, darts or even wrestling! I also try to play badminton at least once a week.

10. Where is your favourite place in the world?
At home sitting on my sofa with a good whisky in hand, my 2 dogs by my side and my partner Marion snuggling in. Or at the Aberdeen whisky festival, I love that event!