ExoLightningTalk on January 6th
The first ExoLightningTalk Event in the new year, held on January 6th, had 5 speakers with interesting topics:
Archives
Categories
Search
ExoLightningTalk on December 16th
The third ExoLightningTalk Event, held on December 16th, went well with 7 speakers and 7 topics.
The talks were:
- Py.test intro & case study, by Eduardo Schettino [slides]
- Composition, by Rachel Yun [slides]
- Rapid calculation, by Lany Cheng [slides]
- Chinese Wine Culture, by Jessica Qi [slides]
- How to read large-scale code, by Kobe Qiu [slides]
- Extending Python with C/C++, by Tony Wang [slides]
- Genetic Map of Human Origins, by Chris Deng [slides]
ExoLightningTalk on November 18th
The second ExoLightningTalk, held November 18th, went well 7 speakers and 6 topics.
The talks were:
Introducing ExoLightningTalk
ExoLightningTalk, a bi-weekly internal forum (only open to Exoweb staff for now) was kicked-off on Nov 4th. A lightning talk is a short presentation of your choosing, no longer than five minutes, providing each ExoMate a stage to share new technologies, information, views, and fun things.
The first event went well with 7 speakers, fun topics, and was attended by almost all of Exoweb. People had fun and there was a lot of interaction and feedback.
The talks were:
- Introduction to ExoLightningTalk by Favo Yang. [slides]
- Richest Man in Babylon by Kenneth Wong. [slides]
- Made to Stick by Bjørn Stabell. [slides]
- Learning while playing by Liwen. [slides]
- Why people trading around the world by Joe. [slides]
- Learn to play Guitar in 5 minutes by YJ Park. [guitar tabs]
- Games in Kalimdor by Cindy Wang.
Ken Wong Speaks at Software Development 2.0 Conference 2009
Our very own Ken Wong went up on the speaker’s podium again, this time at China’s largest software industry conference, the Software Development 2.0 Conference, Beijing, last October 22-24.
Similar to his previous talk in the Agile China conference, Ken explained how code reviews, although not a specific part of the agile development process, greatly reduce errors in production code. It also detailed the eventual integration of this practice into Exoweb’s development process, as well as the automated tools being used in speeding up the process and best practices learned.
Check the SD website for the Chinese version of this description and brief speaker introduction, as well as further details about the event.
Sep 2009 Programmer magazine: Ken Wong on staff motivation
(If you open the September issue of Programmer and look on page 80 in the Mr One Minute column you’ll find an article on staff motivation by Exoweb’s very own Ken Wong. Following is the original English version of the article.)
Most people inherently want to do a good job. Once de-motivators like poor compensation, bad working environment, etc, are removed, the main concern is to help them find a role that fits them well and provide timely feedback.
Every human being is different and finding their best role can be a challenge. A common example in IT is promoting a good technical person to management, only to find that he is not at all suited to being a manager. Putting a person in a job he cannot do well is a major de-motivator.
Once a suitable role is found, clear expectations and feedback are the main priority. A common reason why people under-perform is because of a misunderstanding about organizational priorities. This causes people to waste energy on non-critical activities. Giving feedback the moment it is observed, either good or bad, helps to quickly correct this. Positive feedback especially important for motivation. One positive comment can outweigh many negative comments.
How to Foster Professionalism
Human beings are very social and they pick up their cues from people around them. If most people around them are very professional, they will be too. Since senior management has a much greater influence on others around them, you start with them first. Have everyone lead by example.
Respect is also earned, not demanded. To have people respect the organization (and thus their jobs), the organization must respect them and treat them as humans. Nothing is more toxic than having junior staff pulling inhuman amounts of overtime while senior management is on the golf course. Basic human rules must apply to all. An organization that acts like it respects all of its people will receive respect and devotion in return.
There will always be those few that believe the rules don’t apply to them though. In these cases, feedback is required. If behaviour fails to change, then more drastic feedback is required like warnings, reprimands or in the worst case, termination.
Ken Wong Speaks at Agile China Conference ‘09
This September 11-12, 2009, our Kenneth Wong, Director of Exoweb Services, will be speaking on the topic of code reviews at the Agile China conference, the largest agile software development conference in China.
Also included in the roster of speakers is Kent Beck, one of the founders of the Agile software development method and signatory of the Agile Manifesto, as well as creator of such methodologies as Extreme Programming and Test Driven Development. Check out more details on Ken’s talk, and find out how to join the conference in Beijing.
Exoweb (Happylatte) now offers iPhone software development for clients
As you might know, last year Exoweb started Happylatte, a division dedicated to developing our own iPhone applications. Our first game, Pee Monkey Toilet Trainer, made the #1 spot on appstores around the world, including the US appstore in May. Since Exoweb’s business is outsourced agile software development, the next move should come as no surprise 
Starting in July Exoweb is opening up iPhone development services for clients. We will do them the good-old Exoweb way: by using the Scrum agile methodolology and by recruiting great software developers (we have a 300:1 resume-to-hire ratio).
Ken Wong, Managing Director of Exoweb Services, is heading up this operation, and Matt Jung, is our North America Sales Director, based in San Francisco. Please help us spread the word, and if you know of any potential clients, please get in touch or refer them directly to:
- North America sales
- Matt Jung <inquiries@exoweb.net>
Exoweb Services Sales Director, North America
+1 (415) 828 4631
San Francisco, USA -
World-wide sales:
- Ken Wong <inquiries@exoweb.net>
Exoweb Managing Director
+86 1391 192 5504
Beijing, China
More information will slowly appear at www.exoweb.net/sales.
And be sure to fan us on Facebook if you want to stay up-to-date on what we’re doing:
Exoweb Featured in Time Out’s Home and Office May 2009 Issue
In Time Out’s May 2009 issue, Exoweb was featured along with other innovative and contemporary companies such as Saatchi and Saatchi, Ogilvy & Mather group, Enlight Media and The Art Box. Voted “Best for Office Entertainment”, our office was designed with openness, comfort and the efficient use of space in mind. Relaxation areas provide developers a place to quietly kick back and relax on their own or gather with others and let loose creative ideas. From Time Out’s article:
“The offices of this software development company on Jintai Lu in the CBD are inspired by the Art Cafe in the 798 Art District. Managing director Bjorn Stabell took it upon himself to design the office, putting in a mezzanine floor to make the most of the high ceilings, and putting creeping vines along the open brick walls. Best of all, though, are the options for when workers aren’t developing software. There’s a playroom on the mezzanine with a fully stocked bar, DVD player and a Nintendo Wii with Guitar Hero and a drum kit. For more cerebral office relaxation, the ayi leads a tai chi class on the vast open terrace every afternoon.”
“We try to create the anti-cubicle office: inspiring, relaxing, and extremely suited to creative collaboration”, says Bjorn. And it’s held true for Exoweb so far as we continue to make software that people can enjoy and appreciate.
Posted in Office | No Comments
“Programmer” article on how we do agile
Shortly after our office was featured in Home & Office, our friends Lucy and Bryan over at CSDN interviewed me for the October 2008 issue of the “Programmer”. The article (not online yet, sorry) covers a lot of details about how we do agile software development, in particular Scrum, here at Exoweb.