The Flex Factor with... James

Meet James Adamson, one of our senior optimization engineers here at Flexciton. Many, many moons ago he was an aspirant farmer, now he’s designing and improving our scheduling algorithms. 

Tell us what you do at Flexciton?

I’m an Optimization Engineer, which essentially means I focus on designing and improving our scheduling algorithms, while also implementing and maintaining them in production code. I also have a technical lead role for one of our customers, so I spend some time understanding their requirements in detail and thinking about how to expand the product or customise it to meet their individual needs.  

What does a typical day look like for you at Flexciton?

In my engineering team we kick things off with a stand-up to agree on priorities for the day and discuss any issues that need attention. My day would then typically be a mix of drinking coffee, getting stuck into writing code for some new functionality, and having design discussions with other members of the team to keep us aligned technically. 

What do you enjoy most about your role?

I would say the opportunity to combine two things: working on one of the most challenging optimisation problems out there; and the ability to actually have an impact, for example through getting my code into production or making and influencing key design decisions.

If you could give one piece of advice to someone, what would it be? 

I would maybe suggest they seek advice from better places… but no, I think it’s important to always be thinking about what it is you want, and to think several steps ahead. It’s all too easy to get stuck doing something you don’t enjoy.

If you could summarise working at Flexciton in 3 words, what would they be?

Interesting, challenging, impactful.

If you could swap jobs with anyone for a day, who would it be and why?

I used to want to be a farmer… so provided I could pick a day with decent weather then sure why not give that a go for day. I reckon it’s much harder work than the idea I used to have of chilling on a combine harvester though…

Tell us about your best memory at Flexciton?

There’s a whole bunch of memories from our team trips, most recently to Albufeira in Portugal where some people really shone with their dance moves. I will avoid naming names.

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