Meet our team leader development; Jens
At StuComm we have a very passionate team that works hard every day to continually improve a great product. One of the members of this team is Jens Roggeband, our team lead development. Jens has been with StuComm from a very early stage on and still enjoys working here every day. Let’s meet Jens!
Identifying with the product
Jens joined StuComm when he was still studying at the Hogeschool Leiden for his bachelors in Information Technology. “One of my friends was working at StuComm when I got a call from Ronald. He was convinced that I had to come over to grab a cup of coffee, but I was a bit hesitant since StuComm’s office is in Utrecht and I live in Leiden. However, StuComm did sound like a cool company and I love coffee, so I decided to go. I’m still happy that I made the decision to go to have that first coffee.”
Being a student himself at the time Jens could completely connect to the problem that StuComm had found a solution for. “I know how bad the communication within educational institutions can be, so being offered the opportunity to work on a solution for this problem is, of course, amazing.”
After writing his thesis at StuComm and graduating from the Hogeschool Leiden, Jens kept on working at StuComm. “For my thesis I developed the whole frame-work that we are currently using for our apps. It is very rewarding and cool to realize that I have helped built up the company.” At first Jens was responsible for the back end, but he soon moved on to developing the Android app, and now to being the leader of the development team.
Developing for students
It’s really fun to develop the app and to think about new features, in order to ensure that it is truly an added value to the students’ lives. I like that the app not only offers information to the students, but also contains aspects like animations, beautiful design and gamification.” Besides the features, Jens is also proud of the design of the app. “Because of material design the app looks neat and clean. Students might even not realize that material design is being used, but they would notice it if it wasn’t.”
For Jens the StudentsApp would be perfect when it becomes a complete app, that offers more than study related information. Jens and the other developers are working hard to realize new features such as the indoor/on campus navigation. “When I think about the needs and wishes of students, I think it would be great when we can offer them features such as navigation or a connection with public transport. In this way the app becomes even more informative and of use for students.”
Surrounded by users
Jens loves developing the app, but he also enjoys getting feedback from the users. “It is great to get positive reviews and feedback on the apps. There are always also some negative reviews, but it is nice to see that you can fix these problems and turn people’s opinion around. When we visit a school to promote or test the app, I like it that I get the opportunity to ask the students directly what they think about the app.”
Every day Jens comes to StuComm with a big smile on his face. “I get to make people happy with what I make, and for me that is more important than earning a lot of money. It might be a cliché to say this, but it is very true. When I sit in bus 12 on my way to the Science Park I am surrounded by students who use my product, which is for me one of the coolest things ever!”