Welcome back to our Life at LetsGetChecked series, a sequence of features that offer insight into what it’s really like to work at LetsGetChecked.

This week, we speak with Paulo Nobre, our Core Team Lead.

Paulo was drawn to LetsGetChecked because of it’s fast paced working environment and high impact mission. Paulo says that the use of F# at LetsGetChecked was also a big draw to the company that provides home health tests to customers.

Today, Paulo oversees F# Lunch and Learns at LetsGetChecked, as he believes that learning and professional development should bring people closer socially.

How did you develop your career in the technology space?

I come from a Computer Engineering background, it’s a subject I completed in High School when I was growing up in Portugal. I got into computers early, in my school, there were 1,200 students, and only 2 or 3 had PCs at home. This was back in 1989, it was a long time ago!

Originally I am from South Portugal, where the main market is tourism. There isn’t much of a technology sector, the only thing close to working in technology would be selling computers, still I managed to find some software development jobs, mostly contract work. I really started to develop professionally when I moved to Lisbon.

I didn’t go to university right after I finished High School. I got a job, started a family and then later on I went to university.

Where does your passion for technology come from?

I have always been a very curious person. Way back when, while my friends used to play video games, I was curious as to how those games were made. Seeing things moving on a computer screen and learning more about the mechanics of how these things work is interesting to me.

When my father bought me my first computer, I completely tore it apart and then put it back together because I wanted to fully understand how it worked.

There was no real internet when I was growing up. These days, you can go online, click twice, buy a book and receive a PDF in your inbox in seconds. Before the internet, I still vividly remember calling a publisher in Portugal, requesting a paper catalogue, picking out a book and waiting for 2 months to receive it in the post. Things have changed so much in the last few years when it comes to what technology can do and how we use it.

I have always been very curious and technology moves fast which means that there is always more to learn.

What prompted you to apply at LetsGetChecked?

I wanted a faster pace, medtech is really interesting to me. I was also excited to have the opportunity to continue working with F#.

I have always believed that you can make more of a difference in a company that has a smaller workforce. I feel that it’s easier to do a good job and there is more space for better professional development.

I also liked the idea of working in the medtech industry, it was an area I had never worked in, and that was very much part of my decision.

What made you want to work in medtech?

I like technology end to end. I am completely lost if I don’t have technology with me. If my phone runs out of battery, I am lost. I haven’t been in a bank branch for years now. I don’t get bills in the post, I pay them online. That is the user part. I would say on the other side, I am most excited about building things.

The day you get to see the project that you have been working on go to production is the same feeling as being at the hospital welcoming a new baby. It’s always a good feeling, the same goes for seeing people use what you have built.

It’s interesting to think about the fact that someone created a system to send me bills in a PDF and to allow me to pay bills remotely. These are the systems that make our lives really easy, to have the chance to be on the other side, to also build things to help build people, that’s exciting.

Can you tell me a little bit about the Lunch and Learn sessions that you have brought to LetsGetChecked?

In my last role, the engineering team was almost 100% F#, that is when I started using the language in a more functional way. Since then I have been using F# because it’s user orientated and user friendly, it’s a very functional tool. F# was previously used in the financial industry to describe financial contracts. It’s secure, easy to read and easy to express.

When I moved to LetsGetChecked I thought that Lunch and Learn sessions on the topic would be beneficial for the whole team. For those who want to partake, there is an opportunity to learn something new, an opportunity to have lunch as a team and the opportunity to socialize more as a team.

Technology moves quickly, so there is always a lot to learn in this space and we cannot know everything. I think it’s beneficial for members of the team to come together for these sessions, it means that people don’t need to spend a lot of time on their own trying to learn new things. So far, people have been very receptive to the sessions so I am excited to see how they develop.

What is your favourite thing about working in LetsGetChecked and in this space?

My favourite thing about working at LetsGetChecked is the opportunity we are giving people to take care of their health in an easy way.

I am also excited by the fact that the company is growing quite fast, it’s a good place to be and it’s a good time to be in that place.

For someone who is hoping to join the technology team at LetsGetChecked, what would be your main advice?

My advice would be; don’t prepare too much. Attend the interview with whatever knowledge you have. There is a great opportunity to learn at LetsGetChecked.

It’s easy to tell if someone is trying to make it appear that they know more than they do. If there is a question that you don’t know the answer to, it’s always better to be honest. The good candidate will admit that they don’t know the answer but they are willing to learn.

Technology grows at a very fast pace, and it’s impossible for anyone to know everything. The purpose of the Lunch and Learns is to encourage people to both teach and learn.

In sum, don’t over prepare but be yourself!

What three personality traits would somebody need to have to thrive on the technology team at LetsGetChecked?

  • Tech enthusiast
  • Sense of humour
  • Professionalism

Written by Hannah Kingston