We report:
from our working environment
Work & Life at NT-ware
Peter explains why our working world leaves room for spontaneity.
NT-ware connects people, cultures and languages
Andrei explains why diversity enriches life.
We're all about people
Sabine gets top talents on board and, as office lead, creates the perfect working conditions.
Hello, I’m Peter Lange and after our boss, I was the first (and therefore the longest-serving) NT-ware employee! At the moment, I am consulting with Axel Behrens, the assistant director of the QA department. I look after the major customers and the custom-made products in the projects department. Axel is one of my sparring partners because he is one of the most crafty “testers” I know.
Since I’ve been around for so long, I know our software inside out—after all, I helped to develop it. Today, I am sort of the technical interface between our customers and our development department; my job is to analyze what is technically feasible and how to resolve complex issues. Nevertheless: sometimes I miss developing work—once a nerd, always a nerd!
One more really good cup of coffee, a few vitamins from our fruit basket, which is regularly filled on Tuesdays, and we can get back to the action! I have just received a query from a field specialist at CANON about a custom-made product for a major customer ... Considering that at its beginning, NT-ware was established in a former bookstore, it feels a little like Hewlett and Packard making their start in a garage in 1939.
NT-ware is now a subsidiary of CANON—this gives us the security of having a large corporation behind us, but we continue to operate independently. As a result, I was often traveling abroad, especially in the early days. Apart from my very first training session with English native speakers—I hardly slept for a week leading up to it—my placements abroad were great experiences.
Flexibility is very important to us. That’s why almost anyone can work at home: the technical foundations have been created in such a way that this is easily possible. I often work from home, so I can take my children to school without any hassle. In fact, I’m really proud of what NT-ware is today. And most important of all— it’s still great fun!
Good morning! It’s only just after 7 o’clock, but I usually start my working day early so that I can pick up my daughter from preschool in the afternoons... My name is Andrei Hristea, and I work as a 3rd level support specialist at NT-ware. I am from Romania, studied computer science and found NT-ware while searching for a perfect job—lucky me!
I haven’t been on board long, so my favorite “project” so far is the successful completion of all uniFLOW classes. That’s why I can now call myself a “uniFLOW Certified Solution Specialist”. This role includes five other certifications in total, each of which deals with a different part of the software we develop here at NT-ware.
People from different countries and cultures come together to make a strong team at NT-ware: we support each other and overcome challenges together, no matter how tricky. A successful working day for me is when we have solved every customer problem (or at least almost)—and when I can exchange ideas with friendly co-workers over lunch and practice my German.
The way the company and employees all take care of new colleagues is wonderful: I was supported right from the start, whether it was about the move or an apartment, about finding a place in preschool for my daughter or—since I did not speak German—in communicating with the authorities. Everyone—including customers—helps me to catch on. The company also pays for my German classes.
The people who work here are what makes NT-ware stand out. I like to hang out on the terrace with co-workers, game in our chillout room or train together for “Tough Mudder”. It’s like a second home. Thanks to maximum flexibility with work hours, there is enough space to make room for your personal life—whether for family, sports or Netflix. It could hardly be better!
Hello! I’m Sabine Zimmer, and in my job at NT-ware everything really revolves around people: officially, I am an office manager on the administrative team, i.e. controlling, accounting, facility management and above all HR come into my purview. Originally, I came from the banking industry, but then I studied industrial psychology and came to NT-ware more than 12 years ago.
I like to stop by our company daycare center, which is primarily open to employees’ children. Every day at NT-ware is different; I constantly move between different departments and tasks—this can range from recruiting an educator to setting up a new office abroad. Varied, human, fulfilling—these three terms describe my job quite well.
One of my favorite projects is planning the company trip! This time, for the 20th anniversary, we are all flying to Mallorca, and the program is already very popular! It’s always great when all the employees get to meet up in a relaxed setting. This demonstrates quite impressively how many cultures and different personalities are working together for the success of NT-ware.
The team spirit here is great, not only among the “long-established” employees—employees from abroad who are new to the company also find it easier thanks to English being the language we do business in. To this day, we have always succeeded in finding a suitable solution for any individual issue experienced by a co-worker, e.g. when moving from abroad, a relative’s illness or whatever it may be. This puts NT-ware in a class of its own.
My co-worker of many years, Peter, really wants to test my Eckhard-Meiner chair—be my guest, Pete ... as a passionate rider with my own horses, I always find this fun! Thanks to flexible working hours and a home office, it’s easy to strike a balance between work and home—even if, like me, you have more time-consuming hobbies. It’s not only in this regard that NT-ware is a real trail-blazer!
We report:
from our everyday work
“Our software engineering: where madness has method.”
“My day as a QA officer at NT-ware.”
“My path from an emerging talent to market maturity.”
Hello! My name is Carsten Pape and I am a full-stack developer and software architect at NT-ware. I joined the company toward the end of my studies and wrote my bachelor’s thesis here. The result became the basis for a central component of the NT-ware software, now running on many web-based scanners and printers.
Following my training as an IT specialist, I studied media informatics because I wanted to explore the theory more deeply. It’s exciting and challenging for me to continue to advance a complex product together with colleagues—whether I am evaluating new technologies, designing architecture, developing new features myself or getting involved in embedded development.
After the daily stand-up meeting in the morning, meetings are usually scheduled throughout the day. I also plan new developments and work packages, coordinate my agile team and exchange ideas with my quality assurance colleagues. Developers and quality assurance specialists work very closely together at NT-ware, which benefits the quality of the product.
I developed coding guidelines for our cloud solution together with a colleague in the architecture team. Since the company is constantly growing, it is important to set up the technical development to be fit for the future. Speaking of the future: I can see one here for me too! Since I started, I have been able to develop constantly, work in an interdisciplinary way and take on more responsibility. That makes the job here very attractive.
A successful day for me is when we have developed good code here in the company and mastered all the challenges the day has to throw at us. Then it’s even more fun to cycle the 20 kilometers home after work: I can push for my next speed record and enjoy the idyllic landscape at the same time. You see, there are many advantages to working in Bad Iburg!
My name is Axel Behrens, I’m a software developer and have been working for NT-ware for 13 years, now as a QA kernel developer. Monday through Wednesday I am in the office, the rest of the time plus one week a month I work from home—almost 200 km away from Bad Iburg. This ensures great quality of life for me—and since we can hold meetings, coordination discussions etc. via video conference, I am always a part of things.
The early bird catches the worm—I am a morning person. This is very helpful, because I’m the father of 4 daughters, all of whom have to catch the school bus just after 7 am … When I joined NT-ware, it was a very small company that offered me enormous freedom, plus a secure job. That still applies today!
My then team leader and I completely restructured the QA department at NT-ware years ago. These days its size is quite considerable—and it continues to grow... My day consists of testing, automating, interacting with colleagues (in person or via Skype), talking about errors that have occurred or behavior patterns of a new feature ... My job is varied—and I still enjoy it today!
We switched to agile approaches some time ago—therefore software developers and QA staff are now on the Sprint team together. The advantage of this is that we can have a much earlier idea of possible quality tests and so pass suggestions along to development. The feedback loops have become shorter, the dialog more intensive, and we are all even more satisfied!
My favorite place in the company is definitely our chillout room with its table soccer! After lunch we often get together for a game. Of course, new talent is always welcome—both on the QA team and for table soccer! By the way: if we’re looking to strengthen the QA team, you’ll find me at the table when it’s decision time. So, see you soon, maybe?
Testing, testing 1, 2, 3, ... Hello! I’m Janina Torbecke, recently hired quality assurance specialist at NT-ware, and you could say I’m one of those people whom nothing gets past. My job is to put all the software developed here to the acid test and to purge it of every bug I can find.
“Please show us your typical working pose”—well, not quite. But in fact, when automatic tests are running, there’s often quite a lot of waiting around. In my department, our offices are arranged to accommodate 2 people each, which means you can focus really well. Other things I like: they place a very high value on QA here; for every 2-3 developers there are 2 QA people working with them!
Every 2 weeks a masseur comes on site—one of many benefits that are on offer here. In addition to the absolutely great work environment, the quality and professionalism of the QA department played a role in my decision to work for NT-ware. My educational specialization was software verification, which borders on the outlandish, but I find I can really contribute here. That was important to me.
My job at NT-ware in three words? Quality, teamwork and support. I had a really good orientation phase, and I learn a lot in seminars and from co-workers and my work is predominantly team-based. My goal was a solid company with a lot of expertise and without a high staff turnover—and that’s exactly what I have found in NT-ware!
Even at the interview, I got the feeling that people here relate very informally. If you have any questions, you can always find someone who is willing to listen and who has the right answer. When I am able to make our software better, that feels great—but at the moment there’s hardly anything I would improve about NT-ware as an employer!
You want to get on board?
Then we look forward to receiving your application. Your contact person is
Sabine Zimmer, tel: +49 5403 7243-202