Written by: Myles Broomes
Company name: Etch UK
Role: Midweight Backend Developer
Country/region: United Kingdom
Working with Umbraco for: 5 years
After University, I knew I wanted to do something related to Web Development and so landed my first job at Semantic, a small agency in Southampton that built websites using Umbraco. I already had knowledge of .NET from my University course so I was able to get my head around Umbraco pretty quickly and I haven’t looked back since. I started at Etch about a year later in 2018, and I’m still here working with Umbraco - so I guess I’m doing something right!
I’ve been working on a little bit of everything! I’ve only recently gotten stuck in with v9 and 10 which has given me a chance to get acquainted with .NET Core so that’s been fun. We’ve got sites on a variety of versions so I’m still working with v7 and 8 quite a lot as well. I’ve also been trying to improve my frontend skills as I’ve pretty much solely been backend focused for most of my career, so I’ve had a few opportunities to work on some small frontend projects recently.
As I’ve been working with Umbraco for so long, I’ve recently been trying to make an effort to attend more in-person Umbraco events. I went to Umbraco Together in London at the end of last year, then I attended this year's Codegarden and recently attended the first Wessex Umbraco Meetup earlier this month.
Attending my first Codegarden earlier this year has to be the highlight of my Umbraco career so far - it was great being able to meet so many talented Umbracians and I learned so much from all the talks. I'd heard quite a few stories, and it was still crazier than expected - in a good way! Mostly I love how people go out of their way to introduce themselves to you and show an interest in you as a person. For a tech conference, it was less focused on work and more on making lasting friends and having fun.
Career-wise, I’m really happy where I am now, so my future ambitions are to get more involved with the Umbraco Community - and I would have to say that coming to Codegarden was like the trigger for me! Attending the Wessex meetup after Codegarden was even better, as I got to catch up with the people I'd met there and reestablish those connections. It really helped to make me feel like a part of something bigger. It’s so nice to be a part of something that people are extremely passionate about and everyone does their best to uplift and help each other out. I love how welcoming the community is - whether it’s at the in-person events or everybody helping each other on our.umbraco.com.
I would like to contribute to Umbraco a lot more or maybe try and work on a package as it’s not something I’ve done. Thankfully, I don’t feel like there are any barriers at all to getting involved, and I’m open to hear from others.
From a developer’s perspective, I would say:
1. Sign up on our.umbraco.com
2. Try to attend some meetups in your area
3. Definitely try and get to Codegarden if you can!
If I could have any superpower, it would be the ability to teleport anywhere in the world like in the movie Jumper - I’ve always thought it would be a really useful and practical power to have. It was great going to Denmark for Codegarden as I’d never been before and it’s such a beautiful country. Next, I’d like to go to Japan - I’ve always been obsessed with Japan and studied the language when I was in college.
I’m hoping to go to more events, Umbraco Together, and make more connections with Umbracians as I get more involved. In the meantime, I’ll be watching The Boys or the new Lord of the Rings show The Rings of Power!
Please feel free to catch me on LinkedIn and Twitter at mylesb93!
Is there someone you'd like to nominate for a uProfile?
Do you know someone who you deserves some spotlight on their Umbraco journey or, the difference they make in the Umbraco Community? Here's how to nominate a uProfile candidate 🙌
