Assanka develops web applications for a variety of clients, and wins awards for them.
We are now looking for PHP developers to join our small team and help us win some more. We're known for our work for the FT, TheLondonPaper and The Times, but there is huge variety in what we do, with projects ranging from finance software to map mashups. We also operate a number of consumer websites and sponsor and host an open source community project.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Software development
- Testing, debugging and troubleshooting
- Client liaison and training
Note that our engineering positions are not suitable for solutions architects, managers, 'lead developers', analysts or other management positions. If we have management vacancies these are separately advertised - please see the jobs homepage.
Required skills:
- PHP 5 to expert level
- MySQL 5 to expert level, including sub queries, unions, and optimising for multi-million row record sets
- JavaScript to at least intermediate level
- Working knowledge of Linux command line tools and CVS
- Excellent quality of written and spoken English
Desirable but optional skills:
- Python, Perl, C, Ruby - all potentially useful
- Experience of mobile or location based services
- Sysadmin skills, experience running multi-server LAMP platforms
- (X)HTML and CSS rendering of any given layout across a number of browsers
Benefits of the job include:
- BUPA private medical insurance
- Zend certification if you don't have it already
- As much free fruit as you can eat
- Great coffee
- Conferences and developer events
- Team lunch on Fridays
- Incentive scheme
Salary
We offer salaries of £25,000 - £40,000 for engineering roles
Application process
Visit our dedicated online application site at http://www.assanka.net/iwantajob, and upload your CV. There will be an (exciting and interesting) online skills assessment to evaluate your competencies in our key skill areas. If successful in the skills assessment you will be invited to interview at our office in Shepherds Bush.
Work ethic
We are a very small company (5 people at last count), who together possess all the skills listed above, and we need more people who think in the same way we do. We work in a highly flexible way - we have an office in Shepherd's Bush (London, UK), but often work with people who are based at home or even internationally.
To fit in with our team you must be highly motivated, able to manage your own schedule effectively but proactively integrate with the rest of the team. The following list summarises the qualities that are required:
- Self-motivating
- Proactive in team participation
- Independent
- Very high standard of written English
- Co-operative and friendly attitude to co-workers, management and clients
- Excellent timekeeping (you will be required to file timesheets daily)
We operate an incentive scheme with rewards like chocolate, Mathmos lamps, iPods, digital cameras, five star weekend breaks, use of a supercar for a day, spy training, flying lessons, and many more for doing great work and staying on schedule.
Here's how we rate on the Joel test, which several people have asked us to complete:
- Do you use source control?
Yes, of course. We use CVS. - Can you make a build in one step?
We're writing web apps, and every sandbox is also an Apache vhost, so in essense we make a build every time we save a source file. We can publish the current CVS version to a production server in one line. - Do you make daily builds?
Not relevant to web apps - Do you have a bug database?
Yes, we have a support system that plugs into all our apps, so clients can raise issues directly from their system, and monitor them there too. It also plugs into an error reporting system that feeds debug straight into the support system when errors are triggered on any app. We use this to track our performance against SLA obligations, and to assign developers to investigate and resolve problems. - Do you fix bugs before writing new code?
Trivial bugs are fixed straight away, more complex bugs are logged as they're found and then planned into the following week's schedule. - Do you have an up-to-date schedule?
For consulting projects, of course. For open source and consumer projects, sometimes. - Do you have a spec?
We have a range of approaches to specifying projects depending on a number of factors, but there is always an appropriate description of the functional spec for consulting projects. For larger, process heavy systems there is normally a complete functional spec. - Do programmers have quiet working conditions?
We have a small open plan office, and we try to keep distractions to a minimum. - Do you use the best tools money can buy?
Kit costs a lot less than time. We make sure our staff are never unproductive because they don't have the tools to do the job. That said we're not into buying flashy kit or software just for the sake of it - Do you have testers?
Not dedicated testers, no. But then, we only have six staff in total, and we think it's better to develop multidisciplinary skills than to become too specialised. - Do new candidates write code during their interview?
Candidates technical skills are assessed via an online test in order to qualify for an interview. - Do you do hallway usability testing?
Yes - the most valuable usability expert is someone that doesn't know they are one.
The right opportunity
Working at Assanka is always a learning experience. We encourage staff to get involved in individual advancement and professional certification programmes, and will sponsor certification exams where appropriate. Our team is on the cutting edge of web development and we want it to stay there.
Your schedule is your own. We run a low-overheads office precisely because we recognise that we don't need everyone in the office all the time. We are keen to try and maximise the value of your time and will design a schedule around your preferred working style, whether you want to work mostly in the office or mostly from home, prefer early mornings so you can get a head start or would rather take a longer lunch hour so you can go to the gym, the work revolves around you.
The right person
Assanka is an equal opportunities employer. In recruiting staff we are concerned with nothing other than the ability of the person to do the job, subject to the qualities outlined above. If you are employed to work in our London office, you will be required to maintain an appropriate (but reasonably informal) dress code, should not be allegic to or fearful of our dog, and you should be aware that we try to avoid employing smokers.