Welcome to another entry in our Bondora Superstars blog series! In this series, we highlight Bondorians’ passion for what they do, why they love working at Bondora and other cool things you didn’t know about them. This month, we’re calling on Madis Rääk to step into the spotlight. He’s a Dev Team Lead, a really cool dad, and our 9th Bondora Superstar.
Bondora Superstars #9 — Madis Rääk
👱🏻♂️ Bondorian since: 2017
💡 Role: Product Owner
🛩️ Team: Top Gun
In October 2017, Madis stepped into the Bondora offices for the first time. He joined our #2 Superstar, Kaarel’s, team working on the investor codebase of Bondora. Looking back, he remembers enjoying the freedom to design systems from scratch, build internal tools, and work up to production deployment mostly by himself.
“This meant that I didn’t depend on any other team. It was a huge challenge. Compared to other companies I have worked for, there have been assigned teams for different parts of the development process. In Bondora, you take responsibility for everything you do in your area of the product.”
One of the biggest challenges he’s had to overcome might seem simple to some people, but for the average developer, it can leave you in a cold sweat. Can you guess what it is? Yes, it’s talking to people in person. If you want something done, you need to learn to get up and talk to people. Nothing beats face-to-face communication.
Mentors and magic
Over the years, he’s worked with numerous colleagues, and he has learned a lot from them.
In Madis’s words:
This is one of the most incredible things about Bondora: You get to work with almost every team in one way or another. And together, we all make the magic happen.
I have to single out the direct leads I had. Kaarel, and Matt. It seems that my guru and master Kaarel taught me well because, in April 2019, I got the opportunity to become a Team Lead. I worked together with a strong team, and we completed loads of projects. Kudos to everyone involved!
During that time, my direct lead was Matt, a.k.a ‘A Next Level Dude.’ He is still mentoring me today, even if he doesn’t know it.
At the beginning of 2021, my job title says Product Owner. I don’t have much to tell yet, but I think it’s going to be an awesome continuation of my already fantastic journey at Bondora.
Here’s what a typical day is like for Madis:
As you can see, Madis exercised his veto rights on sharing his daily tasks as it is top-secret, classified information. But you can be sure that Madis is hard at work every day analyzing our systems and processes to ensure we’re running a tight (rocket)ship!
So, what’s the most rewarding part of working at Bondora?
I have learned a ton of things! And I can share that knowledge with others. The best thing, for me, is to coach other people and see them grow.
What’s more challenging: The most difficult part of your job, or getting your baby to go to sleep?
Luckily my kiddo is a natural at sleeping. He sleeps more than I do! He doesn’t know how lucky he is to be able to have a nap after lunch 😉
📚 Madis’s must-read book:
“Literally any book you have at home. Read at least 10 pages, and I hope you’ll continue reading the next 10 after that. Reading is so underrated and so good for you. But if you’re more into podcasts, I’d recommend “Puhata ja Mängida.”
Now for some off-duty questions:
Pineapple on pizza?
Yep, double it!
Your favorite TV show?
Uuh, that’s an easy one! The Office US version
What’s your favorite food?
The food that comes out of my friend’s fridge at 3 AM after a great party.
And what food do you refuse to eat?
Broccoli. You know when you feed your kiddo, and you make those “mmm, it’s so good” noises? That’s the only food I can’t do it for because I just can’t lie to my kid 😊
Tell us more about your life motto
My motto is: ‘Uus päev, uus väljaõpe’. It doesn’t sound as good in English, but it basically means that: “It doesn’t matter how hard it is; today is another day to learn from and to give your best.”
But lately, my motto is also “Yabba-dabba-doo!” as made famous by The Flinstones. I love my work, but I also love being able to spend time with my family.
Last bonus question! Tell us something we might not know about you:
I am a member of the Estonian Defense League. I’ve been training new sergeants over the last 3 years at the Estonian Defense School. In 2020 I received The Order of Merit, which is an incredible honor. I’ve also had the opportunity to go ‘pew-pew with… Oh, I could tell you more, but I’m afraid that’s also classified 😊
And that’s all we have for today!
Thanks to Madis for sharing more about this life and journey at Bondora. We hope you enjoy getting to know the people working to make Bondora the best online investment platform as much as we do. Join us again next month as we get to know our 10th Bondora Superstar ⭐️
The views and opinions expressed in this article are that of the individual and not Bondora’s official view.