“Love what you do and you’ll never work a day in your life” is a famously incomplete quote. While finding your professional passion is incredibly important, it’s also important to genuinely enjoy who you work with. Take Madison Karrh, a software engineer at Level Ex. Karrh told Built In that it’s important for her to work with people who, like her, are lifelong learners and pursue side projects, and that doing so has helped her grow professionally.
“It is extremely validating to be celebrated, not only for my work but also for the projects I dedicate my time to on the weekends,” Karrh said. “This has given me a lot of confidence in myself as a creator.”
Angela Senkpeil, a product manager at UPshow, joined the company over six years ago and said one of the main reasons she’s built a career there is because of the collaborative and supportive culture that pushes her to push herself.
“The UPshow team is full of incredibly talented and driven people who encourage me to improve my skills, and everyone works together to come to a better solution,” Senkpeil said.
Doing what you love and working with people who challenge and support you is a recipe for professional growth. If that’s a priority for you, and if you’re looking to make a career move, then continue reading to learn more about the cultures, work and future plans of Level Ex, UPshow and six more Chicago tech companies, all of which are currently hiring.
Level Ex creates educational video games for physicians, including dermatologists, cardiologists and anesthesiologists. Along with being educational, the games can also earn the doctors who play them continuing medical education (CME) credits.
Celebrating side work: “Working with people who genuinely adore learning and who have a deep-rooted determination to create and discover new things is really important to me,” Karrh said. “Almost everyone I work with at Level Ex has independent projects that they pour their free time into, so I am constantly surrounded by people who understand how rewarding learning can be. It is extremely validating to be celebrated, not only for my work but also for the projects I dedicate my time to on the weekends. This has given me a lot of confidence in myself as a creator.”
DIY game design: “It is really exciting to be a part of meshing and melding different disciplines to create new, unique ways to learn and practice skills through video games. Lately, we’ve been diving into the world of virtual technique guides and making the most graphic, realistic surgical procedures there are available. We are focusing our engineering efforts on building engines that empower our art, design and medical teams to create games without needing an engineer to hook things up. It is really rewarding to see my peers in other departments making entire games with tools I’ve created.”
Nordstrom may be best-known for its stores, but the company also has a considerable e-commerce footprint and is also the parent company of Chicago-based personal styling service Trunk Club.
Be yourself, build your skills: “It can be difficult to find a company that fully aligns with your values and also uses the latest technologies to keep your skills and experience current,” Violette said. “Our digital platforms are built using the latest tools and frameworks and are deployed at massive scale across our brands. And despite that scale, we’re committed to extending the Nordstrom way of doing business to our digital channels.
“That means being transparent with our customers and making sure that when they complete a purchase in our app, they’re left with the same amazing feeling they have when they leave our stores. I love working at a company where I don’t need to check my values at the door. That’s part of our commitment to being a company where you can bring your whole self to work.”
Getting closer to customers: “We are seeing the results of the work we’ve put into our technology platforms pay off, from more personalized product recommendations and styling experiences to the new platform that powers our Nordstrom.com and NordstromRack.com websites and mobile apps. Our customers are going to see new and improved experiences every time they shop with Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack and Trunk Club. Combining the digital scale of our brands, commitment to inclusive style and deep fashion expertise will allow us to get closer to customers and help them look and feel their best.”
In the future, parking will be a problem of the past, or at least that is the goal of Arrive. The company’s technology is designed to make purchasing parking a more seamless experience for motorists while also making it easier for entertainment venues and sports stadiums, property managers, cities, and more to manage parking.
Getting from A to B as a team: “The biggest reason I’ve wanted to stick around is the trust, respect and understanding across the company, from top to bottom,” Richman said. “Everyone is focused on our end goals and supports each other however they can. There are always lots of different projects going on, and everyone knows this and respects that we’re each doing our best to collaboratively prioritize and get work done as fast as possible. It really allows for a low pressure-high productivity environment that helps us get from A to B as a team and not just a group of individuals.”
Acquisitions and new opportunities: “With our recent merger with Flash, which was quickly followed by two more acquisitions, there is a ton of data now available to help us make better decisions. Some of these companies haven’t had the luxury of an in-house data team to help standardize, aggregate, visualize and analyze their data. So in a way, we have the opportunity to build multiple ‘data orgs’ from scratch while still operating within the established Arrive data team environment with all the tools needed to succeed already in place.
“The company as a whole is busy building completely new ways for people to purchase and interact with their parking and greater mobility experience while providing parking operators with solutions to completely digitize and optimize their business. Being able to help ensure all of these new directions are informed and supported by data is an exciting challenge that I’m fully embracing. Leadership across the board embraces data-informed decision-making and is excited by the prospect of data democratization.”
Tovala is a foodtech company that offers both smart ovens and meals to cook in them. Tovala’s ovens come equipped with a QR and barcode scanner that enables them to instantly adjust their settings to cook either one of the company’s meals or over 850 consumer from brands including Pop-Tarts, Totino’s and Eggo.
A recipe for excitement: “I’ve been at Tovala for four years, and the same two things that initially were the deciding factors for me joining are still true to this day,” Bhat said. “The excitement of being part of a company where I am also a consumer — and fan — of the end product, and the example that our leadership team has set in being ‘in it’ for, what I think, are the right reasons. By being an actual consumer of a product you’re making, a culture of autonomy and purpose forms more organically since it’s easier to empathize with the end customer. When autonomy and purpose aren’t feigned or forced, it’s extremely motivating.
“Couple that motivation with founders and a leadership team who aren’t ‘playing startup’ or enamored by the hype of building a startup but instead focused on building a lasting business grounded in values that prioritize being good people and team members, and that’s a recipe that keeps me excited day in and day out.”
Fueling the rocket ship: “The two things I’m most excited for — and have been for the past four years — is our confidence that we can grow the business to an eventual IPO and knowing we can be one of Chicago’s most desirable places to work, especially on the tech side. Our technology stack spans the full gambit from hardware and IoT to customer-facing mobile and web apps. There are a lot of really fun and challenging opportunities ahead as we work to continue on our rocket ship growth trajectory. The cherry on top is that our end product gives people valuable time back in their day while putting delicious food in their stomachs. That’s a mission that’s easy to get excited by and get behind.”
One thing restaurants, gyms and medical offices have in common are that they usually feature at least one, and usually many, televisions. UPshow’s interactive signage platform enables companies like these to use their televisions to connect with consumers over custom content and games, share promotions and drive digital engagement.
Innovate and collaborate: “Innovation and the team are two big reasons I have stayed with UPshow for so long,” Senkpeil said. “We consistently push ourselves to improve our product by seeking out new partnerships, re-envisioning the client-side platform and streamlining the user experience. We consider how to drive value for our customers with every proposed update. Every week presents a new and exciting challenge, allowing me to try different things and hone my skills.
“Because of how we approach product changes, there are a lot of opportunities for creativity and collaboration with other team members. The UPshow team is full of incredibly talented and driven people who encourage me to improve my skills, and everyone works together to come to a better solution. My coworkers are also very kind and supportive people, which makes for a great work environment.”
Excited to hear the alarm: “Because I work on UPshow’s platform, I know exactly where we were five years ago. We have enhanced our user experience so much in that time, and we have so many ideas to make it even better. Over the past year, we’ve uncovered numerous opportunities in many of our verticals, which translate into game-changing new product features that will make us an all-in-one solution for any kind of in-venue experience. Building out this new functionality while solving real problems for our clients is what gets me out of bed.”
Digital marketing agency closerlook specializes in helping pharmaceutical companies connect and build and maintain relationships with healthcare professionals. Its offerings include content development, full-service digital marketing campaigns and analytics solutions.
Worth taking the leap: “Making the jump from CPG and lifestyle brands to pharma after almost 15 years in advertising was a risk,” Lenard said. “The people at closerlook made that risk seem like an amazing opportunity, and a year later, I’m so glad I took advantage of it. While the team’s focus on bringing clients the best digital thinking and finding new ways to help patients and doctors communicate was what initially caught my interest, the company culture of no ego, always finding the humor in a situation and being kind above all is what has kept me here.”
Combined expertise: “The future looks bright for closerlook as our merger with Fishawack Health continues to come to fruition. The deep digital, media and analytics offerings of closerlook combined with Fishawack’s renowned approach to global creative development and execution plus strategic and scientific expertise will make our collective teams a powerhouse for our clients and unlock new opportunities to bring our work to greater heights.”
Revantage provides corporate services to the real estate portfolio of alternative investment firm Blackstone. The company provides skilled workers to support Blackstone’s properties in several areas, including accounting, technology and human resources.
Log on for the culture: “One of the things I enjoy most about Revantage is the culture,” Fleming said. “The company culture overall is excellent, and the treasury unit I’m a part of is a tight-knit group full of bright and reliable people. We work well together, and it makes coming into the office — or logging on from home — something I really appreciate and enjoy.”
Growth in the forecast: “I’m excited about the growth at Revantage and am looking forward to not only hiring new talent, but also to continuing to expand and develop the skill sets of our team members. This will allow Revantage to provide even further value to Blackstone Real Estate and the portfolio companies we serve.”
SteelSeries creates hardware and software designed to help gamers level up their skills. Its hardware includes mice, keyboards and headsets, while its software enables gamers to take clips from their matches and manage settings from peripheral devices all in one place.
Work-life balance: “Joining the SteelSeries’ product team, the deciding factor was the flexibility when it comes to coming into the office,” said Spircoff. “I’m able to live close to friends and family and commute once a week for some much-needed facetime with the team. It really feels like the best of both worlds.”
New ideas welcome: “In SteelSeries, I see a company on the rise, one willing to take risks on great but unproven ideas. It’s a great atmosphere, and I’m excited to be sitting at that table. In a month, management has already instilled in me the confidence to pitch some truly forward-thinking projects without worry.”
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