I started by completing a degree in Innovative Product Design and began my career as a freelancer, working for small local businesses near where I lived. My work for them in graphic and web design piqued my interest in programming and I made the decision to go back to University to complete my Master’s degree in software development.
Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to work for an agency as an engineer, building both web and mobile apps and working my way up to lead engineer. I then took on the Product Owner role and moved to a Fintech company where we built apps for ethical finance.
I’ve always found I most enjoy working for companies, or on projects, that can have a real positive impact on people. I joined Phlo in October 2020 when we were still at the height of the pandemic, and it was clear how Phlo’s use of technology could set it apart from other pharmacies and provide massive benefit to our patients.
My role as a Product Owner entails translating stakeholder and user needs into product features and enhancements and prioritising them to ensure we maximise the value to our patients and continue to work towards our long-term vision for the product and the business.
The most exciting part about my role is that no two days seem to be the same.
I normally start off my day by reviewing any support issues or patient feedback that has come through the previous evening. I then run through the backlog to see what tickets I want to discuss with the team at our daily stand-up.
From there my day can vary and may involve, calls with stakeholders to discuss patient and business needs, creative or problem-solving sessions with our engineers and designers, reviewing and prioritising our product backlog or preparing for our next sprint or project.
I feel that communication and organisation is key! As a Product Owner, in order to provide our patients with the best experience we need to be able to adapt to changing needs and priorities, ensuring the right information is captured and passed on to the product team enabling them to do what they do best.
We have so many improvements and enhancements we want to make to our products, and they often compete in terms of priority. Although sometimes challenging, it’s definitely a good thing and keeps us on our toes!
Having come from a background of design and development, I love that in my role as Product Owner I have the opportunity to be involved in both, working closely with our design and engineering team to solve problems and map out features and enhancements.
I love to travel! Pre-pandemic I’d try to book a big trip with friends every year, and I’ve been lucky enough to cross off several from my bucket-list of destinations. Recently I’ve tried to make the most of being at home, exploring more of Scotland and planning trips like the NC500.
Over the past few years, I’ve also started to build up my record collection. It all started when my family passed on their old records to me, and now I like to collect vinyl’s (preferably second-hand ones) wherever I travel.
Phlo offers the opportunity to be a part of something that can add real value to people’s lives.
Our team is all about collaboration and working alongside this very talented and friendly team you are able to directly contribute, feeling you’ve had an impact on the product, the vision and the end user.
We are setting ourselves apart from other traditional pharmacies with great technology and user experiences, and with our product suite growing there are many more exciting things to come!
There’s no better time to become part of the Phlo community. Take control of your medication management and join the 1,000s of patients we’ve helped safely manage their medication.