Employee Spotlight – Jordan Porter

Our latest Employee Spotlight features Jordan, an iOS Developer in our tech team who has been with FOD Mobility Group for over a year. Starting as a Frontend developer, Jordan transitioned into the role of iOS developer, focusing on the development of our new Mobilleo app. Collaborative and innovative, Jordan plays a pivotal role in turning ideas into functional products, ensuring our users get the best mobile experience.

Outside of work, Jordan is known for his positivity and meticulous planning, often going the extra mile with spreadsheets for everything. Dive into our full interview to discover more about Jordan, his journey in app development, and the exciting projects he’s involved in.

Describe your current role and how long you’ve worked at FOD.

I’ve worked at FOD for over a year now. I joined the company as a Frontend Developer but this year I have transitioned into the role of iOS developer.

Tell us more about your current role and responsibilities.

The role of an iOS developer is all about collaborating with other members of the team to turn ideas into a functional product. This means working with other developers, UI/UX designers, Product Owners, QA and more to produce a best in market app!

Day-to-day this usually involves a meeting called a stand-up in the morning to discuss progress, what my plan is for the day and to ask for help if there is anything blocking me. Then it’s a case of breaking down the development into tickets (small chunks of work) and working through each piece.

Which projects are you currently working on?

I am working on the new Mobilleo iOS app. This is an exciting project to be a part of combining many different features for business travel such as journey planning, viewing train and bus timetables, ticket purchasing, vehicle rentals, hotel booking and more into a single app.

Building it from scratch also allows us to use some super modern frameworks such as SwiftUI.

What made you want to pursue your current career path?

I have had a strong interest in software development for as long as I can remember. Around 6 years ago, I started teaching myself app development using online books, videos, and tutorials, which eventually led me to releasing my own iPhone app.

From that point, I knew it was something I wanted to work as professionally, which made me explore the career options available and eventually led me to FOD.

What do you find most rewarding about your role?

Software development is often like working on lots of different puzzles at once. It’s a really satisfying feeling when you solve a complex problem!

What have been your proudest moments at work to date?

Presenting a new feature you have been working on for a while is always an exciting moment. The new Mobilleo has had lots of those recently that I am very proud of.

I also competed with our FOD rowing team in the Bradford Dragon Boat race earlier this year. We didn’t win but it was a great team building activity and we raised a lot of money for our charity of the year, Candlelighters.

What’s one professional skill you’re working on?

Programming is something where you are always learning and improving. There is always more to learn and people to learn from.

What is the best professional advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t judge your success by comparing yourself to other people. There are always going to be people who know more than you, and it’s easy to feel inadequate.

Instead, focus on learning from the people who know more and passing on what you know. You may surprise yourself at how far you have come when teaching others.

Describe a challenge you’ve faced this year and how you overcame it?

The move from Frontend to iOS developer is a big step up. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the number of new things you need to learn. Starting small and focusing on what skills I do have, and then slowly pushing myself to tackle more complex tasks, with the support of the team around me has made it much easier.

What do you hope to achieve over the next 12 months?

The upcoming launch of the Mobilleo app will be a big moment, with lots to do in preparation for that. I’m also looking to push my skills further. I’ve learnt a lot around iOS development in the last few months and will hopefully take that even further over the next year or so, to the point where I feel I can call myself a mid-level developer.

How would your friends describe you?

Positive and an over-planner (maybe to a fault… I have a spreadsheet for everything!)

Can you describe the top 3 items on your bucket list?

Attend WWDC (Apple’s developer conference), view a solar eclipse and build my own wood fire pizza oven.

If you could meet anyone famous past or present, who would it be and why?

Carl Sagan. He’s kind of like the 80’s American version of Brian Cox. His speeches (check them out on YouTube) are what got me interested in astronomy and inspired me to study physics.

Share a random fact about yourself.

Before getting into programming I worked as a lighting technician in theatres. I’ve watched the Mary Poppins musical 46 times!

What are your top three favourite songs of all time?

Under Pressure – Queen & David Bowie

I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor – Arctic Monkeys

All Too Well (10 Minute Version) – Taylor Swift

What did you want to be when you grew up and why?

A scientist. I think I just liked the idea of wearing a white lab coat and mixing things in test tubes.