How long is your ‘to do’ list? We’re a busy bunch here at WDL and all of us usually have more than one project on the go at any one time. Then there’s the things on the list that have been there a while… generally speaking, it’s something that has been hindered for some reason, maybe a question needs to be answered to complete what needs to be done. Perhaps the task needs a little extra thought and there just hasn’t been the time. There’s always a reason to put some things off.

My job naturally involves some things that could be viewed as a little tricky. If a client has forgotten about an invoice, it’s part of my job to give them a nudge. Putting this off helps no-one. There might be a problem, perhaps – and I hope not – a client who is late paying has a genuine issue that needs to be resolved before they can pay. I can help sort that out, but only if I know about it. Or maybe their ‘to do’ list has started to resemble The Complete Works of Shakespeare and I just need to remind them that our invoice should be in the next act.

Putting things off can be dis-conducive to a healthy state of mind. I always find it easier to complete the tasks that need extra thinking time if I clear the deck of the smaller but lower-priority tasks as often as I can. I’m setting aside half an hour a day this week to tidy up my to do list – will you join me?

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I’m Tomasz Czech, and I’m a 24 year-old apprentice web developer here at WDL. If there’s anyone who’s quiet and calm in the company, well, it’s definitely me. I try to be focused and I’m extremely dedicated to my work. In a very short space of time I’ve been given the chance to gain a different learning experience and I’m really enjoying my time here.

A little bit about me and my journey to WDL. I was born in the south west of Poland in a town called Opole. When I was 12 years old I got my first taste of Britain by bravely traveling here for a holiday on my own – 1500km by coach.

I lived in Poland for 21 years and spent 14 years studying there. In 2001 I started my further education at a group of Electrical Schools.

Over the years I’ve undergone various working experiences. I’ve worked in a mechanical parts factory (Tower Automotive) assembling bottom holders for the newest Fiat 500 model and in a print house (Opolgraf), supporting books production.

During my teenage years I developed experience by self-studying computer skills, and I discovered not only how to use a computer, but how to install and configure software packages and hardware maintenance too. This in turn gave me the opportunity to help and assist my friends and colleagues with their computer problems (most of them were successful) whilst boosting my confidence and encouraging me to look forward to a brighter future.

At the age of 21 I was determined to move to England, and straight after I graduated from Upper Secondary School as Technician of Telecommunication, I did. Upon arriving in the UK I began searching for opportunities and E2V came my way. I had the chance to work there as an operator who assembles marine magnetrons – which are used in submarines – as well as the opportunity to learn how to build up and inspect anodes and cathodes under microscope. E2V acknowledged my skills and gave me a permanent contract.

During my free time at E2V I studied an English ESOL Level 1, Level 2 Course and OCR Level 1 and Level 2 course in Adult Numeracy and achieved these qualifications.

Two years later, I no longer felt the same satisfaction with my job at E2V and part of me was saying that I needed to move on. In August 2011 another opportunity came my way. I left England and moved to Spain, where I became a computer programming assistant and gained my first IT work experience. I learned iPhone, iPad touch panel designing skills, Crestron and Lutron devices programming, the basics of JavaScript and elementary Spanish.

I’d been really satisfied with the new job but unfortunately I couldn’t carry on – with extended time off work and the termination of my contract I had to think again.
I finally made up my mind to travel back to Chelmsford, decided not to give up hope and to find another opportunity. I still had the desire to work in the IT industry as I knew this was really my passion, so I applied for an IT/Web Design Apprenticeship and trusted my instincts.

Then I met WDL. My instincts were right. WDL have given me a helping hand and, so far, have supported me all the way. The team at WDL helps to boost my confidence on a daily basis and I’ve been learning and acquiring new skills and knowledge which give me the satisfaction and contentment I need to develop in this industry. With the help and guidance of the supportive and talented team at WDL, I feel that I have gained a better perspective on my career goals.

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After a couple of weeks of water-cycling and progressively icky gravel, it was decided to do a full strip and clean of Float Left and Float Right’s tank today. Taking all of lunch (and a little more), the results are particularly satisfying if I do say so myself.

With a shiny fresh tank, Float Left and Float Right can carry on bringing joy to the office by having wonderful fins. And doing that funny mouth thing that fish do all the time.

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I would just like to introduce myself as the new member of WDL. My name is George, and I am a Front-End Developer – I have been employed to help with the current workload in the Front-End office.

My fascination with technology started many years ago when I first started taking things apart (and sometimes even putting them back together again!) As a child I wanted to be an aircraft engineer, after hearing so many of the stories that my late Grandfather had told me about being an engineer for the RAF during the second World War. With such a young brain, that level of technology amazed me.

My interest soon moved on to technology of a smaller scale when I first got a computer of my own. I was forever playing with new software, which, to cut a long story short, led to my love for open source software and the community that goes with it. Many hours were spent installing new operating systems, looking at a terminal window and trying to figure out what was going on.

Since then, I have completed both my GCSEs, and A Levels in Computer Science, Maths, Physics, 3D Product Design and General Studies at Colchester Grammar. I made the decision not to go to University because, at the time, I felt like I was pressured to make a decision that I wasn’t sure about. I was worried that I would rush the decision and choose to study something which I might not enjoy. Instead, I found a number of part-time jobs and continued to teach myself anything technological which took my interest.

I eventually found employment as a Web Designer/Developer with a small promotions company. While I thoroughly enjoyed the job, there were only two of us managing the website side of the company and I was still teaching myself. I knew that eventually I would have to find a job with a greater opportunity for my personal growth, and one where I would be working with a group of talented people who are more experienced than myself. Naturally, I have ended up here at WDL!

Why Web Design?
My passion for building websites stems from a keen interest in how technology and a sense of intuition can dramatically improve workflow, productivity and usability. The abstraction of an incredibly complex idea can so often lead to such a simple solution, and I love being a part of that process.

The rate at which technology develops in this industry is astounding and at times can be difficult to keep up with. Inevitably there are hurdles to overcome in every single project we take on, both in the design and the development. There are constantly challenges, for which there are always solutions – but these solutions are not necessarily easy to reach.

Thankfully for all our clients, I can safely say that everybody here (including myself) loves a challenge!

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Hi. I’m Luke – the newest member of the Digital Marketing team at WDL. I am here because I have a strong interest in sharing the stories of your brand to other internet users, whether it be through PPC, SEO, or, my particular favourite; social media. I thought I’d take a bit of time to introduce myself.
Who myself, or anyone else is, has always been an interest for me. I have been writing stories since I was four, with my first one being a re-imagination of myself as a superhero. Maybe not too original, but from there I started delving deeper and deeper into the character stories people have of themselves, and those stories they want to have (even if those stories mean wearing a cape and silly glasses.)

The social media explosion happened while I was settling in to do a Psychology undergraduate course at Essex University. At about the time I was learning about the parts of people that they can’t or won’t show, I saw that people around me were now using the internet to promote the positive side of their humanity.

Shortly after graduating from university, with new knowledge on how people act in social groups, how people process things they read, and a lot of statistical knowledge, I found myself volunteering at Slack Space.

Slack Space, a wonderful place that supports local Colchester Artists, taught me the very basics of marketing. The biggest lesson I learnt is that people will want to engage with you if you can provide them with ways of adding to their autobiographies.

I believe that all businesses can become more attractive if people can see their goods and/or services as becoming a vital part of their identity. That saucepan set isn’t just a way of boiling instant noodles; it’s the vital ingredient in creating the perfect macaroni and cheese for a first date. That blog isn’t just a piece of reading; it’s a two hour long debate with co-workers and a further four over the weekend with your new friends who just happen to work at the same place as you.

I am also all about increasing the communication potential of your website.  This includes making it as easy as possible for the search engines to index. Giving your site a full SEO audit is another interest of mine; checking that the characters of individual webpages aren’t just two dimensional but are realised to their fullest potential for human readers and contain juicy hidden dimensions for Google, Bing, and all other relevant search engines, without losing sight of the whole story of your website and brand.
Of course, if no one knows where you are, how are they meant to check you out? Slack Space and my own personal projects (of which I hope to write more about at a different date) have given me the skills to shout, or whisper, about your business. I am interested in creating pitch-perfect advertising campaigns, with just the right amount of text to encourage conversions from lead to customer. I will pour over all the statistics possible to maximise the efficiency of your ad campaign, bringing down your costs and bringing to you those people interested in adding your company’s story to their own personal tales.

And so, that is me and how I can help your business grow to its complete novel. Now, if you will excuse me, the extended literary metaphor has made me hungry for some Dickens.

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Last week Elliot (WDL MD) and myself joined other businesses from the Colchester area in meeting our allocated students from Colchester Institute’s Career Academy.

Back in July 2011 I first went along to the Institute to hear about their new IT Career Academy. During the event I was encouraged by the energy and enthusiasm of those who spoke so passionately about the Partners in Business programme. When I returned to the office I discussed the event with Elliot and we both decided to join up. CRB’s were filled in, and forms were signed and sent off. There was no turning back at that point.

Having committed ourselves to mentor a student over the next 18 months we were both unsure of our role, about what we were supposed to do, and ultimately what kind of student we would get.

Our ‘mentees’ were hand-picked for us by the staff at the Career Academy and the pair were great company during our first meeting. They had lots of questions about what we did and our experiences of working life, and in a room full of other mentors and mentees, we were left to our own devices to find out as much as we could about each other and seek out opportunities to build our relationships on.

The introduction lasted about 45 minutes and we arranged to meet again in a couple of weeks for a second meeting. Elliot and I asked them to think about what they wanted to achieve from the programme and to bring some questions for us to go through next time.

The Career Academy is a fantastic opportunity for both the students and the mentors alike and we can see many benefits for both of us during the months ahead.

A few of our responsibilities as mentors include;

• Preparing the students for employment and/or higher education by helping them gain the necessary skills to be ‘work ready’.
• Establish a positive, personal relationship with the student through regular interaction and consistent support.
• Help the student to develop life skills and instil the framework for developing broader life-management skills.
• Increase students ability to interact with people/groups from various backgrounds by introducing them to different environments.

Any tips would be welcome!

I know I can speak for Elliot too, when I say that we are apprehensive about the next 18 months. We are both acutely aware that we have a responsibility to give what we can to our mentees and to help them to achieve their personal goals. But equally (pressure aside), we are excited and looking forward to the challenge.

No doubt we’ll keep you posted during the process and who knows you may be hearing from our mentees at some point in future too.

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My goodness! What better way to get to know your new colleagues than being pitted against them in a go-karting extravaganza as part of the yearly Christmas outing?!

The day was Saturday 10th December, just 5 days after my first day at WDL, and I was honoured to join the rest of the team at Anglia Indoor Kart Racing in Ipswich for a day at the races with a difference.

We were racing around a professionally-designed, multi-level racing circuit in 7.5bhp 215cc go-karts, capable of reaching speeds of up to 40mph, and the competition was TOUGH.

First came the heats, where we raced in groups of 5 or 6 and had to complete 5 laps of the track. Unfortunately, I took a couple of the corners a bit too quickly and remember my face scrunching up as I braced for the rest of the karts to come round the corner and crash into me (spinning out on the corners is such a school-boy error and it cost me a place in the final *fume*). And, around the blind bend my colleagues came – the good news is they didn’t crash into me because they were so determined to keep on racing and win.

Notable heat events include Natalie, our Business Administrator, crashing into one of the safety foam blocks at the side of the track. This didn’t stop my only other female co-worker though – she was so determined to win that she tried to drive up the hill to the next level of the track with the foam block on the front of her kart. GO Natalie!

There was some foul play from a couple of the guys as the competition heated up, including a few bumps into karts resulting in spin offs, and Natalie seemed to be one of the worst affected.

The semi-finals were next, and we had to race for 7 laps of the track. The top racers from the heats, determined by the number of points earned in their heat races, were in one semi-final and the racers with the lowest points were in a separate semi-final.

I thought the heats were competitive, until I saw the semi-final, where Daniel, WDL’s Project Manager and my line manager, got black flagged (meaning he was driving dangerously, had to stop racing and go to the pits immediately). Unfortunately, he’d misunderstood the flags so carried on racing his heart out only to get ‘nil poi’.

At the end of the semi-finals, the top 6 racers were gearing up for the final, which consisted of 11 laps of the circuit.

The finalists were:

1.    Richard
2.    Craig
3.    Matt
4.    Tom
5.    Lloyd
6.    Sam

The pressure was really on for someone, ANYONE, to beat Matt because he had won at go-karting at the Christmas outings in both 2009 and 2010 (and he was slightly smug about it, to say the least).

Staff who hadn’t made the final watched on as Richard raced like a trouper and knocked Matt off the top spot and became the prestigious Go-Karting Champion of 2011! Well done, Richard!

Matt came a valiant second and Tom claimed third place, so well done to them too.

The end of the ‘GP’ was marked by the awards ceremony, with trophies given to the top 3 racers of the day and, to be honest, I was glad not to be on the podium as Richard sprayed Matt and Tom with his prize ‘champagne’ he was given! However, Matt got his own back on Richard and doused him in the ‘champagne’ too!

All in all it was a GREAT day and a huge thanks to Elliot, our MD, for treating us all to this fantastic experience.

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Clockwise from top left; Craig, Elliot, Matt, Tom, Daniel & Lloyd.

Our Movember facial furniture has all gone (see previous Movember post) and most of us are happy to see the back of it. Except Lloyd, who appears to still be fully attached to his for reasons only he knows. We suspect it’s Lloyd’s first time with hair on his face and he’s making the most of it. But, don’t worry ladies the rest of us have all returned to our usual handsome selves.

Our month of moustache-wearing went well and we managed to raise nearly £800 for Prostate Cancer and Testicular Cancer initiatives, which makes us very happy. It did come at a price as we spent the whole month with ridiculous face fuzz, meeting clients, family and friends in often embarrassing circumstances. More than once we’ve been left having to explain the concept of Movember, or run the risk of people thinking we were just a bit odd. It’s getting easier though as Movember works it way in to the public consciousness, and no doubt next year those who decide to take on the challenge will have less to explain.

On the whole it was definitely worth it. We’re proud of the part we have played in raising a significant amount of money which goes toward supporting a broad range of innovative, world-class programmes around mens health.

Will we do it again next year? Watch this space.

From left to right; Richard, Lloyd, Matt, Daniel, Elliot, Craig, Natalie? & Tom

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Wednesday this week saw most of us from WDL attending the 5th Colchester Digital Meetup. The Show & Tell event, this time hosted by Browser Media, was a great success with many new members in attendance.

The premise – 5 members had 5 minutes (or thereabouts – Joe and Sam went slightly over by about 30 minutes!) to tell the rest of us something about their business, experience or ideas relating to the digital sectors.

Joe Friedlein (Browser Media) opened proceedings by welcoming us to his offices and telling us a little bit about the company. Closely followed by Mike Morley (9eggs) who explained some of the work that he has been doing with mobile apps and flash conversion. Next, Terry Heffernan (High Postion) gave us an introduction to High Position; what they do, their clients and along with his colleague Tom Jepson, some insights into the future of SEO. Jamie Gledhill (Digital Surface) was next up and told us about his buisness, which offers digital media consultancy and production services. Finally Joe and Sam gave us an overview of their digital mapping idea for Colchester, which sparked plenty of debate and got everyone talking.

A big thank you must go out to Joe Friedlein who offered to host the event and bought the beers.

See below for more information on the speakers;

Joe Friedlein

Mike Morley

Terry Heffernan

Jamie Gledhill

Joe Stone

When WDL set up Colchester Digital in May/June this year, we hoped to get local digital businesses and individuals together to share and explore ideas. We knew it was a great idea and the numbers show there was definitely a niche to be explored. With nearly 100 members now we think the group has a future. Colchester Digital is not owned by any one business or individual, it’s owned and run by it’s members and although that can throw up complications when it comes to organisation it has worked so far. Long may it continue to bring like-minded people together.

If you want to join Colchester Digital visit our site and keep up to date with events.

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Slowly but surely WDL are taking steps towards a greener business.

We think getting ‘green bins’ for the office is a good place to start (we got ours from Nigel’s Eco Store). It might not seem like a big step, but it is a step in the right direction. As far as we’re concerned it’s only the beginning and as a business we have plans to become far ‘greener’ in 2012.

Ultimately we want to radically reduce our impact on the environment and feel suitably passionate about it to add it to our mission statement. We don’t expect to become carbon neutral overnight, but we are working on it!

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