Backend Software Engineer, OVO

As an engineer building things is why I join a company. At OVO not only are we building great things, the teams are fully empowered to build their software in the way that they see best - ensuring value is delivered. That autonomy maximises innovation and allows teams to keep pace with technology.

At OVO all opinions are valid and leadership at all levels put aside time to ensure they are listening to the ideas and concerns of all team members. Its all about progress being made together.

The mission to provide Green energy to all customers, and to enable all our customers to start on a journey towards zero carbon living is written in our DNA. You can see it, feel it and experience it.

The work is very challenging and as a young growing company, there is lot of opportunities for learning and pioneering work. I feel like I am growing fast with the work I am doing at OVO

People at OVO are intelligent and nice people who are always on the look out for making great work happen. Being surrounded by all these smart people inspires you to bring your A game

The company's mission is very inspiring and something I am very proud of being tied to. Everyone in the organization truly cares about the mission, which makes our jobs more than just jobs but a meaningful purpose

Support for work life balance is a priority and this is complimented by many of the benefits and facilities available to employees. Managers very much focus on setting you up for success and to get the best from people.

There is genuine empowerment for squads on how work is completed. There is a lot of collaboration and ideas from every level of engineer are encouraged and discussed. Pairing is common but not mandatory meaning that this can be used as appropriate for learning, mentoring or just because its how you like to work. There are technical principles in place, but in general the tech stack evolves quiet naturally and in a way that means the vast majority of work is on current or emerging technologies.

I have a great rapport with my Manager and I'm comfortable to ask or discuss any topic. They will regularly inform me decisions or discussions going on at their level or above. Changes are informed well in advance but more often come after a level of consultation. I like how the company actively focus on removing bureaucracy and take onboard employees feedback, often implementing changes within a few months.

There is the freedom to work how you choose to work! You are trusted to deliver in the way that you prefer. Provided you are transparent and want to do what's right, you can work in a way that suits you.

If you have a family, OVO is very flexible. Members of my team have school pick up and various commitments and we all work to ensure that work doesn't cause any issues to family life.

The work at OVO is very challenging but also incredibly important. There's a real purpose behind every incentive, particularly related to promoting and living a greener lifestyle.

Belonging is considered in everything we do. Not only do we have many programmes running to help increase our diverse talent, we also include belonging as part of every new project. We have opportunities for people to learn available almost every week and we make sure leaders see belonging as a priority in their teams.

Our purpose and mission is extremely clear and has stayed the same since the company began. Everyone knows it and really believes it which means there's always a greater good to work towards on any project.

For the UK's third biggest energy provider, we're quite small. This means there's lots of opportunity to get involved in different projects and to make a role your own.

One of my criteria in my most recent round of job-hunting was a family-friendly leave policy for the scenario of becoming a new parent, and OVO's policy is absolutely top shelf, not just in this regard but across the board.

There are sessions and OVO Belonging networks and all sorts of streams to tap into that are centred around diversity and inclusion. It is also a very present guiding principle in our recruitment and hiring processes. This week alone, we have Deaf Awareness Week and a session on neurodiversity on the calendar, and next week is Mental Health Awareness Week.

OVO's Plan Zero is our way towards tackling the single most important issue of our time: the climate crisis. There is progress reporting and check-ins and it plays a part in everything we do. My team is currently assisting with integrating carbon cost calculations related to our cloud platform usage.

My manager is really supportive of who I am and how I work. They've taken the time to understand my career goals and personal development goals so that they can tailor their approach to support me with my progress.

When OVO say flexible working that is exactly what they mean. I use the flexible working approach to manage my own work life balance - that could mean I sometimes start work earlier, or later, it just depends on what time I choose to go to the gym. ( It's not 6am anymore )

Since joining OVO my career journey has continued to evolve, with the support of my manager I had a clear development path and I knew what I need to achieve to grow.

New perspectives and opinions are always encouraged. It may sometimes feel like a silly suggestion but I always feel able to express my point of view and share with my team because we have a very open and non-judgemental culture. The diversity of view points helps us find the best solutions.

We have a very open and non-judgemental culture within my team (and OVO) and I do not think this would be achievable without the support and leadership of my manager. He is excellent at reaching out to find out if there is anything more he can be doing in any given situation to provide help and support where needed. He really cares about my development and is actively helping me work towards a management position myself.

My team at OVO really inspire and support each other. There is such a great energy and excitement when we are working together to identify and solve an issue. Given that several members of our team are mostly remote the whole team has made a real effort to join social video chats to engage on a personal level as well as developing our professional relationships.

OVO Energy is challenging the entire industry and way of thinking for a greener, innovative and inclusive world. Everyone can be at the front line to challenge the status quo in a complex problem space while collaborating with friendly and clever colleagues.

I'm personally grateful for the flexibility given with no micro management, working at home or in the office, meet within core hours and deciding when to take time off.

Everyone will hear my opinions and include those into a better process. There is always room to be aware of the bigger pictures and why we do what we do.

Amazing growth and development opportunities in your role - something I really value as personal and professional development is something I really care about.

We do amazing work with our Belonging network, ensuring that everyone feels like they Belong at OVO. It's so strong, it's become a standalone brand in its own right..

We have a truly market/industry leading approach to flexible working, that I truly feel makes us completely differentiated from both direct and indirect competitors. In addition, I feel that it enables me to strike a true work/life balance, something i'm extremely grateful for.

It's really exciting to be working for a company whose mission plays such a big part in reducing carbon emissions, and seeing how we can contribute to making that happen.

I've found my colleagues to be a lovely bunch of people. Everyone is always looking to help each other out. Teams come together to support each other.

There's definitely a lot going on at OVO, but I've found there's a lot of care to not overload people too much with work. I've found balancing my workload and my family life to be ok. Can't be said for a lot of places!

A lot of time allocated to learning and upskilling within teams. Other team members happy to help discuss complex technical issues. Valued and listened to.

Listened to in planning sessions for work and always able to recommend different methods of working. Management is happy to try new ways of doing things.

Lot's of different cutting edge Data Teams working on a host of different projects. Fun Off Site Days once a quarter where you can meet other Data colleagues.

Fully hybrid working means that teams and individuals can choose to work in one of the offices or at home according to their needs. Being able to work from home gives me plenty of opportunity to spend more time with my two young kids.

As a father of two, I often think about sustainability and what the future means for my children. Part of the OVO's mission is to help tackle the climate crises via Plan Zero, and it makes me feel great that I can make a difference in such an important topic.

Everyone at OVO is so great. My team get on so well with each other and will always help each other out when needed, and when something goes wrong everyone tries to make it better without finger-pointing.

There are so many opportunities to upskill yourself and OVO again invests that, including but not limited to, your own learning budget to spend on whatever you like. I've seen so many of my colleagues progress into more roles and I'm excited for my future here.

The opportunities are endless. My manager walked me through a development plan that allows me to visualise where I want to go and what I want to do. Partnered with the great development material, I am able to see and reach my goals.

Those at OVO are just, so great. Everyone cares about everyone, we are one team! This is the first company where I've actually made friends at work, with regular socials, I meet more of those outside of my department which concretes what I think of OVO.

I've worked at a lot of companies where there are quite a number of people who are unpleasant to work with - this isn't the case at OVO. Everyone I've met in my time here has been friendly, knowledgeable, and willing to help you if they're able.

I'm lucky enough to be a home worker but I've got an easy commute to get into the office if I want to head in. Hybrid working is a high priority for me and the fact I can choose makes it even better. Not only that but you can work from almost anywhere if you need to visit family abroad or anything like that.

OVO is the first company I've worked at where it really feels like this. There is virtually no feeling of an ivory tower or that the higher up the chain, the less likely they will acknowledge you. It's quite the opposite! Everyone is approachable and willing to have a chat.

We are brought together by a properly motivating purpose around helping our customers achieve net zero homes by 2035. But also our work in data is meaningful to use as data professionals because we get to apply ML / AI and data best practise (like mesh strategy) to our day to day work.

There's a lot of personal care and support not just from managers but also from the team because there is a good culture. The leadership work hard to share strategy and updates so we know how we are doing and how our work fits in. If there are personal (like home life) problems there is a lot of support too and there is a flexible way of working.

Best set of networks for inclusion and diversity I've seen. So many motivated people. Our CEO Raman is amazing at setting a great example of inclusivity. Not every smaller team is AS diverse as it could be but across the wider teams there is good representation at all levels. There is especially strong female leadership in tech and data.

I've worked across multiple areas within OVO and various projects are in a challenging areas, with so many regulatory changes and energy and non-energy innovations the work is always challenging. Stakeholders always challenge us to deliver quicker and with an open and constructive conversation.

I have a kid that was born in 2020, and OVO were great with being flexible. Nowadays I am a homeworker and rarely go into the office, only when there is a group session or social where I want or 100% need to be there will I make the journey. OVO is also very flexible on hours working, I work 9-5.30 but flexible as I need to drop off and pick up my kid from nursery, OVO works around this and everyone knows to allow flexibility.

The Plan Zero and now Path to Zero is an awesome ambition to strive for. Knowing that a business wants to shake up the industry and not sit back and accept the situation we're in really makes you sit up, take note and want to do better. The work I've been involved in directly moves us towards this mission and goal of a net-zero energy grid and I hope it inspires others to do the same.

At OVO we have big ambitions to make energy greener, cleaner and more affordable. With a goal to get to true net zero by 2035, the projects we work on are vast in scope and complexity keeping it fresh and exciting. As we bring emerging technology to people's homes, we're solving not only for today's use cases, but the future which sees the impact of our decisions scale exponentially. From a UX perspective there is so much we can to help our customers and in the true spirit of OVO, ensure we don't leave anyone behind on that journey.

OVO's purpose is rooted in doing good by people and the planet. This makes the work we do even more special. We truly take a customer first approach and despite how trite that sounds, it's hugely recognised that it's what got us to where we are today and will get us to where we want to be tomorrow

Working on big ambitions and complex challenges can be hard going at times, but being surrounded by knowledgable and genuinely nice people makes the day to day so much easier. Whether it's direct support to share the load or a quick chat, people make time for each other and we know we can rely on others in times of need.

People are genuinely nice and there's little internal politics between teams vs other places I've worked. Everyone's keen to work towards the same goals and has a genuine care for our customers.

Work is challenging but teams are well organised and we have a great offshore development team. People are very collaborative in finding solutions to complex problems.

There's a huge focus on belonging and welcoming everyone whatever their background, there are several internal networks you can join to either meet people from a similar background or learn more about groups you may not personally be part of.

There are huge incentives around things such as women in tech, pride, trans awareness, black history month, disability awareness and many more, all employees are encouraged to get involved.

People are celebrated for their achievements company wide on a weekly basis. Prizes are given, shoutouts at all hands meetings, announcements in newsletters etc.

There are many employee networks to support wellbeing, flexible working helps people with families or disabilities etc, we are also encouraged to take a day a week away from meetings.

OVO is a very inclusive place to work, from our belonging networks to regular events in our belonging calendar OVO always makes me feel included. When it comes to Diversity in hiring we hold regular retros and workshops to see if we are leading in this space. We collect lots of feedback on what we can do differently to make our processes more fair and flexible for everyone. This is all rounded off by our belonging report which is shared with everyone to showcase how we are moving the dial each year.

OVO has a great mission (Plan Zero) which feels like a huge part of our culture. Everything we work on feels like it ties into our customers and what we can do to bring Plan Zero to life. Working for OVO there is a genuine buzz that what we are doing is really making a difference. Whether you're a software engineer building our energy management platforms, a field engineer installing the latest green tech in customers homes or everyone in between keeping the cogs turning we are all helping to bring Net Zero to life.

OVO's Ways of Working Policy is truly flexible. We have choiced based working meaning that I can choose the hours I work and where I work from to achieve the outcomes that are needed. We have 3 UK based hubs (Bristol, London & Glasgow) which are really great spaces for collaboration and team connection but always have virtual options for home based workers. I have true autonomy to deliver my work and never feel like i'm being checked in on, walking meetings are encouraged and there are free lunches at the hubs for days where I want to work from the office!