StepSpace / 20 Feb Meet Our Members: ESO
Carole Callender, people experience and recruiting manager at ESO, tells us how their team in Belfast has been growing since they launched in their StepSpace office.
Tell me about the type of work your team in StepSpace is doing.
ESO offers a broad product ecosystem for Emergency Medical Services (EMS), hospitals and fire departments. Our products provide reporting, management, clinical, and operational functions. Our team based in the StepSpace office works on several of these. Our mission, which is at the heart of everything we do, is to improve community health and safety through the power of data. Our Engineering team in Belfast works with latest technologies, including .NET Core, Function Apps, Docker, Kubernetes, Azure, AKS, Event Driven Architectures, and more.
How do you get the most form your employees?
It’s about trust and empowerment. We have really good people here who want to do really good work and it’s important to us that we create the right environment where they can thrive. You don’t hire good people and then tell them how to do the job; you hire good people because they know how to do the job. Micro-managing our folk is not our way. We trust our people and give them the room and resources to show us just how good they are.
How is your team settling in to StepSpace?
Like ducks to water. The StepSpace office provides us with the space for our team to grow and to focus on delivering great software. It’s also a great collaboration and social space. We have all we need from an office space at this exciting stage of our growth.
What is your business hoping to achieve this year?
To continue to grow and to keep developing and delivering our fantastic software that delivers real and positive impact to emergency medical services and fire professionals that make a difference in the communities they serve.
What is your team in Belfast like and what skills do you have on site in StepSpace?
We are so, so lucky that we have found amazing team members. Yes, they are a highly talented technical team; however, being part of ESO is much more than that. We look for those who are also passionate about what they do and are great to work with. Our team is currently made up of an amazing bunch of meaty problem solvers under the guise of Java and .NET Software Engineers and Testers.
What is the most important event in your calendar every year?
Without a doubt it’s our Wave event. Wave is the leading EMS, Fire and Hospital industry conference for leveraging data to transform organizations and improve care quality in North America. Attendees get access to the best in thought leadership, data analysis and in-field experience to help them foster change within their organisation. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate wins and look to the future.
How did your business start?
ESO started back in 2004 when two friends walked into a coffee shop in Austin. One was a Paramedic and the other was a software developer, and both of them wanted to improve the health of the community by using data. Fast forward 16 years (and a lot of coffee) and that paramedic, who is now our CEO, was encouraged by the Board (some of whom had previous experience of setting up companies in Northern Ireland) to consider expanding to Belfast. Throw Invest NI and a few trips to our green island into the mix and our CEO was convinced that the talent he needed was here.
What customers do you work with?
EMS agencies, fire departments and hospitals. We’re also rapidly expanding into adjacent markets.
What is the best thing about working for your business?
It’s hard to pick just one thing. I’d say that the best thing about working for ESO is knowing that everything we do, whether directly or indirectly, is making a difference to the health and safety of thousands of people. In addition, it’s a fun, sociable place to work where development is encouraged. It’s also fantastic to be surrounded by a bunch of great people whose skills blow me away.
What support, advice or guidance has had the biggest impact on growth of your business?
Hire the right people. Not just those technically brilliant or those who you like but those who are both. It makes hiring much more challenging; however, the payoff is worth it.