Jon Atkinson20/09/22
5 min read
2022 has been a busy year for us at Giant Digital – lots of wonderful new clients has meant that we have been able to expand our team and bring in some great new talent. Please do join us in welcoming our four latest recruits who are already making a real difference to our work in the charity sector.
In our product design team, we are pleased to welcome Cael O’Sullivan, who joins us as Product Designer. Cael has a wealth of wonderful experience from his work prior to joining Giant Digital, and will be formalising his passion for UX/UI with an apprenticeship qualification.
With a background in graphic design and qualifications in (UX-focused) illustration, Cael’s career to date includes designing user-friendly card and board games. He also spent 10 years working with a theatre company where, during the pandemic, he was heavily involved in designing new ways for the theatre to engage and interact with audiences online. His successes include helping design an audience-led show, where people were able to suggest and vote for their ideal storyline, and the development and production of a horror game called SHUT IN – a concept Cael had created during his studies, which became a real success for the theatre.
The main thing that attracted me to the apprenticeship at Giant Digital was the opportunity to gain formal training in UX. I've done well by myself to date, but it definitely felt the right time to work with an experienced team and hone what has become a primary interest for me. I love working with Giant because they really care about their staff, the people they work with, and their commitment to an ethical framework.
Cael has already made a big impression with his enthusiasm and creativity, and we are certain he has a very bright future ahead of him.
Jake is our new Frontend Engineer and not only brings a great depth of technical experience to our team, but also some other very useful language and marketing skills too!
Jake started his career as an English and Media Studies Teacher, where he began creating Portfolio websites for students – an activity which sparked his interest in technology and marketing. From this Jake moved on to working with Jaguar Land Rover where he was able to perfect his technical skills, building websites for over 24 countries.
In his most recent role at a social media company, Jake was instrumental in introducing and integrating new web development services, where he created and led a team focused purely on building cool websites.
I wanted to feel proud not only of my work but who I did my work for. Working with charities gives me a great sense of purpose that I don’t think I’ll find anywhere else. I feel like working with Giant, I am home.
We are extremely pleased to welcome Jake to our team. He is already an important member of the frontend team and we are certain that his broad experience and expertise will not only complement the skills we currently possess in the team, but also help us deliver even more value for our clients.
Karl is the latest member of our engineering team and, like Cael, joins us in an apprenticeship role.
Having an interest in software engineering but no prior experience, Karl joined a 3-month bootcamp with Northcoders, where he learned the core skills needed to pursue a career in the sector.
During his time looking for a suitable role, Karl decided to explore what an apprenticeship qualification could offer in addition to his original studies. This is where he came across the opportunity with Giant Digital. The apprenticeship route has enabled Karl to continue learning whilst gaining practical experience, as well as offering the opportunity to further explore other areas of the development lifecycle.
Giant has everything I wanted from a role, flexibility, working from home, good progression and a talented team. I’m really pleased to join them.
Karl joins the team at an exciting time of growth at Giant Digital and is making great progress in his new frontend role – his fresh ideas and dedication to the work we carry out make him a great addition to the team.
Just heading into his third and final year of a Computer Science degree at Lancaster University, Ben has joined our software engineering team in the role of intern.
Ben’s passion for sport and the outdoors is almost as keen as his interest in software engineering, and he spends much of his free time on personal software projects. At Giant Digital, Ben will be part of the Backend Development team, learning the ropes from our more experienced developers, and gaining plenty of practical experience.
I’ll be joining the team with a focus on backend development and I’m really looking forward to advancing my Django skills. I’m also pleased to be working with some great charities, helping to build their websites and add new features and functionality.
Ben has already proved himself adept in technical skills and has a keen eye for detail which is incredibly important for the work he will be undertaking. We are sure he will be a great asset to the team and are looking forward to supporting him at this early stage in his career.
We are incredibly proud of our whole team at Giant Digital and the level of professionalism and passion each and every one has for the work we do. We're therefore very pleased to welcome 4 new team members who also possess these important traits, and are certain that their enthusiasm, ideas, experience and skills will further enhance our team and the work we carry out for our wonderful charity clients.
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Jon Atkinson
CTO at Giant Digital
Jon heads up the development team as Technical Director and founding partner at Giant Digital. With over 20 years as a Python developer, he has the perfect balance of hands-on experience and strategic expertise when it comes to developing innovative and technically sound solutions for charities. He fully understands the importance of user-driven design to create engaging and effective platforms that deliver real impact.
