Getting to Know Niall Kennedy

Staff Insight at YellowDog

Any company is only as strong as its team; we’re fortunate here at YellowDog to have quite a squad of talent. Get to know one of our latest pack members, Niall Kennedy.

What is your job title here at YellowDog, and what does that mean?

I’m the Product Manager for Financial Services. I’m responsible for what our product offering looks like and how our customers interact with us. A big part of this is gaining feedback from a range of companies across Financial Services to understand what they like now and what they would love to have in the future. This forms the basis for how the development team is directed.

When did you join YellowDog, and why?

I joined in May 2018, which currently makes me the second-to-last person in the door! I was already a Product Manager in a previous role but I joined because of the potential in YellowDog. Joining at an early stage of a product is like starting out on the ground floor of an elevator and moving up before the roof is even on the building. It is phenomenal.

What does an ‘average’ day for you look like?

I think a typical day is hard to describe!

There are several distinct things: I’m often preparing for meetings and customer engagement, considering features we want to produce, speaking with developers, understanding where their blocks are, and ensuring that they are empowered to get ready for the next stage of development.

Over all of that, research is important to understand where we are right now and how we are evolving for our Financial Services customers.

What is it about YellowDog that you think is unique?

When I first met with Gareth, he said something that made complete sense and really resonated with me: “we want to be the Uber or AirBnB of compute.” Some of the most successful companies out there link buyers and sellers – often through a platform. Our offering for compute is very unique which uniquely places YellowDog to deliver something extraordinary.

What is the office atmosphere like, and how does it compare to previous places you have worked?

There’s a real buzz to it! We’re all doing different things but we’re on the same journey and that means there’s a shared sense of purpose. There’s no one that you don’t talk to, and if there’s something that you need for your part of the journey, everyone gets behind you. In other larger companies that I have worked in, different teams don’t talk to each other as they have completely different goals in mind. They aren’t competing with each other, they are just very separate. Here at YellowDog, we all know where we’re going.

Did anything surprise you after joining YellowDog?  

YellowDog is a relatively small company but we have a huge amount of automation with systems for all parts of your daily work life. We use technology to make our jobs a lot easier; I have never really thought about it before, but all of those little admin tasks used to mount up!

What would you say to someone who was considering YellowDog as a partner/employer?

Do it!

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