Employee Spotlight: Luke Stanford, Senior Software Engineer

We’re pleased to introduce you to Luke Stanford, our senior software engineer in the Wellington, New Zealand, office. Luke helps make the magic behind our products, and we couldn’t do it without him. Let’s get to know Luke.

Please describe your role.

I’m a senior developer with a diverse skillset that I’ve developed over the past three or so years since I’ve been with ikeGPS. I tend to gravitate toward the measurement and scientific aspect, so I’ve been involved in the development of the hardware platforms and measurement capability of all our current products.

What’s a typical day in the office life?

For me, it varies based on the project. As a platform-level engineer, l could be designing different test or calibration systems, writing and reviewing code, building data analysis tools, or doing optics experiments.

What were you doing before you joined ikeGPS?

I worked as a web developer in the education sector.

Why did you decide to join ikeGPS?

ikeGPS has always provided an exciting opportunity to innovate in markets that clearly have a need for efficiency. Also, I get to work with the best people, and it’s been a great opportunity for me to grow.

What did you want to be when you grow up?

I’ve always been interested in how things work, so I think I was destined to be in technology, but in an alternate universe, perhaps I’d be a pro cricket player.

What are some of your favorite outside office activities?

Spending time with my young family. My partner and I have two young boys, who are 2 and 4 years old, so that keeps me busy at the moment. We are often found in the outdoors in one of the many parks around Wellington.
I still find time for mountain biking and audio production for games, music or film. I recently had an blast in a 72-hour make-a-game competition with a friend. It turned out pretty cool, admittedly without much replay value.

If you could create your perfect meal, what would it be?

I think there is no perfect. I like to try different things. Recently, I was in Shenzhen and got to try some amazing dishes. I love the variety of dishes there. For instance, bracken and seaweed make a good side dish to have with a main course.

What’s your dream vacation?

At the moment, I keep hearing about how amazing snowboarding is in Washington and Canada. I would love to head to Whistler in Canada at some point in the future. Either that or I’d love to do a Whanganui River canoe trip, which I have been trying to organize for a while.