Behind the Scenes: The Real Fullscript Culture

Bonjour! I am Devanshee Kalpeshkumar Vankani, a Ruby Intern at Fullscript, part of the Search & Discovery pod. Over the past few months, I’ve been contributing to backend development on various mini-projects aimed at simplifying practitioners’ tasks, from creating treatment plans to selecting the best products based on recommendations and popularity. As I immersed myself in these responsibilities, I also got to experience the unique and vibrant culture at Fullscript. While I’ve often heard companies talk about “company culture” and “ethics,” the reality seldom matches the claims. However, my experience at Fullscript has been refreshingly different. I’m incredibly proud to be part of a company that genuinely lives its culture and values, and I am here to celebrate that🌟!

I have a zillion things to share. To begin with, my interview process was so smooth and comfortable. I never felt the “pressure” to answer, and it’s because of The People, I believe. Soon, I had my offer letter right in my inbox, which by far was the happiest day of my life here in Canada 🇨🇦. Then came the first day. Honestly, I was quite nervous since it’s my first real job here in a new country and a completely different culture. However, the moment I entered the CSQ (Ottawa campus), I was welcomed by the people, and within a moment, all my fear disappeared. The people here are so welcoming and inviting that you never feel like an outsider.

Well, the first days and the on-boarding's are usually the smoothest everywhere. Let me share with you what makes Fullscript so much better 🚀.

To begin with, I would like to appreciate the company policy that ensured a smooth start with the development processes and understanding the code base by assigning a Buddy. The journey becomes real quick and smooth when an experienced person guides you with all the necessary do’s and don’ts. I feel lucky to have shadowed my buddy, who was also an intern when he joined the company. He knew exactly what vitamins I needed to get a power-start with my journey. Shoutout to all buddies! 🙌

Then came the day when my first MR got merged. For the first time, I experienced the celebration of the first MR 🎉 . My Slack notifications started popping up quickly, one after another, with so many people celebrating and congratulating me. I was surprised & shocked. It was then that I realized — no matter how crazy it might sound from outside, it’s actually people cheering you up and making you feel confident in your contribution. It was that day when I got to know so many people with whom I might potentially work in the future on cross-team projects. These small actions make the workplace inclusive and inviting in a real sense. I did get an opportunity to work on a cross-team project, and I definitely feel that this little gesture made me way more comfortable and confident to interact with the members of the other team 🤝.

Moving forward, working here has been an absolute bliss. Unlike the daily stand-ups or scrum-calls, I got to experience a unique organization where we work on mini-projects and take complete ownership of the work.️ It comes as no surprise that there are no dedicated QAs since the devs take complete ownership of the work, starting with their involvement in design jams, planning, implementation, writing specs and testing. It is fun to test the feature altogether as a team in the Testing Parties where we try to vigorously test the feature and try our best to break it. This gives us the confidence that it is bug-free and safe to release. Our bi-weekly sync calls keep everyone updated, and occasionally playing games is a fantastic ice-breaker 🎮. Focused Wednesdays is our favorite. Every wednesday is a dedicated no-meeting day that allows us to code the plan. ️

Since COVID, the virtual era took its peak. All the meetings from then onwards were in a virtual meeting room, talking to the profile picture of their colleagues. It’s more convenient for people to talk with their camera off. Well, at Fullscript, I enjoy the ‘camera on-always’ policy. This not only made me feel so involved, focused, and productive in every single meeting, but it also made me feel so much more connected with my teammates. So much so that when I met everyone for the first time in the in-person hackathon, I was not surprised by the infectious and motivated vibe they had, but with their heights 😂. This trend definitely helped us bond and grow faster as teams.

Speaking of growth, it is crucial for every company to grow as fast as possible to survive the competition. I was thrilled to hear that one of the four guiding principles is “Grow faster than the company.” It gives me immense pleasure when I can focus on my growth, be involved in different aspects of software development, and learn so much more than just a specific domain. The personal growth that I’ve experienced so far is immense when I spend my 10% time every week working on some frontend tasks, designing ER diagrams, or involving myself in cross-team projects.

How can I forget the Flex Fridays, yet another highlight, easing us into the weekend so we return refreshed and ready for the next week ✨ .

The trust my leaders place in me allows me to perform at my best without the pressure to just solve tickets. This trust and the appreciation for my contributions motivate me to excel. Well, this is not something that I claim; it’s my Script coin collection that proves it. I have truly felt that when given responsibility with trust, any person can outperform themselves any day without a doubt💪.

I’m grateful for all the opportunities I’ve had and the recognition that follows each effort 🙏.

Thank you, Fullscript, for fostering such an amazing culture and providing a supportive environment! A shoutout to all the Fullscripters who brought this culture from the Onboarding-document to the Reality. Cheers 🥂.️