Ersel Aker, co-founder of SaaS development agency FutureCast, has had an inspiring, and busy, journey into the tech world.
After graduating from the University of Manchester in 2015, he held a number of software development roles before joining part-time coding bootcamp Manchester Codes as one of its first tutors. He went on to become head of teaching, growing the teaching team to 21 staff.
In 2019, he teamed up with Rob Lihou, one of his students from Manchester Codes, to build JustFulfil, a SaaS platform connecting ecommerce sellers with logistics partners around the UK.
When the Covid pandemic hit, he also co-founded part-time coding bootcamp CyprusCodes, where he helped more than 100 students land their dream jobs in the tech world.
Now at the helm of FutureCast, the tech firm provides development, marketing, consulting and SaaS solutions in the edtech, ecommerce, and logistics industries.
Here, Aker shares what a recent week in his life looks like…
Monday
I currently split my time between Manchester and Cyprus, and this week I’m in the sunnier of the two locations. Mondays always involve getting the whole FutureCast team together to run through current projects, including identifying some of the technical complexities and where we expect any potential challenges.
One of my favourite projects currently is a web-based platform for Productive Machines. They’re a super cool spin-out from the University of Sheffield that have developed a smart algorithm to help reduce the damage caused by machine vibrations in metal mills. We’ve been with them from the beginning and it’s exciting to be part of that journey and see the projects we’ve supported them on go live.
Tuesday
On Tuesday, I check in with the students and teaching staff at CyprusCodes, a part-time coding bootcamp I founded during the pandemic. It helps people access the training they need to become a software developer.
It’s always great to catch up with the students and see how they’re progressing. Our industry is incredibly fast-moving, so I sit down with the team as often as I can to capture feedback, understand different learning needs and review the syllabus materials to make sure that the skills being taught are both relevant and employable. That often involves striking a balance between ensuring that the basics are being covered and acknowledging the latest tech trends.
Since CyprusCodes launched, we’ve successfully trained over 100 people, and today we’re looking at onboarding some of our talented graduates into the FutureCast team. I always look for students who exhibit a strong work ethic and a curious mind – qualities that really stand out in the tech world. As we bridge the gap between education and real-world projects, I love seeing people who wouldn’t necessarily have considered a career in software engineering become part of the industry.
Wednesday
On Wednesday, we hosted a lunch and learn session where we went over the latest changes to our Nodejs REST framework, Xest. The changes mean our backend developers can use code generation and AI to craft fully authenticated API endpoints with data validations – and increase output by around 15% as a result. As an agency, it can be hard to pull yourself away from the day-to-day, but these types of sessions are a great opportunity to share knowledge and ultimately benefits the work we’re delivering to clients.
Aside from the knowledge-sharing side of things, bringing the team together for something more social is always a great experience – and luckily, we’re spoilt for choice for great restaurants here in Cyprus! The country’s great weather, rich culture, and close-knit community make it a fantastic place to live.
Thursday
On Thursday, I had the exciting job of delivering a talk at a local tech event, where I spoke about some of the ways businesses can bring generative AI into their development workflow.
These events are a great forum to share ideas and inspiration. On top of that, chatting with the audience and other speakers always triggers new thinking – be it about new tools or ways of working.
Friday
As the week winds down, I head back to Manchester. I graduated from university here in 2015 and stayed on, tutoring at Manchester Codes (Manchester’s only full-stack part-time coding bootcamp at the time) before going on to lead the teaching team there.
The tech scene in Manchester is unlike anywhere else and the diversity of experience within the community is a huge part of what makes it so special. Way back when, I used to organise the meetup for MancJS, a group for JavaScript programmers and software development enthusiasts, and I try to meet up with as many old faces as I can when I’m back.
Today, I have a mix of social calls and business meetings but once I’m done, I head over to the Northern Quarter for a couple of drinks. Good food and great company are the perfect end to a busy week.
