Ho Nguyen is a Senior Quality Assurance Software Engineer at Wizeline. With almost four years of experience working at Wizeline, Ho offers unique insights to computer science and engineering professionals who aspire to grow their careers in quality management. In this interview, he tells his story of what it was like growing up in the rural lands of Southern Vietnam before becoming the first person in his family to attend university.
Ho was born in Long An province, located in the Mekong Delta region of Southern Vietnam. Long An, an agricultural province, is best known for its natural beauty and cultural diversity. Ho spent his childhood and adolescence growing up on a farm with his parents, brother, and many farm animals. Some of his most fond memories are summers playing in the garden and large open fields with his brother.
Coming up, Ho never thought much about his post-high school graduation path. He grew up experiencing the life of a farmer, so for the most part, that was all he knew and essentially what he expected of himself. However, the eleventh grade changed the trajectory of his life.
That year, he was given a class assignment that stood out from the rest. Ho talked about the article he was assigned in class and how his research to complete the report sparked an interest in something beyond farming. He was able to dive into IT, which inspired his pursuit of computer science at the university level. Upon high school graduation, Ho attended the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City.
Ho had to make a big adjustment like most college kids when he left home, “That first year away was hard,” he stated. It was the farthest he’d been away from home, and the times between trips back were the longest he was away from his family. “Going to university was also a bit of a culture shock. As a person who grew up in a rural area, the city life I experienced while at university took some getting used to,” he went on to say. However, developing bonds with people in his program helped his transition and made the years leading up to graduation much easier than that first year. In 2011, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science.
Upon graduation, Ho didn’t know where he wanted his degree to take him, so he took this opportunity to get his foot in the door and gain some real industry experience. His first job out of college was as a web developer at a startup.
Later in 2011, Ho joined Global CyberSoft JCS. However, his second post-graduation job gave him a better insight into what he wanted to do. He also went back to school to study advanced IT during this time. Ho obtained his masters in computer science in 2014 from the University of Information Technology – Vietnam National University HCMC.
In Quality Control, his focus was on the inspection aspect of quality management. Ho spoke of his enjoyment of his role’s overall quality management aspect. However, he decided to pursue another avenue for his next role, and thus when he joined KMS Technology in 2015, he joined their team as a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer. Ho spent the next three years fine-tuning his skills on the Quality Assurance side of things.During his time there, he was heavily focused on one account. So, when that account ended, Ho decided that he didn’t want to start over with the same company, “That’s essentially what it felt like to me after working on one account for so long,” he stated. His preference was a fresh start at a new company. Ho joined Wizeline in October of 2018.
When reflecting on how he came to join Wizeline, Ho started with, “Funny story,” he began with a small laugh. “So while I was interviewing with another tech company, the interviewer literally told me that he didn’t think they would be a good fit for the environment I was looking for in my next company. However, he went on to say that he had a friend that worked for Wizeline and that their friend described Wizeline as exactly what I was looking for and that I should apply to work for them. So I did, and almost four years later, I’m still here.”
As a QA software engineer, on a project-to-project basis, Ho has his hands in things from planning to delivering high-quality and successful products. “QA Engineers do not develop the software, but they make it better by trying to destroy it manually and through automation,” he explained. “They just do it before the clients and users get the chance!”
Ho’s role is far from solo work. The teams he collaborates with are responsible for identifying new opportunities for improvement from the very beginning of each project. When asked about the most memorable project he’s worked on since joining Wizeline, Ho responded, “My most memorable project was with one of our clients, a travel package company. It was one of my biggest projects at that time. Initially, I was the only QA on the project that laid the cultural foundation of working and collaborating between the client and the development team with QA to ensure the best product.”As he put it, the project had many challenges, such as testing on multiple platforms, from the web to mobile, through real and cloud devices. “I played multiple roles in the project,” he stated. “I was QA, BA, and team lead, which made me push over my limit to mature more.”
Ho had one big thing to say about what he’s learned most during his time at Wizeline. “People usually love to listen more than they talk,” he says. He advises, “Be brave enough to contribute opinions during project and Wizeline meetings. Don’t be afraid to have transparent discussions.” And for both Wizeliners and non-Wizeliners whose career goals align with his, “I recommend taking a look at the career ladder in Wizeline and see how you can align your interests and your desired tech-stack,” stated Ho. “And define your suitable goals.”
When asked what’s next in his career journey, Ho wasn’t sure about the distant future. But one thing made clear was that he’s happy he’s along for the Wizeline ride. “Wizeline continues to grow. But no matter how big the company gets regarding how many people work here or how many clients we bring in, there’s always transparency. There is always engagement between managers and employees,” he says. In his role, he is eager to witness Wizeline’s growth and see how much excitement and opportunities new projects bring.
