When Ross Williams spotted a job opportunity at Whitbread, he already had a connection to the business. His mum and auntie had worked for the company for a combined 21 years, long before Premier Inn became the household name it is today. But family history wasn't the only reason he wanted to join. Having experienced redundancy in a previous role, Ross was looking for stability and an opportunity to build his career. Since joining, he's made his mark by taking ownership of technical challenges, working with teams across the business and progressing into a Tech Lead role.
For Ross, one of the best ways to develop has been to identify problems and take responsibility for solving them. “For me, it was identifying something critical that wasn’t working,” he says. “You say, ‘I can own this,’ improve it, drive the change, and productionise it.”
One example was his work on the architecture supporting our Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) platform. Ross redesigned the system's disaster recovery arrangements, reducing the potential loss of data following a failure from six months to 24 hours, and cutting recovery time from two days to just 30 minutes. It was a significant technical improvement, demonstrating the impact that taking ownership and applying specialist knowledge can have across the business.
Ross believes technical expertise is only part of building a successful career. Working well with others, sharing knowledge and developing strong relationships have been just as important.
“Make friends. Maintain good relationships,” he says.
That approach helped him build a reputation across the business, with colleagues recognising his contribution and his willingness to help other teams overcome challenges. When an opportunity arose to move into a Tech Lead role, Ross had the experience and relationships to take the next step. He also credits the encouragement he received from his managers and senior colleagues, “My boss told me I should go for it,” he says.
Today, Ross's role as Tech Lead gives him the opportunity to combine his technical background with a greater focus on strategy, leadership and supporting others. As technology continues to evolve, he believes these skills will become increasingly important.
“With the rise of AI, the dynamic is changing,” he says. “In future, it’s decision-making, strategy and leadership that will win out.”
For Ross, career development has been about more than waiting for the next opportunity. It's come from taking ownership, delivering improvements and building relationships with the people around him.