2019 – The Year That Was

Another year close to completion and we find ourselves moving into a new decade. The year 2020, to a boy who grew up in the 70’s and 80’s, seems more attune to a Buck Rogers episode than today’s date, yet here we are.

Achievements

Parashift enjoyed many achievements this year, one of which is the several new and highly talented people joining the team.

The technology industry is often thought of as male-dominated, however in mid-January, Parashift will be precisely 50% male and female in its workforce ratio. This is not the outcome of an imposed quota system but the result of hiring the best candidate available. All employees deserve the pride in knowing they are here on merit.

Our people

Firstly and all the way from France, I am thrilled to welcome Desline Simon to Parashift. Desline joins Parashift in the role of Technical Lead and is tasked to build a world class technical team for Parashift. She holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Research in National Language Processing and has worked on several cutting-edge projects in both academia and the commercial world. Desline brings a wealth of technical expertise to Parashift and we are incredibly fortunate to have someone of this calibre. With much enthusiasm we say “Bienvenue en Australie!”.

Catherine Rowland returned to work after taking some time from raising her two beautiful children Liam and Lexie. Catherine’s extensive knowledge in software testing provides Parashift with a mature approach to our production of quality software. With a keen eye for usability and defects, Catherine has an uncompromising commitment to getting the job done. Coupled with a dry wit, Catherine has become an integral member of the Parashift team.

Marketing for any company is a vital function and Parashift elected to bring this function in-house in 2019. We sought the services of a talented person with excellent creative and organisational skills.
Enter Aretta Holtman, experienced marketer in the technology and business to business space. Aretta holds a Bachelor of Business (Marketing) and has worked for blue-chip companies such as Telstra. With no time to rest, Aretta successfully coordinated two trade shows, one of which was our first foray into Singapore, all in her first two months. Aretta’s personality can lighten the mood all the while keeping her job nailed down and her young family ticking along. As the saying goes, “I don’t know how she does it!”.

Customers

On the customer front, Parashift doubled its customer base welcoming schools of all types and sizes across Australia to the SchoolBench family. Since SchoolBench’s inception in 2017, our inaugural members of Seymour College and Pulteney Grammar remain active and continue providing valuable suggestions to the product roadmap.

This year we were joined by brands such as The King’s School, Shore, Kardinia International College, TSS and All Saints Anglican School to name a few. With the help of Annie Markey, Director of Communications at Newington College, a new SchoolBench case study was produced.

RecordBench was soft-launched mid-year and we worked closely with Santa Sabina and St Columba in NSW to ensure it is fit for purpose. In Term 1 next year a release candidate will be made available to schools nationally who are serious about the long-term preservation of their corporate memory. A must have in today’s litigious world.

For 2020, the Parashift team will continue to address known and new challenges faced by schools through our products, SchoolBench and RecordBench. The feedback and suggestions we receive are invaluable. The now annual Customer Roadmap Survey ensures we continue to be on the right path.

And finally, I extend my gratitude to Parashift’s leadership team, Henri and Peter, as well as all staff, customers and stakeholders for their contribution for what was, simply put, an amazing year for Parashift.

It is my wish for you and your family to have a safe and enjoyable Christmas and a healthy and prosperous 2020.