UNTOLD stories from my SELISE days
Sharing the experience of working with my former employer for nearly two and a half years
Disclaimer: To give you a long story short, I am writing this article to share the experiences with my ex-employer SELISE, during my employment. SELISE is the owner of the all the office premise photos and project images. There is absolutely no commercial affiliation nor intention of harming anyone through this article.
My very first day at SELISE, back on June 15, 2019, remains unforgettable. They immediately entrusted me with an exciting new project — a self-ordering kiosk system for a European company in the food and beverage industry. While most fresh recruits get a month of honeymoon time, I was still at my desk until 10 pm on Day One! My boss jokingly warned I might not show up the next morning, but SELISE’s fast-paced workflow, energetic atmosphere, and supportive culture had already hooked me. I showed up bright and early for Day Two, eager to keep going.
But as with all journeys, this one, too, must end. Today, September 14, 2021, I bid farewell to SELISE — a place I’ve come to call a second home and where I’ve spent the longest chapter of my five-year career.
I will be joining as Manager - UX Lead in Toffee Department at Banglalink Digital Communication Ltd., a subsidiary of the Dutch holding company VEON. Banglalink’s Toffee is the most popular OTT based Android and iOS app in Bangladesh with a 5 million active user base.
About SELISE
SELISE Digital Platforms is a global software company engaged in the creation and implementation of digital platforms. With over 350 employees across four centers — Switzerland, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and the UAE — it operates as an international company.
There are various industries served by SELISE, including Retailers, Telcos, Advisors, Sports Clubs, Civil Engineers, and so on. The best thing about SELISE is that everyone here is really cooperative. I haven’t observed many corporate politics.
We have 20 UX designers in our Bangladesh office under our Creative unit, which is a great environment for them to collaborate and get constructive feedback from other designers. UX designers actually enjoy working at SELISE because it priorities the design ideas of UX professionals first.
HR team members are super friendly and aware of their employees’ benefits and growth. SELISE is always seeking dynamic, proactive, and passionate members to join the growing organization. Check out their career page for new opportunities.
Before Joining SELISE
I was born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh. In 2015, I graduated with a bachelor’s in Computer Science from BRAC University. At the time, I was deeply interested in graphics and 3D structural design. Just after graduation, I joined an event management company as a 3D Designer and program coordinator. Having worked there almost a year, I realized I needed a position that blends design, business, software development, and user involvement. Before joining SELISE, I worked full-time at three different companies — ICE Technologies, ADN Telecom, and Samsung RnD Institute Bangladesh. Although some jobs required me to be a front-end developer, some others required me to be a project manager, but deep inside I was really looking forward to doing UX design-related works. There is no doubt that I am thankful to all my former employers and managers, as I gained a considerable amount of knowledge in different areas, which ultimately helped me to land on SELISE. This platform gave me a huge opportunity to work on different design challenges which eventually helped me to grow as a UX Designer.
Interview and onboarding
I found the job circular for UX Engineer at SELISE from BDjobs, and there was a google form to collect some relevant information. On the form, there was one question asking whether I know anyone at SELISE who can refer me. When I joined SELISE, the community was very closed and I didn’t know any of the employees (and now I know nearly all of them). Due to my lack of connections, I thought my chances of being approved were extremely slim. With a nervous mind, I submitted the form without filling out the refers field.
Within a week, I got a call from Waes, Senior Human Resource Manager at SELISE, and was scheduled to have a 5-hour interview in the office. Along with the interview, there will be a practical test on the spot. The day I interviewed still lingers in my mind. I brought my own device. On the interview board, I faced Anisur Reza and Anisul Oni. They were super friendly and tailored the whole interview so I could give my best during the given time frame. Following 45 minutes of the verbal interview, I received a white paper outlining the task. I had to iterate and design UI’s within three hours based on the given problem.
After completing the assignment, I presented my work. It’s hard to tell if they liked my work or not (When I joined, I learned I had the highest marks during my intake term😄). Oni also explained the company’s vision and responsibilities. Meanwhile, I had to go to the bathroom and see what I found there -
So far, I have found this to be my best interview due to the fact that the interviewers were domain experts and gave me enough space to express myself without bragging about their seniority, as well as the fact that I enjoyed brainstorming with them. That evening, HR sent me an interesting e-mail in which they mentioned,
“If you are selected for the next evaluation, you will be notified within one week from now.”
There are absolutely no grounds for complaint if they don’t call you again. 😅 Anyway, I received confirmation of the final interview after one week. It’s more like a salary negotiation meeting. I had an intense conversation with Rajiv Hassan, CPO of SELISE, and accepted the lucrative offer for the position of UX Engineer.
Life at SELISE
Each individual is unique. Moreover, if you look closely, you will also discover that these individuals have unique qualities. It’s been a long two and a half years at SELISE. I am so privileged to have met so many gifted people during my tenure. With each colleague I interacted with, I have memories. I’d like to share some —
In the early days, I used to sit next to Sumon bhaia. He has a dynamic personality. He is a coder, designer, mentor, manager, and so much more. As we were both working one day, he suddenly came close to me and said, “Noman, pardon me if I smell bad.” His tone was incredibly epic. And no, he wasn’t smelling bad 😂
We used to comment on each other’s works and share our feedback. In-office, the UX designers used to sit together in a row shaped like a “U”. On a particular day, I was designing a web portal. The color contrast of the buttons was not up to WCAG standards. Anik Sarker was seated behind me. Seeing a lack of color contrast, he challenged it. He had a loud voice and most of my coworker’s attention was directed towards my screen. It is important for me here to mention that I used to work as a solo designer before joining SELISE. My works were rarely challenged by others. As a result, I felt really offended by hearing Anik’s bold feedback. However, after some time, I realized that collaboration and receiving feedback on design works are really important for growth. The more you hear feedbacks, the more experience you will gain and the better your decisions will be. Kudos to Anik bro for teaching me such a valuable lesson 🙌
It was such a blessing to find so many mentors with SELISE. On a regular basis, we used to share knowledge about typography, design systems, hygiene factors, color systems, Figma, and many other topics. Additionally, we had a Design Sprint together for some projects.
We also had a book club where original copies of UX-related books were available. In order to maintain membership, one simple condition had to be met. Every member who takes a book from the club has to summarize it and share a write-up within a certain time frame. Check out my summary for the Bookclub on the first chapter of Design of Everyday things.
We also did a course jointly taught by IDEO.org and Acumen Academy titled Introduction to Human-Centered Design. As a result of the pandemic, we conducted this 2-month long course virtually over Google Meet. The course covered more than HCD in its philosophy, it taught us the framework for efficiently implementing it. I would like to thank my teammates: Oni, Anik, Asif, Faysal, and Junaid.
My works at SELISE
During my time at SELISE, our client base primarily consisted of various European companies. Generally, we handled two types of projects: pitch works and ongoing client engagements. Since SELISE operates in an agency model, designers had to swiftly switch from one project to the next. Over the course of my tenure, I contributed to numerous projects spanning the food and beverage industry, as well as others in technology and retail.
One particularly memorable project involved creating a kiosk-based ordering platform for a major European food and beverage brand. This service, implemented in an international airport in Switzerland, allowed customers to place orders from multiple restaurants simultaneously and pick them up afterward. Delivering on this project meant overcoming unique challenges — such as adapting to a custom 27" portrait-screen display, refining project requirements, and crafting UI elements that optimized the user experience in a busy, on-the-go environment.
In addition, we developed a mobile app for ordering food quickly. In order to facilitate custom scheduling, display advertising, and many more, we developed a dynamic and sophisticated CMS. Eventually, I worked for several companies to integrate their food ordering flow into Kiosk.
Besides these, I also collaborated with my fellow designers on various projects. Sharing my opinions and exploring different ideas helped me gain insight into various topics. A collaborative or peer-driven approach helped us achieve quick and effective solutions. For collaboration, we used meeting rooms and open desks in the past, but now we use virtual platforms like Google Meet, Teams.
Activities with SELISIANS
“Dollar Bhangano”(breaking the dollar) is an activity for new members. Here’s how it works. The old SELISIANS usually go hunting for fresher to take treats from them after lunch. If they capture any prey, take them to the nearest sweet shop or tea shop. I was also a part of this “Dollar Bhangano” rituals. Approximately 100 people received a treat from me and three other people. Back when we worked from offices, this was one of the most popular events.
I am not a fan of trekking like these guys are who are beside me in the photo. The decision to go to Annapurna Base Camp was influenced by Anik Sarker, who picked this itinerary. I must admit, we made the best decision and this trip gave me the most incredible experience I have ever had.
This is one of the famous activities of old times. Here a mobile court had been set up to investigate a serious case. I cannot provide more details due to confidentiality.😎
End
I am grateful to Oni, Anis, Shoumik, Tawhid, and Omar for giving me opportunities to work on multi-dimensional projects. I would also like to thank all my teammates including Faysal, Anik, Arshad, Deepto, Yurrei, Abid, Nahian, Tanvir, Atiqur, Monem, Desh, Irtiza, Sarara, Mim, Ishmam, Jamyang, Tasmeet, Junaid, Nadi, Sayem, Samsuzzoha for giving your constructive feedback and supporting me during tough times.
Let’s connect through LinkedIn and see if we can tackle any interesting ideas together 🤝.
