Meet the team: Philip Zalitis

Philip joined Madden Analytics in the early stages. He is the master of our backend and infrastructure as well as our beer game. If you hear a bird chirping in the corner of the office, don’t fret - that’s just Philip thinking out loud. Let’s get to know a bit more about him!

Hello Philip, how did you end up at Madden?

I went straight from university to an ecommerce startup called Sportamore. After a great 10 years at the company, I got contacted by Petter and Axel about Madden Analytics, a new startup. They were interested in my profile, so I let them take me out to lunch. I immediately got sold on the challenges that Madden Analytics presented - startup, BigData, and the tech stack. I also learned I was gonna coop with a peculiar fellow (😉) called Carl Nilsson. We had a quick call and instantly hit it off. Shortly after I was ready to reboot my startup journey!

How did you get good at what you do?

Growing up, my dad always filled our home with various computers so they have always been a big part of my life. From a young age it was clear to me that I wanted to work with technology when I got older. Getting a MSc in Computer Science was the obvious career path. What I love about code is that it can turn ideas into reality. That it can solve real-life problems.

I got my degree at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and went straight to Sportamore to work as a software engineer. I really enjoyed the problem-solving and the endless possibilities that come with early startup days - finding solutions by “cooking soup on a nail” as we say in Sweden. For 10 years I grew with the company and honed my skill set. I realized I also possess good leadership qualities and have a knack for bridging tech with non-tech. In retrospect, this is not too surprising as I've walked that path several times earlier in my life in sports, school, and the military.

What about your job would surprise people?

I solve the hardest problems when I'm in the shower. It always gets my ideas bubbling. On rough days I go for a quick run just so I can take an extra shower to contemplate.

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