Driven by curiosity, mastery, sound, and design, Mike has the innate desire to create. His background as a sushi chef, audio engineer and musician has provided him with skills to be a successful developer due to his attention to detail, eagerness to learn, and desire for perfection. When not solving technical solutions for clients, Mike enjoys time with his wife cooking and traveling, playing music, and seeing live music performances.
Q&A w/ Mike Le-Reiver
Q: What’s your favorite quote and why?
“Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible”
– Frank Zappa
One must break rules, test boundaries, and think outside the box in order to innovate.
Q: What inspired you to become a Developer and how that lead to your current role?
They say build upon what you know. I have a background in audio and video production and wanted to expand my skills to make myself more marketable. As the demand for web developers increased, I took a few development courses to see if it would be a good fit. I really enjoyed it and once I was exposed to programming, I was hooked. Upon completing my schooling and in the job hunting phase, I was attending a monthly local developer meetup and Solid Digital happened to be presenting that evening and mentioned that they were hiring. After the presentation, I approached the team, introduced myself, gave my elevator speech, and the next day had a phone interview which landed me in my current role.
Q: As a Developer, What expertise do you bring to your clients?
Dedication. 100% of my effort and energy will be applied to all projects and tasks no matter the size. I continually approach client requests with complete attention and the drive to satisfy clients no matter the effort.
Q: What is your approach to providing great customer services?
I approach providing customer service as if I were the customer. I first assure that I completely understand the details of the customer’s needs. I analyze the situation, think of several approaches, then provide the customer thoughtful, honest, friendly, and effective solutions that are carried out until complete satisfaction.
Q: What has been your favorite project you’ve worked on during your time at Solid Digital?
They have all been really great, however, Imagineering Digital Growth Initiatives has been my favorite project so far. It allowed me to work with a marketing campaign CRM API to implement sales and leads automation for abandoned carts and new user registration.
Q: What is your favorite museum?
The Louvre in Paris, France. It’s massive and will take days to see it all. So many historical artifacts and gigantic, mind blowing paintings. It really exemplifies the magnitude of effort and dedication artists will pour into their work and how timeless art really is.
Q: What do you enjoy the most about being a Web Developer at Solid Digital?
Working with and learning from highly skilled and talented team members. The company culture is fantastic as well.
Q: What is your favorite “Solid” Tradition?
My favorite tradition at Solid Digital is our monthly Happy Hour events, because we get to hang out with the team and we get to know each other on a personal level-
Q: What do you enjoy doing on your spare time?
Enjoying food and wine with friends and family. Along with listening to my record collection, traveling for music festivals, and enjoy using our memberships to Portland’s local gardens and museums.
Q: What are you currently watching on Netflix or Hulu (or other streaming services)?
I’m just finished watching the first season of Mozart in the Jungle, and I’m getting ready to start season 2.
Q: What is your most used mobile application?
Spotify, it’s a fantastic music streaming platform allowing me to access my music collection anywhere from any device and has also exposed me to an insane amount of new artists due to their similar artist algorithm.
Q: Your top 3 Podcasts or Books?
All 3 are books: Geek Love, The Miracle of Mindfulness, Japanese Kitchen Knives
Q: What is your morning drink of choice?
Quad Shot of Espresso, because it gives you that morning pick-me-up I need.
Q: What are three things still left on your bucket list?
- Living/Retiring in Europe
- Building/owning a music recording studio
- Being able to pay off my and my families debt
Q: What is the 1 piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to have a career in your field?
Embrace being challenged. It will lead to growth.
Q: What do you want to be known for?
I just want to be known for being a kind and fun person to be around
