Meet CTI's Software Engineers: Eliza Alcaraz

I have worked at CTI for about 3 years now. I am primarily the technical lead for a project that I’ve been a part of since starting at CTI, but I do tend to jump around and be nosy about others.

It has been about 5 years since I graduated with a CS degree and pursued my first software job. There was a heavy push from my family to pursue something I was passionate about and provided stable income in return. Definitely a difficult balance to strike. After taking software classes at my high school, I immediately felt like engineering was the right answer. Creating things by mastering a language that not everybody could understand is both empowering and magical.

My favorite part about being an engineer is fixing bugs. The journey from debugging to finding the cause, then coming up with the solution hits all my fulfillment checkboxes. Bug-fixing is one of those tasks where I feel like I’m getting paid just to have fun. 

There are problems or tickets that are on the verge of “way too hard” at times, that make your brain feel like spaghetti. These are problems that make one feel totally incapable, but these are also the problems that take current skills to the next level. The hardest parts are always the most rewarding. 

On and off, I’ve been working on a closet inventory app for Android. If you’ve watched Clueless, it is exactly like the computer that sits right in front of the closet so that you can dig through your closet digitally and create an outfit for the day. I love fashion and the visual arts, so this app was the perfect marriage of my hobbies and career. Hopefully one day I can get it to QA.

CTI inspires excellence. It makes for an extra special workplace, where you feel like you can make an impact and grow in your career. The people here are also some of the most helpful and best people I’ve met anywhere. Providing software solutions is first and foremost about the human connection, something that I think CTI understands well.