Employee Spotlight is a new CauseMatch blog series meant to surface stories of the amazing individuals behind our platform. 

We’ll interview people who are developers, graphic designers, coaches, marketers, customer success representatives, and all those in between… THESE are the people who make CauseMatch GO. These are the people who guide fundraisers through the invigorating process of online campaigns.

Today, let’s get to know Varun Anil, a CauseMatch developer. 

1. Where did you grow up?
   
   I grew up in Kerala, India. I spent some early years in Mahe and later in Kannur, where I live now.

2. What is your favorite place that you have visited and why?
   
   Of the very few places that I have travelled to outside Kerala, I think Goa beckons me the most. More than the beaches, it’s the sense of celebration and calm that draws me there. It’s the perfect getaway. But I wouldn’t call it my favourite place because that will always be back home in Kannur.

3. What is your favorite band now? What was your favourite band 10 years ago?
   
   Agam and Motherjane come to mind, although there are quite a lot of them. Both these bands are progressive rock, centered around and mostly derived from contemporary carnatic elements. Good music is all around.
   
   I guess I was really young 10 years ago, but I remember listening to a lot of Backstreet Boys, Avial, Nickelback to name a few. Also Eminem (not a band tho)

4. What’s your typical day at CauseMatch look like?
   
   I start off reviewing tasks and updates, getting up to speed with the team.
   Then I get to work on what’s usually a new feature or an update, bugfixes or performance optimizations, or sometimes operational and server administration tasks as they come up. 
   
   We are a close knit unit and almost everything revolves around the product and platform, maintaining the edge.
   
   Given the current situation and with us working remotely, team meetings and discussions over Zoom has become the mainstay and we usually have at least one call with the team everyday mostly to review work and plot ahead.

5. Read any good books lately?
   
   Now that’s one thing I wish I did more. I enjoy fiction more than anything, but lately I haven’t been able to find the right setting to read, and it’s been long since I read a good book. 
   
   As for the ones that I have had the pleasure to read some time ago, favorites would be Amitav Ghosh’s “Hungry Tide,” James Hilton’s “The Lost Horizon,” Orhan Pamuk’s “Snow,” and Ruskin Bond’s collection.

6. What part about being a developer do you find most meaningful?
   
   To be able to turn ideas into practical experiences and being able to cater to genuine needs in the process. To provide an elevated experience of something that already exists. I think these are most meaningful to me as a developer. 

7. What is the most important thing you have learned about operating a crowdfunding site?
   
   Sometimes the crowd can be overwhelming in a really good way 😉.
   Sometimes we get campaigns that bring in an incredible number of donations and activity on the platform. This has taught us not only to design scalable solutions but also how much it matters to be effective in working alongside your teammates from other departments of the company. These insights have always enabled better product decisions. 

8. What advice do you have for prospective CauseMatch clients?
   
   To not worry about a thing and to be completely focused on the cause. We have the right set of tools and people to make it happen. Be open to suggestions and best practices we have garnered over multitudes of successful campaigns.

9. What has been your proudest moment at CauseMatch?
   
   lt’s every one of those moments when you realize you are part of something great.
   Be it a successful campaign, delivering on tough sprints, accounts of personal sacrifices and excellence, etc. We have had countless such moments at CauseMatch along the way and they were always the result of incredible commitment, professionalism, and the collective will to offer the best service possible.
    
10. What is the first thing you would buy if you won the lottery?
    
    Stocks and become more rich. Just kidding. I’d probably buy this patch of land next door, that has this beautiful pair of jasmine trees that are older than me and which I have grown so fond of. I don’t want anyone to ever cut them down.