In a world as complex as benefit administration, it can be easy to get lost in technicalities and detailed processes. That’s why it’s the duty of Noyo engineers to make partner connections as easy as possible for benefits software and insurance carriers with modern infrastructure powered by APIs and best-in-class data features.

Traditionally, benefits software have to establish one connection with carriers at a time. But this approach is time-consuming and highly manual; modern needs call for modern solutions. Carrier changes need to be transmitted and processed instantly to complement the fast-paced world we live in. Human hands can’t possibly accomplish this feat.

Thankfully, the task of making accurate carrier changes in near real-time is now a reality with APIs that automatically build and maintain vast networks of connections between ben-admins and carriers. An API not only manages new connections, but also processes data exchange quickly, allowing for benefits that are more adaptive and customizable than ever – no supervision required. Automation is clearly the cornerstone for a brighter, tech-enabled experience.

Noyo Engineer Frankie Woods (she/her) works with a team of talented developers to keep Noyo’s automation capabilities at the forefront of innovation. On the job since January 2022, Frankie finds new ways to make Noyo more efficient every day, smoothing out the wrinkles of the benefits landscape with each update.

What is your role at Noyo and what's an exciting, challenging problem you're solving?

I’m a member of the Sync team. We’re focused mostly on the interaction of other internal teams with the data that we house and carrier updates to beneficiaries. Right now, we’re building out more automation around carrier updates that we receive. Specifically, I’m part of a smaller team of developers collaborating with Ops team members to build out logic that can automatically accept certain types of changes from carriers. It’s exciting to measure the progress in the number of items that Ops no longer has to review.

What did your path to Noyo look like?

I have about eight years of experience in software and web development across different industries. Over time, I’ve found myself more and more drawn to automation. Building automated processes requires a clear understanding of the data involved and the schedule expected. Earlier in my career, web scraping was the answer that worked for the projects we were working on, but it was very clear how fragile and time intensive developing these solutions was. After that experience, I was specifically interested in RESTful APIs. In the years prior to joining Noyo, I sought out roles that would allow me to work with this specific skill set. I heard about this role at Noyo in Carrier Sync and had a chance to talk to other engineers during the interview process. From talking about the types of projects and understanding the microservices architecture here, I was excited to join the team and help.

What excites you most about our industry, our product, or your role in general?

I like my role chiefly because of the people I work with. People in this company are great at collaborating: scheduling a call with another engineer is very easy, or reaching out to another member of a different team on Slack for asynchronous communication works great.

On the other side of the coin, I love the chance to dig into a specific area of code or a particular issue we’re looking to solve. My manager is good at giving people autonomy to figure out workable solutions, and giving reasonable timeframes to do it. Beyond immediate management, I was so excited to join a company with a woman as the CEO. I’ve worked in several roles where there were few women, or some managers who were women in other departments. But it’s amazing to be a part of such a successful team that’s headed by a woman, and a year later, I’m still excited and proud to be part of this company!

What is something unique that Noyo does in how we work together?

I’ve never worked at a company that was completely distributed before. I’ve certainly had experience at places where there were a few offices across time zones, but this is different. Noyo has a great way of finding people who are interested in doing the work, and doesn’t let geography get in the way. I feel that allowing people to work where they are is a really inclusive policy. There are so many ways to get in touch with your coworkers, and I appreciate that the company has set some guidelines for reasonable communication. This includes things like suggestions on how to determine which method (email, Slack, Zoom call) is appropriate for what you need. I really appreciate that the company can do this kind of level-setting for everyone in a way that’s not heavy-handed.

How have you personally, or professionally, grown at Noyo?

One of the things I was excited about when joining was the chance to work with a microservice architecture. This is the first time I’ve really had the chance to work with a more distributed model, and I’ve enjoyed learning the process. There are some interesting ways we’ve organized our data, and getting used to different databases and modes of storage has been a new perspective. I’ve learned more about Google Cloud services as well, and I like how we try to maximize the analytical power of this platform. I think our microservices combined with cloud services are a really great solution for speeding up workflows and allowing us insight into our own data.

What’s your favorite Slack channel? 

My favorite slack channel is probably #kids-of-noyo. It’s a mix of coworkers, some who are parents and some who aren’t. The channel has cute anecdotes for those wild things kids say, and people share their kids’ photos or artwork. I love that this channel is active. The posts people make in there brighten my day, and I feel that I have a connection to other people on a different level from just, “What project are we working on right now?”

Noyo is a great place to work, and I appreciate that the leadership encourages people to share things that are special to them on a personal level. There are plenty of other focused Slack channels, but this one really resonates with me as such a warm place to share.

Excited about a world of benefits fueled by automation? Want to join a team that’s making that dream a reality? Take a look at our current openings here!