November 14, 2024
  •  
3 min

Meet the Team: Jonah Kalkman

Meet the Team: Jonah Kalkman

Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Jonah Kalkman, and I’m a Creative Front-end developer at TodayTomorrow. I’m responsible for the technical aspects of our projects, bringing creative designs to life as websites and apps. I do this by combining my technical skills with a creative perspective, always seeking the best solutions by exploring new technologies and listening to our clients and customers.

What is your favourite digital application at the moment?

POV is a fun disposable camera app that adds a nostalgic twist to capturing moments at parties, events, or festivals. One of the best parts is the excitement that builds after the event when you and your friends finally get to see the photos. Since they aren’t available immediately, it creates a sense of anticipation and surprise. I hope to create a fun app like this myself someday.

Meet the Team: Jonah Kalkman

What makes you a digital enthusiast?

I get excited about visually striking interfaces, seamless digital experiences, and effective marketing. When combined, good UI/UX and spot-on marketing can make even the simplest products and services captivating. I’m always on the lookout for subtle micro-animations on websites, often spending hours diving into the code to understand how specific interactions are built.

Meet the Team: Jonah Kalkman

What is your biggest digital irritation?

One example is self-checkout kiosks in supermarkets and restaurants. Many of the interfaces used on these kiosks involve excessive steps in the checkout process, making it unnecessarily long. Additionally, the placement of buttons on many kiosks is often illogical or poorly highlighted. I believe the user experience can be enhanced through user testing and by tracking checkout time as a key performance indicator.

Where do you come from?

Schiedam, the city of Dutch gin and windmills, is where I grew up and still live today. It’s a nice place to live, offering the peace of a smaller city while being very close to the busy city of Rotterdam. During my breaks, I enjoy taking relaxed walks around the old city centre, dreaming of living in one of the historic houses by the canals.

What is your background?

I have a background in IT. In high school, I started building websites for my classmates. For a school project, we had to create our own websites, but many of my classmates weren’t interested. I saw an opportunity to earn some extra money and learn a lot in the process. From that moment on, I knew I wanted to study computer science, and I couldn’t stay away from my laptop. I spent late nights working on websites, apps, and other digital products. What began as a hobby eventually turned into my job.

What is your specialty at TodayTomorrow?

My specialty is turning ideas and designs into digital products that work. I achieve this by collaborating with clients to find the right solutions and providing advice when necessary. I explain technical concepts to non-technical clients in simple terms (in Dutch, we say “jip-en-janneketaal”) so that everyone is on the same page. As a frontend developer, I also contribute to the UI and UX of a product. By combining my technical understanding with UI/UX insights, I can quickly assess the impact of certain changes.

What is another dream of yours?

I want to create products or applications that make an impact and shake up the market. I would love to work with a small, motivated creative team that embraces a "move fast and break things" mentality. My list of new business ideas grows every day, and during hackathons, I try to turn these ideas into real MVPs in a short time. Building out all these ideas for a living would be a dream.

What is another dream of yours?

I want to create products or applications that make an impact and shake up the market. I would love to work with a small, motivated creative team that embraces a "move fast and break things" mentality. My list of new business ideas grows every day, and during hackathons, I try to turn these ideas into real MVPs in a short time. Building out all these ideas for a living would be a dream.

What's something nice about you that most people don't know?

I love taking pictures. This passion started when I was younger with a cheap Fujifilm camera. Eventually, I bought my first Canon. Now, I mainly shoot with my phone and take pictures of friends and family for fun.