Building an Engineering Career Alongside Company Growth: 7 Years with an Engineer Who Has Supported Us Since the Early Days

Introduction: From the Recruitment PR Team
In this article, we sat down with Yorinton from the Development Department, who has been with us since our second year, to hear all about his journey with GVA TECH, his career, the team, and much more!

▶ Self-Introduction

— First, could you briefly tell us about your background?
Yorinton:I started my career as a planner at a mobile content company right after graduation. At the time, I wasn't really involved in technology—I even had friends help me with my C language classes in college—so I didn't have much interest in engineering. Later, I transferred to the HR department within the same company, where I was in charge of internal training. After that, I worked as a freelancer for about two and a half years while teaching myself programming.

As I learned more, I began to want to pursue a serious career as an engineer, which led me to join GVA TECH. At the time, there were only a few employees, and our 'office' was essentially a space we borrowed in a conference room at GVA Law Office.

Initially, I was involved in the development of 'AI-CON' (now GVA NDA Check), a contract review service for consumers, and later I served as the development lead for our AI contract review service for businesses. Since around 2021, I have been in charge of launching the legal data infrastructure for OLGA.

▶ What I Gained at GVA TECH Starting with Almost No Experience

— You transitioned to engineering with almost no experience; were you anxious?
Yorinton:Well, even though I had almost no experience, I was at a point where I could say, 'I can implement things to some extent.' I started with small tasks and gradually was entrusted with more responsible work.

For example, when we decided to add a payment function to a certain service, the team asked, 'Who wants to do it?' I took a leap of faith and raised my hand, saying, 'I'll do it.' Given the nature of payment functions, it was a very high-pressure development task, but because we had a system in place to ensure security, I was able to proceed with peace of mind. Through these challenging opportunities, I gradually built up my experience and trust.

By the way, that service was originally built by an offshore development team, but there were quality issues. The CTO at the time made the bold decision to delete about 8,000 lines of code and rebuild it, and I joined from that improvement phase. From there, I became deeply involved in the evolution of the product, and the parts I developed gradually increased.

Also, I can laugh about it now, but at the time, the development was so intense because we felt, 'If this product doesn't succeed, the company might be in trouble!' It was a true startup experience!

— Including OLGA now, you've reached your current form while pivoting the business. In that transition, didn't you often face projects and technologies you had no experience with?
Yorinton:Yes, it was truly a series of 'firsts.' Product development itself was like that, and every time we created a new feature, it was something I had never made before. In terms of the business phase, I experienced it from the very early stages of a startup, and it was also my first time providing a product for enterprise clients. Recently, I was involved in the launch of the 'OLGA legal data infrastructure' and have been closely involved in the product's growth process since then. I've been allowed to experience many different phases, and looking back, I think every single one was a new challenge.

— So, it feels like you've built your entire career as an engineer at GVA TECH.
Yorinton:Yes, exactly. I have never worked as an engineer anywhere other than GVA TECH. So, my experience here is my entire engineering career. It might be a rare pattern in some ways, but that's why I feel I've spent a very intense seven years(*) here.
*As of the interview in May 2025

▶ Why I Continue to Work at GVA TECH

— Staying at one company for seven years is quite rare in this industry today. What is the reason you have continued to work at GVA TECH all this time?
Yorinton:Well, there are several reasons, but the biggest one is the 'atmosphere of respecting people' that flows throughout the company. Yamamoto-san, in particular, is someone who treats everyone flatly; he is someone I can talk to calmly and consult with in confidence. That attitude of the president has naturally become the company's culture, and I feel it suits me very well.

There have been times when I didn't align with someone's values or style, but because GVA TECH has a culture of 'valuing how we interact with people,' I think a team we can trust has naturally formed as a result. I truly feel that I am working in a comfortable relationship where we respect each other.

Also, as I mentioned before, the industry changes very quickly, and we need to change our products accordingly. Being able to work with full effort in such a stimulating environment was also a big factor for me. If you're going to do it, isn't it more fun to commit and do it seriously? It feels like my own 'stats' are stacking up, like in an RPG (laughs).

▶ About the Organization and Members

— How do you feel about your current team?
Yorinton:My supervisor is Nishiura-san, and like Yamamoto-san, I feel he is a person of great character. He is rational and calm, making him easy to communicate with. Also, because he has a business perspective in addition to a technical one, I can consult with him with peace of mind on both technical and business matters.

Also, I feel that I am given a certain degree of autonomy. As long as I report, communicate, and consult properly and share necessary information, I am generally allowed to proceed with discretion. Of course, the way trust is built and responsibilities are delegated may differ from person to person, but for me, it is a very comfortable working relationship.

The team members are also truly wonderful people. As I wrote a little on Zenn before, when launching this team, I shared the values I wanted to cherish and hired people who resonated with them. Perhaps thanks to that, the members are all good-natured and take their work seriously. It is truly a pleasure to work with them, and I feel that we have built a relationship where we can share opinions with peace of mind, making it a very easy environment to work in.

— What kind of people would you like to work with?
Yorinton: There are three main points I want to value when working together. First, 'having respect for others.' Regardless of whether they are junior or senior, I want to work with people who can respect each other as team members and communicate sincerely.

The second is 'having a learning mindset.' People who continue to learn on a daily basis for their own growth. I think people who can continue self-study are strong, after all.
And the third is 'finding joy in the growth of the business and product.' I think there are times when technology and learning become the goal, but I want to move forward with people who can find fulfillment in contributing to the growth of the business itself, not just that.

▶ In closing

— Please give a message to those reading this article!
Yorinton:
It is sometimes said that '90% of work is difficult,' but I believe that 'work that isn't fun is no longer work.' Work that is just painful is nothing more than penance.

That is precisely why I want people who can think, 'If I'm going to do it anyway, I'll enjoy it and give it my all.' If I could work with such people, I think it would surely be an incredibly interesting team, so if you are even slightly interested, please let's work together!

At GVA TECH, we are hiring for various positions to realize our purpose of 'eliminating the barriers between law and all activities.' If you are even slightly interested, please let us talk, starting with a casual interview.

↓ Recruitment Site

↓ We started a tech blog in May 2025!
We will continue to increase the number of articles, so please take a look!

↓ Company Introduction Material