What is your role at Citrix and when did you join?

Heather: I joined Citrix in June last year as an intern, during my Electronic Engineering course. Janki and I are both part of the interoperability testing team, making sure that all the Citrix products work well together. We create the test environment for the testing team.

Janki: I joined Citrix as a graduate a month after Heather. I’d just completed a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Citrix is good at hiring grads and interns from a range of different backgrounds.

What’s the best thing about working for Citrix?

Heather: There’s a lot of variety, always something different to do. The culture is brilliant. People are accepting and inclusive, and everyone seems happy to be here.

Janki: Citrix has allowed me to get stuck into work quickly. Even in our grad and intern roles, we are able to get involved in important projects and not be sidelined into endless training sessions.

Why did you choose to work in Cambridge?

Heather: I’m studying here, at Anglia Ruskin University, but that’s not the only reason I wanted to stay in Cambridge. Cambridge is a hub for UK tech, and it’s great to be at the cutting edge of the industry.

Janki: Cambridge has an amazing tech sector, and is a beautiful place to be.

Why did you get involved with Race for Science?

Heather: I worked on a similar escape room project with Citrix as part of my work experience a couple of years ago. It was quite a bit of fun so I was keen to get involved again, especially as it’s supporting such a great charity.

Janki: I’d heard about the previous project and seen the team’s enthusiasm for it, so I jumped at the opportunity to be involved this time around. It’s been really interesting and it’s important to give something back.

Playtesters testing the Citrix escape room puzzle

What was your role within the project?

Heather: We’ve both been working on the puzzles within the escape room. I’ve liked getting involved with all the electronics again, it’s nice to be a bit creative and make something fun and physical. I love my day job, but it lacks that physical element – you don’t see the results in front of you in the same way.

Janki: We don’t usually do work which has a physical outcome like this – something you can see instantly and interact with. That’s been really rewarding. This project involves more manufacturing and electronics, while my day job mainly involves programming.

Why do you think it’s important to take part in events like this?

Heather: I think it’s important to get involved because it’s an opportunity to support a good charity and as escape rooms get more and more popular, I hope we’re going to raise a lot of money. Another way to see it is that it’s a really creative endeavour, and brings people together from across the local community.

Janki: It’s really nice to make a difference to our community in Cambridge, and have an impact through projects like this. Citrix’s sponsorship means that we can have even more of an effect.

Find out more about Citrix at their website.