What is it like to be new at Redpill Linpro? Senior consultant Ove Tislevoll knows. He started just three months ago and has it all fresh in his mind.

– I like that both the company and the personnel are specialized in Linux. It's not just a company motto; the people actually are really interested in Linux, and even the office and collaboration tools are open source. Discussions can get very technical, very quickly, Ove Tislevoll says.

He is working at the Redpill Linpro Office in Oslo but works partly remote from his home in the countryside where he lives with his girlfriend and baby. As an experienced senior consultant, Ove's primary focus is Linux administration, which includes automation to make administration more manageable and systems more secure.

He started on the 1st of August and had a calm first day at the office since many colleagues were away on summer holidays.

– We were only about four people that first morning. But it was nice, and the onboarding process went very smoothly. Within the first day, I had everything I needed. And by day two, I had everything else.

Can you describe the onboarding a bit closer?

– The onboarding was very efficient – in a good way. It was pretty informal. I got a mentor who helped me with the questions I had. The first day, I got the computer, installed my operating system of choice, and got the necessary login credentials for the company services. On the second day, I got lab access, and I was all set up.

Ove quickly discovered how helpful everyone in the office is. In the chat- and collaboration platform, he saw a lot of recent posts. Even though most contributors were on vacation there was still a lot of recent activity in the different channels.

– People are eager to share, and you will get a response sometimes within a few minutes, even for complex topics, or topics you consider niche or obscure. The most valuable answers have to do with the experience that my colleagues possess, which isn’t necessarily easy to google. You can google things and receive many valid solutions, but in our internal chats I get answers from people who have tried or used the different solutions, and they have opinions on which are better suited to different situations, and why.

Before assigning Ove a project, his team leader reached out to check if it felt like a relevant assignment for him – which it did.

– That was very nice. You don't just get a surprise assignment out of nowhere, or based just on demand; you're actually asked about your opinions on the matter.

Ove Tislevoll's first assignment started in late August, so for the first 3 weeks, he could spend most of his workday studying for certifications to improve his CV. He managed to pass the Red Hat Certified OpenShift Administrator just in time before the assignment started.

If someone out there is considering applying for a job at Redpill Linpro, what would you say to encourage them?

– If you like configuring things yourself and want the opportunity to learn more about Open Source software together with experienced people, you should apply. I’ve learned a lot since I started, even though I began only a few months ago.