Customised PHP training inspires best practice at Inflight

Inflight Productions is the world market leader in the in-flight entertainment sector. This spans everything from licensing and distributing audio and video programs (feature films, TV shows, news, sports) to games, technical support and the publication of airline magazines.

Inflight runs a very sophisticated web-based administration system, described as 'a CMS on steroids'. It manages everything from the company's library of movie titles, albums and tracks and the digital networks used for digital programs to purchase orders and accounting.

Every department, in 7 locations around the globe, uses the system daily. Inflight also develops and supports solutions for external companies such as VOLO TV, who provide entertainment for First Great Western trains, and Panasonic Avionics, who provide hardware for the majority of the world's airlines.

Currently at a critical stage of upgrading their systems, Inflight turned to Ibuildings to provide highly bespoke training to the company's in-house development team. The objective was to bring their PHP developers up to speed, help improve productivity and ensure best practice. Inflight describes the programme as an outstanding success.

The need to keep up to speed

Inflight is a perfect example of what can happen when a small team of people is dedicated to maintaining and developing complex systems that have been around for a number of years - in their case almost a decade. Dan McInerney, Software Development Manager, explains: "You become very expert in the system you are working with, but with the pressures any small team suffers, you lose touch with what's happening in the outside world. IT moves very fast, so things like best practice, security, changes in framework and general technology tend to be missed. If you don't do something about it, the quality of what you do and its suitability can deteriorate. It's the problem of being an expert in a very small niche.

"We didn't believe that a traditional training company would be able to deliver what we needed," says Dan. "They would simply sell us a standard course with the nearest fit to our requirements, possibly with a bit of customisation, from an existing portfolio. What we really wanted was a very highly customised programme that recognised the different levels of skill within the team. People who really understood what we were trying to achieve and who would not be afraid to tell us things that may be uncomfortable to hear. Rather than just trainers, we wanted to work with people who actually use the tools and practices themselves - ideally in a number of different, complex implementations. Ibuildings was the only company that ticked all the boxes."

The process Dan describes is Ibuildings' standard practice. Before building the training programme, they began by discussing with Inflight's management and development teams what they believed the training should achieve. Next, they conducted personal interviews with each developer, finding their individual strengths and weaknesses. "This went beyond pure PHP skills into more general areas, that could potentially have an effect on our projects," Dan explains. "A very comprehensive assessment process.

"We knew that not all our developers would be on the same page, but the report-back to management did contain some surprises for them. It meant that the final course structure was perfectly tuned, not just to what we had asked for, but to what we really needed.

"In the first three sessions we started from basics, bringing everyone up to the same level. The remainder of the programme was devoted to performance and security. The latest 'best practice' was covered throughout. We had two trainers, both excellent communicators and both incredibly experienced and knowledgeable. What we especially appreciated was their willingness to talk generally as well as covering the specifics. During the breaks, we learned a lot about the industry and where PHP is going - something that only practicing software engineers could possibly have shared. We would certainly use Ibuildings again."

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