By Roberto Machado

Announcing Alchemy Conf
How important is the community for you? It's been four years since our last conference. And now we're back.
By Roberto MachadoOn September 11, 2020
5 things you should do when starting a company
Adverse times can present opportunities. Harnessed correctly, they can boost entrepreneurship and the creation of new business.
By Roberto MachadoOn July 13, 2020
Subvisual is hiring a Front End Developer
We’re now looking for someone who can help us grow even more. Adding another human being to this equation as a full-time member of our company is something that really excites us.
By Roberto MachadoOn February 10, 2020
Product Vision as the Cornerstone
It always strikes me when someone has to explain what product they are working on and struggle to formulate a concise sentence that is easy to understand. Being an Elevator Pitch or a more techie product explanation, you should instinctively be able to explain what you are doing. Usually, this is a smell for the lack of direction in the team. If you start asking a question, you will notice the absence of a product vision.
By Roberto MachadoOn March 22, 2017
RubyConf Portugal Gap Year
We had a blast in the last three years with RubyConf Portugal. Seriously, it was one of the most pleasuring things to do and we can not thank enough everyone that helped us put this together. All of you that attended the conference, all the speakers, sponsors, and volunteers, thank you again for all the support. But friends, it's time for a pause. We will not be organizing RubyConf Portugal 2017.
By Roberto MachadoOn March 17, 2017
Stress and Recovery Cycle
This is the second time that I write this text. Naively I deleted the first version, leaving no chance of recovery, which caused me deep frustration. Instead of panicking about this, I took a walk, and a series of deep breaths and here I am writing the second version.
By Roberto MachadoOn March 15, 2017
Announcing MirrorConf 2017: the ultimate digital paradise
We're ready to announce that the 2nd edition of MirrorConf is happening on October 12-13!
By Roberto MachadoOn February 27, 2017
How We Share Ownership and Accountability
Often people ask me how a small team like ours can have relative financial success and still have time to organize two international conferences and several meet-ups while keeping a sustainable work environment where people like to work. I always struggle to answer this.
By Roberto MachadoOn February 23, 2017
Build Teams of Incremental Learners
One of these days I was reflecting on the similarities that we have at Subvisual. It is true that we are notoriously different in our personalities, backgrounds, and experiences, but what were the common characteristics that accidentally or by choice we all have? It's easy to spot the values that we share as a company being present in all of us. However, sometimes it's hard to identify if they were consequences of joining this team or if they were already there.
By Roberto MachadoOn February 22, 2017
Subvisual is expanding to the US
We have been working on expanding to a new location for a while now. We love Braga, and it will continue to be to be our home and HQ, but now we have a new office in Boston, MA. I will explain our motivations to do so, and our plans for the following months.
By Roberto MachadoOn August 4, 2016
Launching Subvisual's Summer Camp
Summer is coming, and most of us are looking for things to do during the summer when we have way too much free time. That's why we decided to create an opportunity for you to spend that time investing in yourself by learning and practicing the craft of software design and development.
By Roberto MachadoOn June 1, 2016
Announcing Mirror Conf
About four years ago, when our company was still taking its first steps and hardly making any money, we invested 250€ to support a small ruby conference called RubyNorte. Since we only had 200€ in our bank account, we actually had to put the extra 50€ from our own pockets. As naive and premature as it was, it is a perfect example of how much we value community, and how it is at the core of our company's culture.
By Roberto MachadoOn May 18, 2016
RubyConf Portugal is back!
We’re ready to announce that the 3rd edition of RubyConf Portugal is happening on October 28-29!
By Roberto MachadoOn April 8, 2016
A Late Recap of 2015
A lot happened in 2015 around here at the now called Subvisual. I thought that I should share a recap with all of you, not only to boost our egos a bit by reviewing all the astonishing work accomplished last year, but also to lift the veil for what's coming in 2016. We have set bold goals for the current year, and as scary as it seems to share them with you, it will add an extra layer of commitment since we expect to be held accountable by all of you. Let's start by briefly recapping our last year.
By Roberto MachadoOn January 28, 2016
Undersampling of Failure
By Roberto MachadoOn January 22, 2016
Our Biggest Announcement Yet
Why would a group of people as young as we were start a company? We had no relevant entrepreneurial experience, we were young and straight out of university, so we’ve come to expect that question. Part of the answer is that we couldn’t find a company that would allow us to work on the things that we were passionate about, while obsessively honing our skills. But also, and maybe even more importantly, we were friends. Talent and ambition played a part too, but that friendship became the cornerstone of everything we’ve built. Three years on, and that remains true. We are proud of these roots, humbled even.
By Roberto MachadoOn July 1, 2015
Game On! RubyConf Portugal is back in 2015
We're ready to announce that the 2nd edition of RubyConf Portugal is coming and it's going to be bigger, bolder and awesome-er!
By Roberto MachadoOn February 27, 2015
Lessons Learned from our Winter Company Retreat
We had our first offsite experience in May when we drove to the beautiful Gerês and spent 3 days blowing off steam, having fun and talking lightly about some of our projects.
By Roberto MachadoOn December 19, 2014
Announcing our Summer Apprenticeship Program
We are launching two apprenticeships for this summer starting in the end of June. We are looking for highly curious people that are eager to learn more about the magic world of the Web and Mobile. If you are a newly-graduate, finishing your master's degree or just trying to improve your craft, this is a unique opportunity to learn side by side with our amazing team. We don't believe anyone should work for free, so this will be a remunerated apprenticeship.
By Roberto MachadoOn June 17, 2014
We are hiring!
Join our talented team at sunny Braga, Portugal.
By Roberto MachadoOn May 14, 2014
Brace Yourselves, RubyConf PT is coming!
That's right folks, it's official.
By Roberto MachadoOn March 28, 2014
A Toast To 2013! Welcome 2014
This was the first year of Group Buddies. One whole year creating web applications, dealing with clients, teaching people and having loads of fun while doing it. At the time of making a balance, I have to say: this was a great year for us.
By Roberto MachadoOn January 3, 2014
Let's Talk Tools
Every once in a while people ask us what tools do we use as part of our processes. Not long ago, at a workshop I conducted on about Web Project Management, I was able to introduce a couple of free tools that we consider indispensable. So I came up with the idea of listing all the amazing software that we use every day, hoping it can be helpful to anyone reading this.
By Roberto MachadoOn December 3, 2013
Teaching Kids How to Code
CoderDojo Minho, of which I'm a proud founder, is back this week, in parallel with CodeWeek, an EU initiative to promote coding for everyone.
By Roberto MachadoOn November 26, 2013
When an experiment blows your mind
Creators School's first edition took place in September and I have to say, it was mind-blowing.
By Roberto MachadoOn October 29, 2013
Portuguese Ruby Community Renaissance
Last Friday, me and some folks from the Minho Ruby Brigade went to the very first Coimbra.rb meetup.
By Roberto MachadoOn October 21, 2013
This is Our Story
We have been wanting to bring our blog to life for a while now, and that day has finally come. Let me take this opportunity to tell you how we got to where we are today.
By Roberto MachadoOn October 14, 2013