Gef’s 30 Under 30 Winners: Q&A with Nick Collins

In addition to the #Gef30Under30 winners, our Headline Partner Amber Gaming recognised four additional Gamechangers for their resilience in overcoming obstacles in their lives and careers. These young rising stars are the ones to watch.

What is your name and age?

Nick Collins, 26.

Job title or role in the Community?

Senior front-end developer at PDMS and director at Junior Achievement Isle of Man

Current Organisation, Business or Employer?

PDMS

How did you start your career or role in the community?

My journey started back in 2013/14 when I took part in the JA Isle of Man Company Programme, an educational programme that allows Year 12 students to run their own business over the course of an academic year with the support of the JA Isle of Man team and a volunteer business mentor.

Our team was fortunate enough to be crowned the ‘Student Company of the Year’ and later in 2014 we travelled to Tallinn, Estonia to compete in the European finals alongside approximately 40 other teams from around Europe. A few months after this experience, I decided to volunteer for JA Isle of Man over the summer months and help out with events, graphic design and web development.

It was JA that then gave me the confidence and connections to help kick-start my career in IT. This led to an introduction to Chris Gledhill, CEO of PDMS, who later reached out to me about a trainee designer role. Fast forward nearly 10 years and I have now progressed with JA Isle of Man to the board of trustees and at PDMS as a senior front-end developer.

Tell us about your business/industry, is there something interesting about it that most people wouldn’t expect?

PDMS has just celebrated 30 years in business and over that period, has supplied bespoke software solutions to a number of clients all over the world. This is one thing for me that makes PDMS a great place to work – the variety of projects and a supportive team really make them a top employer.

JA Isle of Man may be a local charity, but that is not to say it only provides local opportunities for students; little did I think back in 2014 I would have been travelling all over Europe to JA Alumni events. As well as this, JA Isle of Man is part of a much larger network known as JA Worldwide, which was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize both in 2022 and 2023.

Tell us about why you think you won the category you did.

I think because I do things differently. I’ve never really followed the typical routes in life, particularly with secondary school and university. I try to look outside of the box and come up with innovative solutions to problems whilst retaining a positive outlook.

Who are your role models, either on-island or off, in your sector or outside of it?

It would have to be Richard Branson, Jason Fox and the Collinson Brothers (Founders of Stripe).

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Throughout my career and life so far, the best piece of advice that sticks with me is ‘do what is right, not what is easy’.

What do you wish you knew when you were getting started in your career?

How different it is to school – I had the fortunate experience of working with JA Isle of Man alongside my Year 13 studies, which really helped me get ready for the workplace. These experiences are so important as they provide a great insight into how different a career is to school. This is one of the reasons I love being part of JA, the experiences and skills they equip young people with before going into the world of work are quite frankly amazing!

What are your plans for the future?

No idea! Well, I usually set myself short to medium-term goals, however, we can’t predict the future so I just like to take life as it comes and see what opportunities arise.

What changes do you hope to see in your sector or community in the coming years?

It would be great to see the IT sector expand even more on the island. Likewise with educational activities – with more business and organisations getting behind charities such as JA.

What does being a Gef 30 Under 30 winner mean to you?

I was delighted to have been selected as a ‘Gamechanger’ in the 30 under 30 – I really didn’t expect it! I think the 30 under 30 campaign is a great way to recognise young people on the Island and will be sure to follow again next year.