Bedirhan Colak

You joined Checkmk as a Revenue Operations Working Student, transitioned into a Business Analyst role, and are now a Product Owner. What has this growth journey been like for you, and what made you want to continuously develop your career here?

My journey started as a working student handling smaller, low-risk projects. The team helped me build my confidence with our tools and always made me feel comfortable asking questions. That support naturally led to my full-time transition as a Business Analyst. I’ve stayed and grown here because the culture, especially within the Operations team, constantly pushes me to step up and shape my own career path.

With your background as a Business Analyst, how do you approach your current role as Product Owner? How does that experience help you translate complex business requirements into clear product backlog items?

As a Business Analyst, I spent a lot of time figuring out how our data connects across different systems. Uncovering those connections helped me understand our complex processes and spot where we could improve. By analyzing data to support our Product Owners, I learned firsthand how they think and prioritize. Seeing how data directly drives business outcomes taught me to think critically which is exactly the mindset I use to approach my backlog as a Product Owner today.

From Odoo and Github to Jira, you work closely with a variety of enterprise systems and tools. What does your day-to-day work environment look like, and how do you ensure seamless cross-functional alignment between tech and business teams?

My work primarily revolves around Odoo, GitHub, and Jira. When a request comes in, I always start by checking Odoo to see what’s functionally possible. If it’s a complex issue, I’ll actually dig into our GitHub repositories to identify which specific piece of code needs tweaking. I try to optimize processes using Odoo’s native automations whenever I can, and lately, I’ve been using AI tools to help write those small automation scripts and analyze code. Once I have the full picture, I turn everything into well-defined Jira tickets for our devs, which sets the stage for our weekly alignments with stakeholders.

Looking at your current focus at Checkmk, what is a recent project or system enhancement you worked on that you’re particularly proud of, and why?

A project I’m really proud of is the reshaping of our partner ecosystem in Odoo. We introduced a completely new two-tier sales logic and restructured how we handle partner and reseller business. Because it touched so many different parts of the company, I had to align constantly with stakeholders from sales, finance, and legal to make sure everyone's needs were met. It was a massive, complex undertaking, so I’m incredibly proud that I was able to navigate those challenges and deliver the whole thing on schedule.

Having experienced Checkmk both as a student and as a full-time employee, how would you describe the culture of learning, mentorship, and ownership at the company?

Even back when I was a working student, I was always encouraged to speak my mind. The team created such a comfortable environment where I could ask any question without hesitation, which really shows how much Checkmk values a culture of continuous learning. That trust has stayed consistent from day one to now. I’ve never been micromanaged here. Having the freedom and confidence to execute on my own actually makes me much more open and collaborative when it comes to gathering input from my managers and stakeholders.

What do you appreciate most about the Munich team atmosphere and the day-to-day collaboration with your colleagues?

First off, I have to mention how much I appreciate the office AC and the snacks! But jokes aside, commuting to the office never feels like a 'mission' for me; it feels much more like heading into a great social environment. What I appreciate most is that, whether we’re remote or at our desks, collaborating is just easy. People are genuinely willing to jump in, help, and explain things. You never feel like you're alone on an island when you're working through your tasks.

Looking back at your path from working student to Product Owner, what advice would you give to students or job seekers who want to join Checkmk and kickstart their own career trajectory?

My biggest piece of advice is to be curious about the work.. When you join, spend time understanding how your specific tasks impact the broader business. Even though, Checkmk onboardings are great; it all comes down to the person.

Also, build relationships across departments early on. Be open minded and friendly. Finally, don't be afraid to take ownership of both your successes and your mistakes.