naxtlab

2023.6.12

All NEXTLabbers attended the workshop from June 1st to 2nd, to revitalize morale and assess performance during the first half of 2023.

NEXTLab employees had lunch just before arriving at the workshop venue, and visited a sheep ranch at Hongcheon, Gangwon-do as the first leg of the trip. After dinner followed a recreation session at the hotel, concluding the first day. For the second day, after checking out from the hotel, everyone went to a strawberry farm and picked strawberries. The last event of the trip was the tech summit, where many teams shared their work and vision for the remaining half of 2023.

The workshop began at 10 o’clock, June 1st. All 28 staff members at NEXTLab gathered at Gangnam-gu office station, Line 7, and got on the bus that took them to Gangwon-do. Since the bus driver drove well, we arrived a little earlier at the restaurant than planned. The lunch menu was a choice between raw meat noodles and sesame noodles, with potato pancakes and steamed pork provided at each table. Everything was so delicious! After lunch, everyone checked into the hotel at Hongcheon, Vivaldi Park and had a brief break before going to the sheep ranch there.

<Sheep Ranch>

Because the sheep ranch was located on top of a mountain, we had to take a gondola there. Up to 5 people could get on each gondola, and for safety, there were precautions not to stand up while the gondola was operating. One look out the window made me understand why the safety precautions existed, as the slope below was very steep.

However, the rugged slopes didn't dampen expectations for the sheep ranch experience, as many NEXTLabbers were smiling during the gondola ride. Upon arriving at the ranch, there were so many cute sheep and goats there, waiting for us! The food bucket for the sheep was affordable, and cost only 1,000 won. Even if you didn’t want to buy the food bucket, there was grass nearby, and all you had to do was pick some up to feed the sheep. It was fun watching the sheep gather when a person approached them with grass!

After spending good quality time with the cute sheep, NEXTLab employees took a group photo before leaving the ranch for dinner.

The dinner menu was pork barbecue, followed by chicken ribs and grilled deodeok roots. Deodeok is a type of mountain herb whose roots are edible. Grilled deodeok tastes good, and I recommend them to any foreigner that visits Korea.

The evening air was cool. So, many NEXTLabbers took a walk near the restaurant after dinner. Some people played rock, paper, scissors, and the loser bought ice cream at the convenience store next door. Then, everyone got back on the bus to return to the hotel for the recreation.

<Recreation>

Among the many enjoyable games during the recreation session, one of them was familiar since we played it last year. The game is called ‘Speak with your body.’ The players must describe a keyword with their body, without making any sounds. Feel free to guess what our research engineer, Junhan Kim, is trying to explain in the 2nd picture!

The game in the 3rd picture is called ‘Guess the odd one.’ Each team member receives a drink, and only 1 person’s drink is different compared to other members’ drinks. For example, the team in the picture drank water, but only 1 person had very salty water in his/her glass, and the opposing team had to guess who that was. Everyone showed rich facial expressions and pretended to be the one drinking salty water, so this game was entertaining!

The 1st prize for the winning team was a wireless vacuum cleaner, provided by the CEO, Sungmin Kim. Other prizes included cultural gift certificates worth 20,000 won.

After the recreation session, all employees enjoyed personal time, free to do whatever they wanted. Some people remained in the room to drink and chat, while others played board games. I joined the intern, Suhyeon Kim, in a singing room and sang a few songs before going to bed. Everyone was so good at singing, to the extent that I wouldn’t be surprised if they suddenly decided to become singers one day!

<Strawberry Farm>

The first schedule on the itinerary for the 2nd day was strawberry picking. The name of the strawberry farm was ‘Sealing Berry.’ Besides managing the farm, the owners directly sell strawberries to customers, and organize strawberry picking events for visitors.

Their strawberry quality was great, with the large size and red color. The strawberries were so delicious, and the owners also gave us strawberry jam, toast, and even some strawberry latte to taste! It was great drinking strawberry latte in summer, fresh from the farm, since strawberry is a seasonal fruit for spring and many cafes usually advertise strawberry beverages then. Also, strawberry picking was interesting because the berries are typically grown in greenhouses and can't be seen from the car while driving in the countryside. Plus, the farm was much bigger than what I had expected, so it amazed me.

Before NEXTLab staff began to pick strawberries, the farm owner explained how to identify which strawberries were ripe and good to pick, how to pick them well, and how to maximize their freshness after taking them home. Everyone listened carefully and considered all the tips while they picked strawberries. As a result, everybody managed to pick a large amount of strawberries and take them home.

Here’s a photo of NEXTLab’s IAS team! On the left, research engineer Dongsun An is holding a strawberry in his hand. It looks as if he’s advertising the strawberry farm! What a handsome model! On the right, our CEO, Changgeun Lee, has just finished picking his share of strawberries and is presenting them with a sweet smile.

<Tech Summit>

To wrap up the workshop, the ‘Tech Summit’, which was the most important event during the trip, waited NEXTLabbers. It took place in a presentation hall at the strawberry farm, which was beautifully decorated. I hope the cute interior design helped lower the presenters’ nervousness.

The order of the Tech Summit presentations was as follows:

1. IAS Team : Latest Trends in Technology Regarding ChatGPT and NEXTLab’s Solution Utilizing ChatGPT 

Presenter : Changgeun Lee, CEO

2. Sales Team : Latest Trends in the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Industry and NEXTLab’s Role 

Presenter : Jaehyun Park, Head of Sales

3. Business Management Team : Latest Trends in Test Automation 

Presenter : Jaehyung Ahn, Assistant Manager

4. Research and Development Team : Improving Testing Capabilities - Web Streaming, Image Storage Format, Macroblock Servers 

Presenter : Woojin Jo, Senior Research Engineer

5. Solution Development Team : Setting Up the Live Service Monitoring System and Cost-saving Tips Using Self-developed Sentry System
Presenter : Seyong Lee, Team Leader

6. Hardware Development Team : STB Multimeter’s History and Future Roadmap for Development Presenter : Seonjoon Park, Team Leader

7. IMT Business Development : QaaS(QA-as-a-Service) and MaaS(Measurement-as-a-Service) Launching Plans Based on Client Feedback

Presenter : Sungmin Kim, CEO

The Tech Summit started with NEXTLab's CEO, Changgeun Lee, representing the IAS team. IAS stands for ‘Intelligent Automation Service,’ and their key solutions are automatic vehicle license plate recognition and traffic regulation compliance. This time, as ChatGPT rose as the hot potato in the AI and machine learning field, Mr. Lee introduced the latest trends in using ChatGPT. In addition, he also showcased his team's achievement, which is a whole new solution that customized ChatGPT to NEXTLab's clients’ needs.

I myself tried using ChatGPT once, but found it to be below expectations. Fair enough, because I guess all the buzz regarding ChatGPT had increased my expectations of it. Maybe I might need to brush up on my skills by finding the right prompts to use. Since using ChatGPT to help effectively at work can be more difficult than you think, I believe that when the new solution is complete, there would be many prospects seeking to use it.

All the presentations were interesting, but the hardware development team’s presentation reminded me of game showcase events where the roadmap of future content is released to the public. Their roadmap of new hardware developing plans for NEXTLab's principal product, the STB Multimeter, was very concrete and well-organized. On top of this, the team also led us on a walkthrough regarding the history of the STB Multimeter's many hardware versions that had been created in the past, which was intriguing as many NEXTLabbers didn't know the history and background of its development.

Since the Tech Summit began with one CEO, Changgeun Lee, it was fitting to end the event with another CEO, Sungmin Kim, and his presentation. As the head of the IMT department, which stands for ‘Intelligent Measurement and Testing,’ his perspective on the test automation industry's future was quite enlightening. His vision and business plans for QaaS(QA-as-a-Service) and MaaS(Measurement-as-a-Service) allowed many NEXTLabbers to get an idea of what they would work on during the second half of 2023.

For 1 night and 2 days, NEXTLabbers strengthened their bond by eating together, sleeping together, and participating in many activities together. By replenishing their energy during the workshop, everyone will continue to work hard and develop amazing solutions for the test automation field. Even the heavens seemed to smile upon us, as the weather was just fantastic during the two days we spent at Hongcheon.

I hope NEXTLabbers would go on more excursions like this, since it cheers everyone up and promotes a happier working atmosphere!