Caitlin Marie

What is your every day like?

I work with the developers to make sure the products we put on our website are both legislatively accurate and meet the needs of our firearms officers and agents. We’re building a public-facing website that has all our applications and frequently requested information. In the future, there will be many more services introduced, so that’s the goal.

We’re also building the internal software for the program. As an example, we’re responsible for shooting clubs and ranges, and that data has to be input somewhere; previously it was all Excel spreadsheets. We have a newer system built now, and it should be rolled out soon.

What factors do you have to consider when building that kind of software?

I was at a union event when I started to see how information that looks fine to me, might not be as digestible for others. Everything must be bilingual to begin with, but now we are focusing on making it accessible, say for people with disabilities.

The website will be used by people all over: firearms users, but also business representatives, and friends and family members as sponsors or references. I’ve been doing a lot of training and learning to become the subject-matter expert and reviewing the existing public-facing products so I can help improve the product on the road to accessibility.
We’re building a tool that is going to directly affect anybody who wants to own a firearm in Newfoundland, but also everybody who works for the program. It has to accommodate every level, from the Chief Firearms Officer down to the people in the mail room. I’m also the only firearms officer on the team, so I can provide a firsthand perspective on how this program will be used.

What do you like about your job?

The job is really interesting. In my role as a firearms officer, the clients are anyone who wants a firearms license. In my acting role right now, the client is the program essentially, so I reach out to colleagues and ask them for feedback on the software.

I also like the idea that when the acting role is done, I’ll go back to being a firearms officer and get to use the same software I’ve been so involved in building.

I like that we’re always looking for improvements, and I’m in a position to implement those improvements and explain why those changes are so important.

What made you want to work with the RCMP?

At the time, I applied because my spouse got a job in Newfoundland. But after I started working here, I realized I genuinely enjoyed it.