Engineers should aim to satisfy people, not computers. From this belief, I have built a career producing satisfaction for site owners, end users, and my colleagues.
Developers
Being a team player means making work that benefits the team.
I don't strive to wow my colleagues with my code; I strive to empower them. That is why I favor whatever code solution enables the team to deliver its best work.
I work to create clean, well-commented, and well-tested code. I am happy to use stable and battle-tested libraries and frameworks if it means that the next person can take my work and run with it.
One of the best things about coding is the camaraderie formed between engineers. Building strong collaborative peer relationships with other coders, designers, project managers, and product owners has led to my most rewarding professional experiences.
Example Work
I constructed a modular markup and BEM infrastructure for a group of sites including hylinkexp.com. This allowed me to craft one site and reuse almost the entire codebase for other sites, such as hylinkhelix.com. The sites are backed by a multi-site installation of CraftCMS and coded using a gulp-backed optimization workflow.
At Stillwater, I collaborated with my fellow lead developer to create and implement a multi-site version control strategy that allowed us to build and maintain dozens of independent websites leveraging significantly overlapping codebases. I loved seeing my fellow developers work more efficiently and leverage DRY principles to make slicker sites with increased confidence.
End Users
A well-built website is like clean water: invisible, yet invigorating.
To create an outstanding user experience is the driving force of my work. I consider both the site visitor and the site owner to be equally important users of the site. It should serve the needs of its users smoothly and effectively.
Example Work
I was primary developer on the Laravel-based eCommerce site gwcopiers.com. I leveraged VueJS and Model tagging to construct a clean and fast category filtering interface. Behind the scenes, I imported and seeded the database with complex data from their pre-existing site built on a different platform, converting the data to product tags and then leveraging that tagging to create product filters that just work.
For Archer Watch Straps, I helped give their Shopify website the refined user experience they wanted. Beyond just creating smooth animations on the homepage, I worked closely with the site owner to enhance the collection page navigation. We developed a strategy to create complex relationships between products, which I executed using jQuery and json data. The site helps customers match the watch strap they desire with the specific brand, model, and size of smartwatch that they own.
Clients
Update a client's site and they profit for a day. Teach a client to update their site, and they profit for a lifetime.
A great deal of the nuance of any web application is hidden from public view. It resides in the logic that allows companies to manage the products, blog posts, customer data, and other content that the site stores and uses to give end users the right experience and the site owner the proper ability to profit from their web property.
Some developers dismiss or look down upon out of the box solutions such as WordPress or Shopify, but that misses the fact that tools like these do exactly what a huge proportion of websites need.
I do not consider my work launched until I have seen the site owner modify site content. A good web developer not only codes the website for their client, they act as a sort of marriage counsellor for the newlyweds: helping the owner work smoothly with the website, and refining the site to more perfectly match the needs of its users.
With this idea in mind, I have cultivated expertise in product hand-off and site management training. I commit myself to giving the people using the site the most profit and enjoyment - and the least fear and loathing - possible.
Example Work
I built blla.org in WordPress with carefully-chosen plugins to provide an optimal content management experience. The client wanted to leverage the site for a wide range of purposes, including blogging, multisite management, and event management. I facilitated extensive training and an iterative feedback proces to obtain full client buy-in.
On pacificsandsinc.com, a Laravel eCommerce app, I created a custom queued job that allowed the site owner to seamlessly merge site sales into their their ERP using the NetSuite API, this allowed them to organize their business and develop a clearer sense of repeat customers coming from their other sales streams.
Management
Empower leadership to guide the organization courageously.
My work represents the company that I work for. The strategies and techniques of engineering can be hard to communicate, and misunderstandings can and do lead to distrust between well-intentioned management and highly competent engineers. Good work can be wasted, work is done defensively, and leadership cannot make confident choices. By closely aligning my efforts with organizational goals, I encourage and foster trust.
By coding from a perspective of serving stakeholders, I enable leaders to build trust and form partnerships with interested parties. This can come in the form of customer loyalty campaigns, Enterprise Resource Planning integration, marketing analytics, or otherwise. I take pride in delivering functional, high-visibility sites that convert.
Example Work
I built and launched a website for Sunkist. Immediately after launch, I personally ensured that their team could use that site to complete product sales at a major annual convention. I have also been responsible for administering CentOS and Ubuntu-based servers running LAMP, hosting various high-uptime sites such as visitmarinadelrey.com.
About Me
I like to see and understand the big picture.
I love the view from mountain passes, and I love the view from New York high-rises. I have studied fiction-writing, lichens, media industries, cinema, and geopolitics, to name a few of my favorite subjects.
Some of my favorite parts of the world are Fjordlands, New Zealand; Moorea, Tahiti; the Eastern Sierra Nevada, California; Florence, Italy; Dodgers Stadium; Jerusalem.
Now, I live in Carmel, CA with my wife and 2 mind-breakingly amazing kids.
Find out more about my professional background at linkedin
