Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
I was responsible for development and maintenance of several multi-region Java Spring microservice applications. The main application I worked on was hosted in AWS Kubernetes. To handle the large volume of data flow, a combination of SQS & SNS were used. I utilised persistent storage technologies such as Postgres and ElasticSearch, making use of Flyway for data migrations and JOOQ for object access. To handle all of the infrastructure, I used Terraform. To cut down on a lot of repetitive code, I used OpenAPI generation to create server classes, models and client SDKs. Continuous integration and delivery were handled by two applications: Jenkins for building & testing code and spinnaker for deployments & auto-scaling. In addition to the main application I worked on, I provided on-call support for two other applications. I had no development experience on these applications. Despite this, I was able to solve all production issues as they arrose. One of these applications made use of MySQL, S3 and EC2 which I was able to leverage my previous knowledge of AWS to support. In addition, I created and maintained playbooks to make support of these applications easier - especially during a late-night incidents. I provided mentoring and guidance to several junior team members; including one on one training, coding challenges and day to day help with tasks. I hosted several TIL (Today I Learned) sessions to share my knowledge with my wider team. I reviewed code written by the team upholding team standards; ensuring that it meets requirements and has been fully tested. I took on a leadership role in the absence of our team lead, hosting agile ceremonies such as standup and retrospective meetings. Further, I worked with a remote team who were building an integration in our code base to their application.
In this role I was responsible for overseeing and managing the development of an application called eBonding. Utilising Spring/Angular hosted with Cloud Foundry. I managed all key programming, CI/CD and database management activities, including RDS hosted MSSQL database using Liquibase. For example, I led the product development for the eBonding application covering a new proof of concept for removing duplicate contact records using Elasticsearch queries and enhanced string preparation. I developed a serverless customer onboarding API utilising an AWS TypeScript/NodeJS Lambda, SQS and API Gateway. I evaluate the security posture of eBonding, performing threat model analysis as well as conducting an accessibility audit of the application to inform improvements and develop compliance. I monitored the application health and operate on call when the application needs to be restored late at night in production. I developed key performance enhancements including a cache of data utilising a singleton pattern. This has included evaluating the application for faults and defects including robust testing and debugging activities, including x-ray tracing and weekly 30 minute tech debt reduction sessions. I enforce standards using pre-push git hooks, ensuring consistent local testing, end to end tests, and code standardisation. I mentored junior developers and built a new team remotely through coaching via the completion of tasks in the eBonding application until they achieved independence. I consult with senior management and product owners regarding product and application development throughout its testing and development phase. I built a high performing product through providing clear guidance and objectives focused on enhancing the performance of the application while streamlining processes.
I established and managed a team to construct a JSON builder to underpin faster product creation, covering end-to-end development and implementation. I was responsible for improving readability and testing for applications including removing unused code, handling fault incidents, and resolving recurring issues quickly and efficiently in line with industry best practice. This included maintaining and upgrading Angular versions from 5 through to 7, covering regression testing to mitigate any disruption to services and infrastructure. I also utilised heap analytics to inform business decisions, including evaluating functionality and performance across the application. I automated processes and procedures, where possible, including removing redundant code and inefficient processes, enhancing team productivity. I also mentored and developed junior team members to improve technical and project management skills, with a focus on technical training and excellence, to underpin product and application development. I led various stakeholder meetings, covering key company products and applications. This included providing technical advisory services as part of the product development.
I developed my technical expertise through leading key product and application initiatives. This included Elasticsearch services hosted by AWS, cloud networking and security integration and key UX improvements. I utilised Heap Analytics data to inform application development priorities including automation, productivity, ongoing software development and engineering. I also coordinated with colleagues to deliver key aspects of projects as part of the product roadmap, with a clear focus on streamlining processes, enhancing processing time, and removing waste and errors.
I was responsible for web application development for multiple successful Northern Ireland sites built in PHP and associated programming implementation including JavaScript, React, CSS, CI/CD, and Laravel.