About Derek 👨🔧
As a software engineer with nearly a decade of experience I take a holistic approach to application design and development, with a focus on user experience, performance, and finding the most effective solutions to complex business problems. I believe that happy, collaborative teams build the best products. I'm interested in opportunities that will allow me to build software that positively impacts its users, in a diverse environment where everyone is empowered to do their best work.
- Build and ship meaningful features end-to-end based on real business problems, client needs, and customer desires.
- Anticipate and solve complex engineering problems by taking an integrated approach to application design and leveraging skills throughout the team through communication and collaboration.
- Strengthen design and engineering collaboration with a thorough understanding of design language and concepts, as well as years of experience working directly with designers.
- Streamline design implementation and iteration by implementing, documenting, and maintaining comprehensive design systems.
- Improve build processes and automation to eliminate redundant overhead using unobtrusive build tools and strategies.
- Minimize human error downtime by standardizing, automating, and codifying tasks and processes.
Work Experience 🔨
What is Dirigo Design & Development?
A full-service development agency specializing in end-to-end software and design services in the hospitality industry.
Responsibilities
- Lead developer and technical designer on embedded eCommerce platform processing over $20MM in transactions annually, for 17 ski resorts across the US
- Built end-to-end user interfaces for embedded shopping experience, customer portal, and client administration using React, Redux, Sass, Webpack, Babel
- Implemented Stripe payment processing using Payments, Connect, and Billing APIs
- Built WebSocket RTC application using Node.js, Express, WebSockets, mongodb to enable real-time communication with customers
- Developed front-end build systems to automate tasks using Node.js, Gulp, Webpack
- Worked directly with product managers and clients to identify technical solutions for complex business problems
What is Johnny-Five?
An open source, Firmata protocol based Node.js robotics and IoT programming framework.
Responsibilities
- Refactored LED, Proximity, and Motion components in Node.js to follow new Component API definitions
- Implemented proximity sensor and I2C LED hardware components
- Wrote unit tests using Node.js, Sinon
- Wrote documentation, created demos, participated in community support and API design
What is Jackson Hole?
One of the largest ski resorts in the United States
Responsibilities
- Implemented content module system in client’s in-house CMS to allow content managers to reuse components
- Consulted on implementation of complex front-end design systems through pair programming, code review, and refactoring
What is Sugarloaf?
One of the largest ski resorts in the eastern United States
Responsibilities
- Managed all web properties including multiple resort websites and web-based administration tools
- Development, maintenance, content strategy, and content management of all Sugarloaf websites using HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, ASP.NET, and PHP
- Conception and development of the Blue Room, a user-generated content hub pulling feeds from various social media feeds
Personal Projects 🚧
A semi-autonomous obstacle avoidance robot built with Johnny-Five. SOAR uses proximity sensors to detect distance to obstacles and performs maneuvers to avoid them.
A photobooth made for the Destination Summit 2015 conference. Uses a Raspberry Pi for user interaction, to control a DSLR camera, and to process a series of photos into a GIF and upload to the photobooth website.
A JavaScript plugin for lazy loading responsive images. Supports srcset,
picture,
as well as CSS background-image.
A simple web application that takes user input and converts it to GCode for simple CNC milling operations.