Influent, Co-founder

October 2020 to present

I started Influent with the aim to empower brands and agencies to run amazing influencer marketing campaigns. We later pivoted to focus on giving influencers the data they need to understand and grow their audience, and produce better content.

I was the technical co-founder, responsible for designing, developing, deploying and operating both of our products. For almost all of that time, I was the only designer and technical contributor. We have two web apps running in the cloud, developed primarily with React and Typescript, making use of Firebase and Google Cloud Platform.

As one of 2 co-founders, I was also responsible for much of the general operation of the company, as well as marketing, sales and support. We’ve had several happy customers, turned over several thousand pounds and the business continues to operate at a modest profit.

Influent has been an unbelievable learning experience. I’ve learnt so much in a short space of time - about business, technology, finance, sales and more. The company continues to run, although I am taking a back seat for the time being.

Utility Warehouse, Software Engineer

November 2019 to February 2021

Utility Warehouse is one of the largest providers of energy and telecoms services in the UK. One of its offerings is a prepaid cashback card that gives customers money off their energy bill whenever they spend. I worked in a backend role for this team, with Go, gRPC and kafka in an event-sourced and microservices architecture.

I was responsible for updating the team’s build and deployment processes. I worked on improving resiliency to third party failures, and replatforming to work with new payment providers and card issuers. I gained experience working with financial systems, constrained by regulations and the need to produce accurate results at scale (almost £200m spend per year), even under failure conditions, with detailed reporting for auditing and reconciliation. I was involved in designing, architecting and developing services and our wider platform, and building challenging integrations with complex systems such as the MasterCard network.

InfoSum, Software Engineer

May 2017 to November 2019

InfoSum builds systems that connect data from different companies, without sharing the original data, which solves problems in privacy, security and commercial trust. I worked in this team for two and a half years as a software engineer focused on backend systems. I mostly used Go, with gRPC and Kafka in a microservices architecture, and developed frontend skills with React and TypeScript.

I gained experience in architecting software at multiple levels, from individual services, through to coordinating dozens of microservices to deliver complex, performant functionality at scale. I explored my interest in user experience and product management, with which I provided an important voice in the company, advocating for focus on delivering what customers will buy. The team’s approach shifted towards greater customer involvement, leading to a better product. I also played an important role in team planning.

One of the most rewarding things I took on at InfoSum was mentoring junior colleagues, helping them develop skills through pair programming, code review, and discussions on topics like architecture and approaches to testing. My other responsibilities included acting as a first aider and fire warden, and arranging regular social events for the entire company.

Hitachi Data Systems, Systems Software Engineer

January 2016 to April 2017

I was a member of the Network File System protocol team in the development of enterprise storage systems. I primarily used C++ to develop new features, while providing support to customer escalations and fixing bugs in a large, complex codebase. Repetitive tasks (like gathering diagnostics or setting server configuration) were often automated using Ruby, Python or the Linux shell, which improved efficiency in the team.

My responsibilities also included maintaining CI test rigs, developing and supporting internal tools, and organising company-wide hackathon events. I also led the development of a tool for managing hackathons, built with Django - similar to a job-board, but for projects, so that those with ideas could find teammates. I was recognised and rewarded by one of the directors for my ‘Kaitakusha-Seishin’ (part of the ‘Hitachi spirit’, meaning ‘pioneering spirit and challenge’) for my part in organising, and developing tools to manage, hackathon events.

Hitachi provided my first industry experience, and a taste of working as part of a software team within a large enterprise. I learnt a lot during my time there.

University of Sheffield, MEng (Hons) Digital Electronics, First

September 2011 to July 2015

Course included a wide technical background with a focus in later years on digital electronics and software engineering. Alongside technical skills, the development of key soft skills was particularly valuable, including problem solving, teamwork, communication, research and time management. Several projects were completed, demonstrating project management, presentation skills and professional writing.

Beths Grammar School, A Levels

September 2010 to July 2011

A levels

• Electronics / A*
• Mathematics / A
• Computing / B
• Business Studies / C

AS only

• ICT / B
• Photography / C