I am a problem solver that enjoys working on the guts of an application. I am able to work in almost any language for server side data processing. I enjoy new challenges and look forward to new opportunities.
Education
Graduated from The University of Texas at San Antonio with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science with a concentration in Software Engineering. GPA: 3.67
Languages
- Ruby - 18 years
- C / C++ - 18 years
- Java - 18 years
- Python - 9 years
- Elixir - 8 years
- Erlang - 3 years
Open Source
Elixix - Exqlite
I actively maintain this library for Elixir to interact with SQLite3. Initially made in February 2021 when Texas was going through the power outages, I needed a project to pass the time that would work offline and on embedded devices.
Elixir - Ecto SQLite3
I actively maintain this library for Ecto to utilize the Exqlite project. This is useful for embedded devices that want to utilize a database.
Experience
Vic.ai
Senior Platform Engineer: January 2022 - Present
- Designed, built, and documented a scalable REST API in modern Elixir, enabling seamless third-party integrations and direct customer consumption.
- Architected and led development of a robust payment platform that has securely processed and transferred millions of dollars weekly.
- Modernized legacy systems and brought the entire platform up to current engineering standards, significantly improving reliability, maintainability, and performance.
- Implemented best-in-class Elixir patterns, OTP principles, and observability tooling to create a high-throughput, fault-tolerant payment infrastructure.
- Leveraged AI development tools (Claude, Codex, Pi, OpenCode) to accelerate development velocity, improve code quality, and streamline documentation processes.
Search Nurture
Software Engineer: June 2019 - December 2021
- Utilized django and django-rest-framework to serve a REST API.
- Implemented day parting automation tool for Amazon and Instacart where keyword bids would change up and down through out the day.
- Built a flexible filtering system for the dashboard to query timeseries data in aggregate to aid Account Managers in their decision making.
- Implemented a robust data synchronization for Amazon that would handle service interruptions.
- Managed and maintained infrastructure with Kubernetes and kustomize.
Vorstella
Software Engineer: April 2018 - June 2019
- Reduced running costs by utilizing Elasticsearch instead of Google Big Table by approximately 400%. (Over utilization of Big Table)
- Refactored the data processing pipeline to consume less memory which allowed us to utilize our CPU and memory allocation more effectively.
- Managed and scaled the data processing pipeline to handle 1,000/s of messages a second.
- Managed and maintained infrastructure with Kubernetes.
Clearbit
Software Engineer: October 2017 - April 2018
- Utilized microservices to separate business logic for future maintainability and stability.
- Worked with the data science team in getting data into AWS Athena so that they could see how data was changing and finding discrepancies between data sources.
- Refactored our company news microserver to increase throughput by 4x.
- Utilized Kubernetes with BuildKite for deployments.
Envoy
Platform Engineer: March 2015 - October 2017
- Implemented a Rails application to handle thousands of iPads to connect to and allowed us to continue to host on Heroku and keep infrastructure costs low.
- During development we switched to using Docker and Docker Compose for local development to create deterministic test runs. This provided our team a universal way to run and test code.
- Implemented the authorization, authentication, and identity system into a separate system to handle SAML logins and SCIM employee directories.
KISSmetrics
Software Engineer: August 2013 - March 2015
- Refactoring a large monolithic application into a service oriented application
- Implementing and maintaining the API at KISSmetrics
- Maintaining the Android SDK and Reader app
- Dealt with large complex systems and numerous data stores
- Developed modular railtie and engines to be mounted
- Unified out API requests and maintained a consistent return. Ensured the values followed a specific format and obeyed backwards compatibility.
- Began the process of upgrading from Ruby 1.8.6 to Ruby 2.0. Many gems were no longer receiving security updates and this gave us a path to keeping customer data safer.
- Core infrastructure was a Sinatra application that needed to be split apart into modularized services that would allow teams to ship faster and in parallel.
ZippyKid (now Pressable)
Senior Software Engineer: March 2012 - August 2013
- Ruby on Rails control panel
- Maintain MyZippyKid control panel
- Used Pivotal Tracker to augment our Agile development
- Wrote tests to ensure stability
- Interfaced with Dynect and DNSMadeEasy for DNS records
- Interfaced with Chargify as a payment system
- Used Beanstalkd as a messaging queue
Enfocus Solutions
Software Engineer: October 2011 - March 2012
- Used Ruby on Rails
- Implemented complex data model (30+ models)
- Learned how to test with RSpec and Capybara
- Start up company in San Antonio
CityVoice
Software Engineer: March 2011 – June 2011
- Used javascript
- Worked on front-end designs
- Learned how to use Git effectively
- Start up company in San Antonio
iTEC at UTSA
Software Engineer: August 2009 - October 2011
- Installed physical server in data center.
- Installed / maintained Ubuntu server.
- Designed site interface.
- Implemented in PHP (CodeIgniter) then transitioned to Ruby on Rails.
- Built a security audit system for the site.
Libraries Written
Personal Achievements
- Eagle Scout recipient, Boy Scouts of America, earned in 2007.
- Rebuilt my first car, a 1972 BMW that I have owned since 2003. I am in the process of turning it into a race car.
- Built my standing desk from solid oak tongue and groove boards.
- Built Exqlite with intermittent power in Texas in February of 2021.
Free Time Activities
I enjoy working on open source projects and improving tools that other people use.
I like working with my hands and building things in my garage. Any where from cutting boards, welding, tearing motors apart, or just soldering electronics I really enjoy doing.