Work.

Brian W. Nelson | Email | LinkedIn | GitHub

Experienced manager and engineer with nine years of work in modular software design, rapid iteration development, and professional mentorship. Well-versed in test-driven development, getting features to production quickly, and recruiting/retaining talent. Super-functional haircut. Naive but noble rube.

Skills.

  • Test-Driven & Functional Development
  • Type Definitions & Code Documentation
  • Backend API Design
  • System Architecture
  • Deployment Automation
  • Agile Development Processes

Education.

  • UND SMHS — Grand Forks, ND | Neuropharmacology, 2008-2011
  • University of North Dakota — Grand Forks, ND | Computer Science & Biology, 2002-2008

Experience.

MEDIAVINE (Ad management for 7500+ publishers) — Remote
Director & Full-Stack Software Developer, May 2017 to Nov 2020

  • Created single-page applications (SPAs) for internal and customer products using React.js with integrations for Firebase and New Relic.
  • Replaced legacy monolithic Rails codebase with microservice architecture primarily of Node.js services and React.js clients.
  • Contributed to super-high-throughput ad auction systems with programmatic scaling and aggressive, flexible caching strategies
  • Created sophisticated A/B testing, deployment, and rollback mechanisms used for multiple products at scale to monitor revenue and page actions between different builds
  • Developed video player with support for programmatic ads, DASH/HLS streaming, captions, and VP9/HEVC-encoded media
  • Integrated products with third-party APIs, such as Google Ad Manager and dozens of ad partners.
  • Introduced better engineering standards and processes surrounding development sprints
  • Engaged with developers to guide career trajectory, correct poor habits, and facilitate best results in a fully remote department
  • Progressed from Individual Contributor to Director
    • May 2017 to June 2019: Individual Contributor (Senior Engineer)
    • June 2019 to Nov 2019: UI Team Lead
    • Nov 2019 to Oct 2020: Director of Engineering

HELP.COM (Help desk and live chat software) — Austin, TX
Frontend Software Developer, March 2016 to May 2017

  • Created/maintained React.js/Redux SPAs for the helpdesk and live chat products, with emphasis on performance and usability for 8+ hours per day.
  • Co-created deployment pipeline to facilitate release of features with proper quality assurance environments. Included continuous integration, integration testing, development/staging/production environments.
  • Participated in product planning meetings and developing weekly sprints to quickly find roadblocks and deliver features on schedule.

SPICEWORKS (Provides monitoring and community tools for IT professionals) — Austin, TX Full-Stack Software Developer, July 2015 to March 2017

  • Created SPAs for the Spiceworks Community, a feature-rich forum for IT professional and service vendors, using Ember.js with a Ruby on Rails JSON API.
  • Developed a Facebook-style news feed for the Spiceworks Community using Ember.js and Rails API with sophisticated message queue.
  • Maintained legacy Rails codebase, and enhanced backend features with improved test coverage.
  • Interacted with end-users in interviews to show early-stage features and collect feedback.

COSCHEDULE (Collaboration software for content marketing teams) — Bismarck, ND Full-Stack Software Developer, April 2013 to July 2015

  • Created an editorial calendar application for content marketers. Included an Ember.js client application combined with a REST API developed in Node.js/Express.js.
  • Developed a message queue system to improve scalability of the API and to facilitate scheduled communication with third-party APIs.
  • Integrated with third-party APIs, including WordPress, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google, Buffer, and Evernote.
  • Supported customers during regular “developer on call” weeks.

NORTH DAKOTA ITD (Information Technology Dept. for State of ND) — Bismarck, ND Full-Stack Software Developer, November 2011 to April 2013

  • Created web applications for state government agencies, from requirement definition to implementation and iteration, with Java/Struts.
  • Maintained legacy applications and implemented tests and documentation for the aging codebase to improve its lifespan (often the case for underfunded departments).