A highly skilled and professional Web Developer with over two decades commercial experience in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, MySQL, Perl and VBScript (ASP). Developed, inspired, managed and delivered a wide range of projects incorporating a variety of programming techniques for clients both nationally and internationally. Interested in delivering high performance websites (optimising page load times) and on-page SEO.
Professional Skills
- Able to liaise with management/clients to develop project specifications and SEO strategy, define page layouts and interactions
- Establish project timescales, personnel requirements and organise teams
- Oversee development to agreed plans, and deliver a working system into production
- Provide monitoring tools and reports for technical and business aspects of the application
- Actively monitor the application, alerting stakeholders to issues or possible enhancements
Technical Skills
- Able to design database schema and write MySQL queries
- Identify software design patterns, and construct appropriate PHP classes and scripts
- Code succinct yet standards compliant HTML, CSS and JavaScript and to create optimised images, giving due regard to cross browser compatibility issues
- Configure Apache for speed and efficiency
- Write tools to validate and import application data
- Proactively implement new performance best practices throughout the lifetime of the application
Current Areas of Research
- Lessening the time to first byte by replacing database reads with calls to cached business objects
- Improving page load times though payload optimisation and caching, critical path analysis
Employment History
2012–2015 Senior Software Engineer at Oracle Corporation, Westhoughton, Lancashire
Designed, specified and implemented WordPress sites for a variety of external clients.
- Created WordPress plug-ins to integrate with various Oracle Hospitality (formerly MICROS) products
2007–2012 Senior Developer at iKnow-UK Ltd., Leyland, Lancashire
Responsible for the entire front end programming for a major travel directory with over 300,000 visitors per week. (www.iknow-yorkshire.co.uk)
- Championed and implemented the conversion from a set of nightly batch scripts to a fully dynamic site
- Devised a caching strategy for all business objects, automatically pushing changed files to a pool of front end servers, and minimising database operations
- Assisted in the specification and development of a modular control panel system for both staff and customer management of directory listings
- Created front- and back-end performance monitoring tools and provided reports, assistance and advice to SEO team
- Directly responsible for one junior employee and indirectly for a team of up to three others
1999–2007 Developer at Videotile Ltd., Padiham, Lancashire
Designed, specified, implemented and supported various technology projects.
- Developed techniques for integrating interactive ‘talking head’ videos into websites, around which a business was formed
- Designed and created a search engine friendly shopping cart selling both physical and downloadable goods, operated an online store running on this system
- Served as primary technical support contact in a vehicle telematics trial for a major global courier. Built reporting tools providing statistical data, maps and optimal route analysis using VBScript and MS Access
- Developed a bulk mailer tool with click tracking and unsubscribe request management using PHP and MySQL
- Built up a technology site with members’ area and message board, attaining 10,000 registered users from search engine traffic alone
1998 Developer, SEO & Researcher at Victory Sports Inc., San Diego, California
Assisted with the development and promotion of a multi-sports website.
- Responsible for generating page templates in HTML with SSIs, created optimised graphics in Photoshop, link building and search engine submission, and performance monitoring
Education and Qualifications
1999 Aston University, Birmingham
- BSc (Honours) in Computing Science
Hobbies and interests
- Ten Pin Bowling
- Motorsports
- Football
- Sci-Fi
- Gardening
References Available on Request