I have been working as a developer since 1991 and have a great deal of experience using a large range of technologies. Since 2013 I have been creating websites and applications using .NET and, in particular, the Umbraco content management system.
Career History
May 2022 to Jun 2023
Queen Margaret University
Edinburgh (remote)
Senior Software Developer (contract)
Full-stack developer, solely responsible for the development and maintenance of the existing website.
- Technologies used: Umbraco 8, Umbraco Cloud, C#, HTML and CSS.
- Worked closely with the digital marketing manager, including an accessibility project to make the site compatible with Cabinet Office requirements.
- Developed numerous reporting tools in the Umbraco back-office.
Jul 2021 to Dec 2021
Screenmedia
Glasgow (remote)
Senior Software Developer (contract)
Worked as a contractor on multiple projects, with my contract being extended several times.
- Technologies used: Umbraco 7, 8 and 9, .NET Framework and Core, C#, Vue.js, Azure DevOps
- Responsible for the upgrade of an existing Umbraco 7 site to version 8, including the migration of the code and database.
- Worked as part of a team on a new Umbraco 9 site.
Dec 2020 to Feb 2021
Feb 2019 to Apr 2020
SRUC
Edinburgh
Senior Software Developer (contract)
My original three-month contract was extended a number of times after I proved myself invaluable in the development of a web application that records the details of farm animals across the UK.
- Technologies used: .NET Framework, MVC, C#, Entity Framework, JQuery, JavaScript, Umbraco 7, SQL Server, Git, Azure.
- Adapted quickly to the new environment and was soon updating and adding components to the product.
- Made major updates to all of the main components of the site, as well as developing a file upload component and reporting tool from scratch.
- "You made a massive impact in a relatively short period of time and we would have faced some large challenges without you." (main client contact)
Jul 2013 to Nov 2018
LEWIS Creative Consultants Ltd
Edinburgh
Senior Technical Developer
Responsible for the back-end development of websites and the more technical projects for this web design agency.
- Technologies used: .NET Framework, MVC, C#, Umbraco 6 & 7, SQL Server, TFS, Git, JQuery, PetaPoco, JavaScript, Vue.js, AngularJS for Umbraco back office development, VSTS, Azure.
- Developed and maintained numerous websites and web applications for clients, using .NET and the Umbraco CMS.
- Created a fully functional .NET MVC web chat application for an existing client, using SignalR for the communication and Vue.js for the front-end logic.
- Responsible for the upgrade of two major sites from Umbraco 6 to version 7.
Oct 2008 to Jul 2013
Livingstone Web Services Ltd
Edinburgh
General Manager
Formed a company for the development and promotion of a web-based project management application along with an associated Android timesheet tool.
- Technologies used: Java, Java Servlets, MySQL, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and Android Java SDK.
- Devised, developed and operated an online project planning and monitoring application.
- Designed and developed an automatic testing system, which allowed more frequent releases of the software through the running of repeatable scripts.
- Produced an Android timesheet application, using the native Android development environment.
Oct 1994 to Oct 2008
4sight Financial Software Ltd
Edinburgh
Worked on a securities lending software system which was sold to investment banks and other major financial organisations, usually with client-specific customisations. Undertook different roles during projects for this small and dynamic company.
Developer
- Involved in every aspect of design, development and testing of customer enhancements during the entire time spent with the company.
- Developed using both client and server technologies, including Oracle and Sybase (SQL and stored procedures), and Sybase's PowerBuilder for the front-end.
- Played a key role in the original design and development of the securities lending product.
Project Manager and Team Leader
- Managed the enhancement and implementation of the securities lending product for seven major client projects, along with numerous other smaller projects.
- Responsible for the full waterfall software development life cycle, from requirements-gathering and agreement, through design, development and testing, to deployment and client acceptance.
- Coordinated all development activity, leading project teams, producing progress reports and holding regular internal and external progress meetings.
- Consistently attained customer recognition for the quality of work carried out.
- Built strong relationships with client management, business and technical teams.
Business Analyst
- Collaborated with traders, back-office staff and technical staff to produce initial design studies and functional requirements documents.
- Produced technical specification documents for the development team to implement.
Please note that 4sight Financial Software was previously known as TCAM Systems, Stratus and OM Technology. It has since been taken over by Broadridge.
Sept 1991 to Apr 1993
ITT World Directories (UK) Ltd
Birmingham
Analyst/Programmer
Education
Oct 1993 to Sept 1994
MSc Human Computer Interaction (with distinction)
Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh
Sept 1987 to June 1991
BSc Hons Computer Science (1st Class)
Hatfield Polytechnic, Hertfordshire
Interests
- I have created two Umbraco packages: Converge and Sift. The former allows the transfer of content between different instances (and versions) of Umbraco.
- Machine Learning. In recent years I have passed a number of online courses in the subject and am interested in applying some of this knowledge to projects in the future.
- Italian language. I have been studying Italian at evening classes for many years, travel to Italy regularly and have taken an intensive 2-week course in the country.
- Keen cinema goer. I am a regular at the Cameo and Filmhouse cinemas in Edinburgh and keep a record of the films that I have enjoyed.