My story so far
Microsoft
Software Engineer
Since Sept '22
At Microsoft I work with external customers on a range of projects. These projects are always fast-paced and in technologies the customer requests, so personally and as a team we have the first requirement to be able to learn on the job and get started fast.
Technologies I've been able to work with as a result of this include Python, React, C#, SQL Server, MongoDB, and Terraform. With Microsoft's focus on AI, more recent projects have also given me exposure to OpenAI, HuggingFace, and Azure ML.
Ebay
Full Stack Software Engineer
Jun '20 - Jun '22
While at Ebay I got stronger in all areas of software development. I focused on my technical skills, improving my knowledge of Java and Kotlin and leading greenfield projects to bring more Kotlin into the company code. I worked hard to study CI/CD improvements, implementing traffic mirroring, Canary deployments, and revising and improving the end-to-end tests for legacy projects to ensure their stability.
Contributing to Ebay’s already strong culture was also a brilliant part of the role. One engineering manager and I started a mentoring scheme within our department which is now moving Ebay-wide due to high engagement and positive feedback from colleagues. I also ran a scheme engaging Ebay developers with charities teaching people to code, and helped organise numerous events to ensure Ebay was continued to be a great place to work.
iPlayer - Business Layer
Mar - Jun '20
I worked on the iPlayer API which receives up to 30,000 requests per second. The key technologies used here are Node.js, TypeScript, GraphQL, and AWS.
New Experiences
Sep '19 - Mar '20
Working in New Experiences meant hitting the ground running, and in my first month alone I was given the opportunity to write A-Frame and three.js for a virtual reality experience made for Hans Zimmer's Earth track for BBC's Ten Pieces. Since then I've developed four Augmented Reality iOS apps using Swift, Reality Composer, and ARKit for a research project with Bitesize examining whether AR improves children's retention and engagement with learning.
News Apps
Mar - Sep '19
I joined News apps in a period of transformation in which both the app appearance and structure was being completely scrapped and rewritten to better serve the diverse needs of its 9 million weekly users. I was able to contribute from the project's very beginning, from design sprints with the UX team, to user research, to deciding on ways to implement and test the new systems. The majority of the work was written in Kotlin with Gradle, but I also had the opportunity to work with Groovy to write scripts for Jenkins, and KotlinJS and JavaScript when working on a web-based backend for the app.
iSite & UGC Uploader
Sep '18 - Mar '19
My first rotation was working full stack on a user-generated content uploader with a place for moderators to view and approve or deny the content submitted. I wrote Java with Spring and Maven in the backend and JavaScript (including Node and React) in the frontend. I also worked with Jenkins and set up permissions in AWS with Python scripts.
BBC
Graduate Software Engineer
Sept '18 - Jun '20
Being part of the BBC software engineering graduate scheme has meant I've had the opportunity to be on three different teams for six months each over the course of the last year and a half. This scheme has given me experience in both a breadth of technologies and a great variety of team working practices. During this time so far I've been able to work on products that are used by millions across the world, such as the BBC News Android app, and have been given opportunities to affect these products from concept designs to implementation.
London School of Economics
Web and Systems Coordinator
Jun '17 - Jul '18
At LSE I managed the Careers department's web migration onto a new CMS, maintained bespoke Java and JavaScript programs, and consulted on LSE-wide technology UX. I liaised between Careers and the web/IT teams ensuring all non-technical colleagues had input into and were appropriately trained in the department's tech.
Birkbeck, University of London
MSc Computer Science with Distinction
Completed Sept 2018
Birkbeck opened up a whole new world to me. I learnt Java, became obsessed with regex, discovered databases, and fell in love with Kotlin. Puzzling over binary trees with people who were, like me, looking to change their life was so inspiring and gave me the confidence and ability to build and acheive in the career path I've forged now.
PwC
Technology Academy
April 2017
Having won PwC's 2016 technology challenge I was given the opportunity to spend a week in their technology offices. I was based in their forensic technology department and learnt about their approaches in and the broader landscape of forensic technology, cyber security, and big data analysis.
