Nicol is available for hire
Hire NicolNicol Russell
Verified Expert in Engineering
Full-stack Developer
Zürich, Switzerland
Toptal member since March 30, 2022
Bio
Nicol is a full-stack software developer with seven years of experience using technologies like React, Node.js, TypeScript, Next.js, and Figma. She is a jack of all trades with a keen interest in software development, entrepreneurship, and product design. Nicol takes pride in building solutions that solve real business problems with great attention to detail and quality.
Portfolio
FinWise
React, Product Management, Node.js, PostgreSQL, Figma, Web UI Design...
Fleet AI INC
TypeScript, Python, SQLite, Node.js, React, Svelte, Full-stack Development...
Morphware (XMW)
Framer, JavaScript, React, User Interface (UI), Framer Motion, TypeScript, SaaS...
Experience
- JavaScript - 4 years
- Next.js - 4 years
- React - 4 years
- Figma - 3 years
- Node.js - 2 years
- Heroku - 2 years
- TypeScript - 2 years
- PostgreSQL - 2 years
Preferred Environment
Heroku, React, Node.js, PostgreSQL, TypeScript, JavaScript, Next.js, Figma
The most amazing...
...thing I've built is a personal finance management application called FinWise (Finwiseapp.io).
Work Experience
CEO & Co-founder
2023 - PRESENT
FinWise
- Developed the FinWise app and website, which allows users from the US, Canada, and the EU to sync bank information and budget.
- Ran weekly/daily growth experiments to increase acquisition and improve retention.
- Translated user behavior and requests into engineering tasks. Involved in maintaining an open roadmap and feedback board, running regular user chats, and managing a Discord community.
Technologies: React, Product Management, Node.js, PostgreSQL, Figma, Web UI Design, Product Growth, RevenueCat, Expo, Technical Leadership, Agentic Coding, System Design
UI Developer
2025 - 2026
Fleet AI INC
- Built a clone of Reddit and the MCP server using Svelte and React.
- Created a clone of Walmart and the MCP server using Svelte and React.
- Developed a clone of PagerDuty and the MCP server using Svelte and React.
Technologies: TypeScript, Python, SQLite, Node.js, React, Svelte, Full-stack Development, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Technical Leadership, Agentic Coding, System Design
Framer Developer
2025 - 2025
Morphware (XMW)
- Developed Morphware.com using Framer from scratch.
- Collaborated with product designer on Figma designs.
- Used Framer Motion to add custom animations to the website.
Technologies: Framer, JavaScript, React, User Interface (UI), Framer Motion, TypeScript, SaaS, Technical Leadership, System Design
Next.js Developer
2024 - 2024
Digital Yalo LLC
- Collaborated with the internal team to develop features for the Next.js website.
- Collaborated on Figma designs to refine user requirements.
- Debugged and optimised performance on the Next.js website.
Technologies: React, Next.js, JavaScript, Headless CMS, PHP, WordPress, SaaS, System Design
Full-stack Developer
2024 - 2024
AlphaNeuro, Inc.
- Developed the front-end codebase from scratch using Next.js.
- Designed new features using Figma and implemented MVP.
- Integrated the front-end codebase with a Python server, implementing CRUD endpoints.
Technologies: React, Node.js, JavaScript, Next.js, Python, SaaS, System Design
Front-end React Native Developer and Product Designer
2022 - 2024
Voicio
- Designed new features for the mobile application using Figma.
- Developed core features in React Native and Expo to deliver an MVP.
- Worked in a small team and a fast-paced startup. Took responsibility for the design process and front-end development process.
Technologies: React Native, Expo, TypeScript, Jest, NativeBase, SaaS, System Design
Full-stack React Developer
2022 - 2024
Gotchoo Inc
- Developed an admin dashboard and system for managing gift fulfillment.
- Wrote integration tests for monitoring the application performance.
- Created core consumer-facing features for gift delivery and selection.
Technologies: React, TypeScript, Node.js, AWS Amplify, Material UI, AmplifyJS, Next.js, Puppeteer, SaaS, System Design
React Front-end Developer
2022 - 2022
Avantgarde Finance Ltd
- Developed a responsive web application using Next.js and Tailwind CSS.
- Added animation to the website using Framer Motion and native Tailwind CSS.
- Built out native responsive components using React.
- Tested and deployed the web application on a deadline.
Technologies: React, Next.js, Tailwind CSS, TypeScript, Formik, Framer, SaaS, System Design
Full-stack React and Node.js Developer
2022 - 2022
Breaking New Consulting Inc
- Designed an authenticated application that featured video streaming and PDF loading and displays on the user side and an admin dashboard on the management system.
- Developed a full-stack application that allowed children across the globe to read books together over video calls with embedded PDFs in the application.
- Oversaw the launch process and conducted testing and deployment for the application.
Technologies: React, Node.js, Video Chat, Video Streaming, Next.js, WebSockets, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon S3 (AWS S3), Semantic UI, Jest, Zod, Express.js, Figma
Front-end Web Developer
2022 - 2022
Hype Labs Inc.
- Developed a dashboard from scratch using Next.js and TypeScript for a mesh networking and crypto product.
- Designed the architecture for the dashboard to support over 100000 transactions.
- Worked with an end-to-end team to test the delivery and integration of the mesh network.
Technologies: JavaScript, Front-end, TypeScript, React, CI/CD Pipelines, APIs, Node.js, WebSockets, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Lodash, Next.js, Material UI, Recharts
Co-founder and CEO
2021 - 2022
TechUp School
- Designed and developed the marketing pages for the TechUp School website.
- Developed an MVP learning management system for sharing resources with students.
- Performed product management tasks to drive product vision.
Technologies: React, TypeScript, Node.js, Python, Heroku, HTML, CSS, Next.js, Git, Web Consulting, Netlify, Semantic UI, Figma, Miro
Freelance Software Engineer
2021 - 2021
Mindjoy
- Redesigned and developed Mindjoy's marketing website using Figma and React–previously Vue.js.
- Implemented tracking using Mixpanel and set up dashboards to track weekly user engagement.
- Created the new design and implemented a revised sign-up flow for Mindjoy's users.
Technologies: React, Vue, Go, Mixpanel, Docker, Git, GitHub
Full-stack Software Engineer
2019 - 2021
OfferZen
- Improved the model_view Ruby Gem used for model composable serialization—rubygems.org/gems/model_view.
- Implemented Elasticsearch and GraphQL into the core platform's candidate search engine.
- Mentored software engineers and helped them onboard into the product team.
- Participated in the product team's social committee, responsible for ensuring the team was happy moving into a remote-first working environment.
Technologies: GraphQL, React, Ruby on Rails (RoR), MongoDB, Notion, Figma, Elasticsearch, React Apollo, Redux, Miro, Jest, JavaScript, Mongoid, Web UI Design, RSpec, Git, GitHub
Back-end Software Engineer
2019 - 2019
Allan Gray
- Implemented features on the core internal transactions system that enabled clients to record their FICA–Financial Intelligence Centre Act–information.
- Mentored and upskilled a junior software engineer in the team.
- Dockerized the team's codebase and helped improve our CI/CD processes.
Technologies: Scala, GitLab, jQuery, Kubernetes, Docker, Docker Compose, Git, GitLab CI/CD, Jira, SQL
Full-stack Software Engineer
2016 - 2018
Jumo
- Developed core platform's back-end and front-end features using Ruby on Rails.
- Provided on-call support on a rotational basis which included weekly bug fixing duty.
- Helped hire over 20 software engineers by performing technical interviews as part of the engineering recruiting initiative.
- Worked with the development team to architect and build a new micro-service using Python and React.
Technologies: Python, Ruby on Rails (RoR), React, Flask, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Docker, Amazon EC2, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), Heroku, PagerDuty, RSpec, Docker Compose, Flask-RESTful, Git, SQL
Software Developer Intern
2015 - 2016
Praekelt
- Created an unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) application using JavaScript that allows users to query statistical data for a chosen location in South Africa.
- Tracked and fixed bugs reported on the Trello Kanban board.
- Worked with two other interns to ship and demonstrate our intern projects after six weeks.
Technologies: Python, Django, JavaScript, Node.js, JSON, State Machines, Open Source, USSD Technology, Git, GitHub
Experience
Indelo
Indelo is a software development and design agency I co-founded to help individuals and companies solve business problems through software. I was the lead front-end developer and project manager for most of the clients I worked with.
Some of the work I completed involved the following:
• Designing and building a video eventing platform, sendit.media, using Vue.js and Tailwind
• Software development for an edtech solution using Ruby on Rails
• Building various landing pages for small businesses
Some of the work I completed involved the following:
• Designing and building a video eventing platform, sendit.media, using Vue.js and Tailwind
• Software development for an edtech solution using Ruby on Rails
• Building various landing pages for small businesses
EasyEscrow
EasyEscrow is an online escrow service built to help South African consumers eliminate fraud. I was one of two full-stack software developers on the project. My contributions included designing and developing the marketing pages and doing development work on the API. The project was built using React, Node.js, and PostgreSQL and is currently hosted on Heroku.
Bel Ombre Cottages
https://www.belombrecottages.co.za/I built a static website for a bed and breakfast in Cape Town, South Africa. The website was built using React.js, Netlify, Semantic UI, and CSS.
The website is a simple static website used to generate income for a small estate.
The website is a simple static website used to generate income for a small estate.
FinWise
http://finwiseapp.ioFinWise is a personal finance management application that helps people manage their money better. I built the marketing pages and various features across the stack, including creating designs using Figma.
Build With Nicol | Portfolio Website
http://buildwithnicol.comI created a portfolio website that showcases some of my best work and gives clients an idea of my skills. I designed the website using Figma and developed it using Next.js and TypeScript.
Education
2013 - 2016
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science and Business Computing
University of Cape Town - Cape Town, South Africa
Certifications
MARCH 2022 - PRESENT
Product Management 101
Udemy
NOVEMBER 2020 - PRESENT
Basics of GraphQL with Ruby on Rails
Udemy
Skills
Libraries/APIs
React, Node.js, Mongoid, Formik, Vue, Flask-RESTful, AWS Amplify, jQuery, Lodash, Recharts, Zod, AmplifyJS, Puppeteer, Framer Motion
Tools
Figma, Git, Miro, GitLab, RSpec, Docker Compose, Expo, Notion, React Apollo, GitHub, GitLab CI/CD, Jira
Languages
GraphQL, Python, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, HTML5, TypeScript, SQL, Go, Scala, PHP
Frameworks
Ruby on Rails (RoR), Next.js, Tailwind CSS, Express.js, React Native, Redux, Jest, Django, Flask, Material UI, Svelte
Paradigms
Web UI Design, Unit Testing
Platforms
Heroku, Netlify, PagerDuty, RevenueCat, Docker, Amazon EC2, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Mixpanel, Kubernetes, Amazon Web Services (AWS), WordPress
Storage
PostgreSQL, JSON, MySQL, Amazon S3 (AWS S3), MongoDB, Elasticsearch, PostgreSQL 10, SQLite
Other
Semantic UI, Front-end Development, Front-end, Full-stack, Full-stack Development, System Design, Product Management, Gatsby, Web Consulting, NativeBase, SaaS, Technical Leadership, Agentic Coding, State Machines, Open Source, USSD Technology, CI/CD Pipelines, APIs, WebSockets, Video Chat, Video Streaming, Framer, Headless CMS, User Interface (UI), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Product Growth
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