Bill is available for hire
Hire BillBill Martschenko
Verified Expert in Engineering
CTO and Developer
Location
Morrisville, NC, United States
Toptal Member Since
February 26, 2020
Bill is a veteran, hands-on CTO who presents quickly as a thought leader with executive presence. He can speak plain English to all sides of an organization, including investors and a BoD. His work includes seven startups. Add his fractional CTO and consulting roles, and his portfolio sits at 11 large enterprises and nine SMBs under $100M/year, covering digital transformation, disruptive innovation, rescuing technical debt, and explosive growth in both regulated and non-regulated industries.
Portfolio
Beca - Main
Python, Event-driven Programming, Grafana, Relational Databases, Data...
Perpetuating
CTO, Architecture, React, TypeScript, SaaS, Enterprise SaaS, Software...
AddShoppers
Python, Go, Data Engineering, Data Lakes, RESTful Development, REST APIs...
Experience
Availability
Part-time
Preferred Environment
Amazon Web Services (AWS), Pivotal Tracker, Slack, Visual Studio Code (VS Code), Linux, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), OS X, Agile Product Management, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs)
The most amazing...
...project I've led as a CTO is a data science startup to acquisition. We rebuilt the product line and I coded the ML from prototypes built by researchers.
Work Experience
Fractional CTO
2021 - 2023
Beca - Main
- Worked with a client, and after eight months, they expressed satisfaction by buying the rights from Toptal to engage me directly outside the Toptal platform.
- Helped attract ongoing funding from the parent company by co-authoring an evolving value proposition as the product emerged from the prototype.
- Built, using Python and Volttron, the architecture, prototype, and 1st implementation, serving as the product owner and software CTO who paired with the building engineering side CTO.
- Embedded on a Raspberry Pi Edge Box at each client site and scaled software using green threading and distributed computing principles to allow 100s of 1000s of separate computational automata to manage the building sensors such as HVAC equipment.
- Designed a data lake schema to the scale of TBs/PBs per year per customer for operational and computational transcripts at each Edge Box. Implemented the data stream per this schema to enable operations and data science teams.
- Built, using Jupyter Notebooks, an analytical bridge to the product and its data lake of operational transcripts to calculate cost and energy savings. A day of data could be emulated in seconds to explore new controller logic.
- Saved project staffing resources by building a DSL that enabled less costly SMEs, such as building engineers and mechanical engineers, to author building-specific controllers rather than growing an expensive team of software engineers to hand code.
Technologies: Python, Event-driven Programming, Grafana, Relational Databases, Data, Energy Monitoring, Energy Management, Time Series, Scripting, PostgreSQL, Timescale, CTO, B2B, SaaS, Data Engineering, Internet of Things (IoT), Architecture, Linux, Docker, Scrum Product Owner, Jupyter, VOLTTRON, Domain-specific Languages (DSLs), Data Lakes, Azure, Software, Software Development, Agile, Scrum, Technical Project Management, Leadership, Technical Architecture, CI/CD Pipelines, Software Architecture, Agile Product Management, Back-end, Raspberry Pi, Embedded Python, Code Architecture, Startups, APIs, REST, Redis, Technical Leadership, Cloud, ETL, SQL Performance, Data Modeling, HVAC, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Team Leadership
Fractional CTO
2022 - 2022
Perpetuating
- Advised on technology readiness, leadership, product, and architecture for a candidate tech company seeking growth funding for an investor (Perpetuating's CEO).
- Interviewed principals in the candidate tech company and reviewed technology documentation and plans.
- Built a detailed report card with recommendations, including where the real work is getting done and who the actual thought leaders and implementation leaders were.
Technologies: CTO, Architecture, React, TypeScript, SaaS, Enterprise SaaS, Software, Software Development, Venture Capital, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Software Architecture, Code Architecture, Startups, Technical Leadership, Cloud
CTO
2020 - 2021
AddShoppers
- Served as their CTO, and at seven months, the client expressed satisfaction by buying rights from Toptal to engage me directly outside the Toptal platform.
- Grew the engineering team five-fold, from 4 to 20, in ten months, including two acquisitions that resulted in staff spanning time zones from West to East: Hawaii, mainland US, Poland, Bosnia, UAE, Pakistan, and India.
- Led the rebranding and relaunch of an acquired consumer-facing product, a Chrome extension, in 1.5 months from the acquisition point.
- Built, using Python and BigQuery, a continuous pump of data to a data lake in GCP for in-house reporting that combined data from MongoDB and 3rd-party vendors such as SparkPost.
- Led and co-wrote a data lake-based infrastructure to increase capacity from 0.1 PB per month to 10 PB per month using an approach that would scale to PBs per day and millions of events per hour.
- Transitioned from partial Kanban to a Scrum practice, hiring both a product owner and scrum master as the company grew four times, from nine to 40, in ten months.
- Led a Go POC using different graph databases (RedisGraph, Neo4j, dgraph.io) to implement an identity graph to process millions of events per hour and house 500 million nodes and 100+ million edges.
- Led and coded a Go project to build a gaming abstraction called SpyNet to represent the in-house systems' basic architecture to educate staff better and facilitate interviews.
- Coded a Go POC for improving 30x a customer ingestion pipeline that reduced 150 minutes per customer to at most five minutes per customer.
Technologies: Python, Go, Data Engineering, Data Lakes, RESTful Development, REST APIs, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), BigQuery, Pub/Sub, Serverless, MongoDB, GraphDB, PostgreSQL, SQL, MySQL, React, React Native, Chrome Extensions, JavaScript, PHP, Agile, Docker, eCommerce, NoSQL, APIs, Architecture, CTO, B2B, SaaS, Enterprise SaaS, Software, Software Development, Data Science, Scrum Product Owner, Scrum, Jupyter, Relational Databases, Cypher, Mobile, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Startups, Technical Project Management, Laravel, Mobile Development, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Full-stack, Software Architecture, Agile Product Management, Back-end, Kubernetes, API Integration, Jira, Confluence, Redis Streams, Continuous Integration (CI), Microservices, Code Architecture, Data, Redis, REST, Flask, Technical Leadership, Cloud, AWS Lambda, ETL, SQL Performance, Data Modeling, Team Leadership
CTO
2018 - 2019
InHerSight
- Led the architecture and build of data pipelines on AWS/Heroku infrastructure (S3, EC2, Lambda, Gateway, CloudWatch, EC2, Python scripting) for processing user activity analytics and user engagement via email.
- Oversaw the architecture and product implementation for web, mobile, and large-scale outbound email campaigns using Django, React Native, and SendGrid.
- Built, in Python, a continuous pump of data to a warehouse for in-house reporting, combining data sources from SendGrid and an application database.
- Spearheaded the transition from partial Kanban to a Scrum process to drive an expectation-of-excellence culture, including innovation from anyone and weekly accountability to the CEO in business terms.
- Refactored, for performance and scale, an MVP website that was more than 30 seconds per page, and sometimes timing out to sub-second.
- Built detailed monitoring of all website activity into a data stream fed into a warehouse for analyzing the success of user campaigns.
- Optimized data ingest by configuring PostgreSQL on AWS to receive append-only, bulk data writes from 3rd-party APIs and provided background Python batch scripting to clean and aggregate into a data warehouse.
- Evolved a company vocabulary for analytics based on incremental needs for analytics from the business analysts and wrote data pipelines in Python and SQL.
Technologies: Amazon Web Services (AWS), JavaScript, TypeScript, Vue, Heroku, Serverless, GraphQL, React Native, Node.js, Python, Django, CTO, Software, Software Development, Agile, Scrum, Scrum Product Owner, APIs, Data, Data Engineering, Jupyter, B2B, B2C, PostgreSQL, Relational Databases, SQL, Mobile, Startups, Technical Project Management, Mobile Development, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Algolia, CI/CD Pipelines, Full-stack, Software Architecture, Agile Product Management, CSS, Docker, Back-end, API Integration, Continuous Integration (CI), Microservices, Code Architecture, REST, Celery, Django REST Framework, Redis, Technical Leadership, Cloud, AWS Lambda, ETL, SQL Performance, Data Modeling, Team Leadership
CTO
2015 - 2018
Bivarus
- Spearheaded the buildout of a data-centric platform scalable to millions of monthly inbound customer transactions.
- Built a team across two US offices and with some staff in the Ukraine.
- Refactored a low-throughput MVP via a decentralized service bus using RabbitMQ.
- Led the architecture and build of data pipelines on AWS infrastructure (S3, EC2, Lambda, Gateway, CloudWatch, EC2) for continuous data feeds used per client custom transforms.
- Led the complete rebuild of the UX following a customer-driven story approach.
- Hand-coded the machine learning algorithms in Python for at-scale performance based on MATLAB prototypes built by university data science researchers.
- Organized companywide effort to define the business vocabulary and models for dashboarding and then built a warehouse (Sisense) using data pipelines.
- Innovated a self-correcting data pipeline using Spotify's Luigi open-source platform to auto-fix downstream calculations and dashboards when clients issued corrections to their historical data.
- Integrated a chatbot (NarrativeDX, also acquired by Press Ganey) to provide human discussion and narration of data and data science projections.
Technologies: Amazon Web Services (AWS), Machine Learning, Data Science, Angular, RabbitMQ, MySQL, Python, Ruby, Ruby on Rails (RoR), Linux, Software, Software Development, Agile, Scrum, Scrum Product Owner, APIs, Data, Data Engineering, TypeScript, SQL, NoSQL, Relational Databases, SaaS, Enterprise SaaS, Jupyter, CTO, Venture Capital, Venture Funding, Digital Transformation, MongoDB, B2B, Startups, Fundraising, Technical Project Management, Chatbots, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Elasticsearch, CI/CD Pipelines, Full-stack, Software Architecture, Agile Product Management, CSS, Docker, Back-end, API Integration, Azure Event Grid, Continuous Integration (CI), Healthcare, HIPAA Compliance, Microservices, Code Architecture, Time Series, Azure, PostgreSQL, Technical Leadership, Cloud, AWS Lambda, ETL, SQL Performance, Data Modeling, Team Leadership
CTO Advisor
2014 - 2015
Integrify
- Prototyped a major technology change to MongoDB from the SQL server for an existing web property that is available on-premise and in the cloud.
- Performed a substantial ETL analysis to quantify, transform, and clean both data and schema.
- Paired with the CTO to investigate the value of replacing licensed databases (SQL Server, Oracle) and a licensed operating system (Windows) with Linux and MongoDB.
Technologies: Microsoft SQL Server, RESTful Web Services, Angular, Node.js, .NET, MongoDB, Windows, Linux, Relational Databases, SQL, NoSQL, APIs, Digital Transformation, CTO, Software, Software Development, Data, Architecture, B2B, Technical Architecture, Software Architecture, Back-end, Code Architecture, Technical Leadership, Cloud
Vice President of Engineering | Chief Architect
2010 - 2015
VIPER
- Transformed an early SaaS prototype into one serving 80 customers worldwide, scaling to tens to hundreds to thousands of seats each.
- Built a virtual team in the US, Brazil, and Russia and instilled Scrum practices.
- Instilled an expectation-of-excellence culture, including accountability to the CEO in business terms, quality control, DevOps, push-button deployments, and software that monitors its own health.
- Implemented compiler algorithms to code generate a high-performance, customer-specific financial solver.
- Built a near real-time dashboard with 100,000 numbers behind a single KPI.
- Automated data-rich activity transcripts per user to improve customer support, license tracking, and insights beyond Google Analytics.
Technologies: MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Amazon Web Services (AWS), JSON, XML, JavaScript, PHP, .NET, Windows, Relational Databases, SQL, Agile, Scrum, Scrum Product Owner, SaaS, Enterprise SaaS, Venture Capital, Venture Funding, Software, Software Development, B2B, Architecture, Digital Transformation, Startups, Technical Project Management, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Full-stack, Software Architecture, Agile Product Management, CSS, Back-end, C#, Code Architecture, Data, APIs, Technical Leadership, Cloud, ETL, SQL Performance, Data Modeling, Team Leadership
Data Architect | National Standards Committee
2013 - 2014
AGC of America
- Worked directly with a board of industry executives and led online workgroups of their subject matter experts in the US and UK to model business processes and data.
- Wrote position papers and Excel dashboards to monitor a highly technical process.
- Authored all technical artifacts including modular workflow patterns in UML and BPM&N.
- Served as the scrum-of-scrum master for a multi-vendor integration and helped present it at a national convention in Las Vegas.
- Built a custom, continuous integration server to intercept network traffic, validate, correct, capture timings, and post scrum milestones online.
Technologies: jQuery, HTML, Bootstrap, JavaScript, JSON, JADE, Node.js, XSLT, Web Services Description Language (WSDL), XSD, XML, Digital Transformation, Agile, Scrum, Scrum Product Owner, Data, B2B, Technical Project Management, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Software Architecture, Code Architecture, Relational Databases, Startups, Agile Product Management, APIs, Back-end, REST, Technical Leadership, ETL, Data Modeling, Team Leadership
Experience
Data Architecture for a National Standards Committee
The challenge was to serve a national post on a standards body to author a data standard for the $600-billion construction industry.
Role: Data Architect
Tasks Accomplished:
• Worked directly with a board of industry executives and led online workgroups of their subject matter experts in the US and UK to model business processes and data.
• Improved the schedule and credibility by researching and following an established methodology.
• Wrote position papers and Excel dashboards to monitor a highly technical process.
• Authored all technical artifacts, including modular workflow patterns in UML and BPM&N.
• Served as the Scrum-of-Scrum Master for a multi-vendor integration and helped present it at a national convention.
• Built a continuous integration server to intercept network traffic, validate, correct, capture timings, and post scrum milestones online.
Role: Data Architect
Tasks Accomplished:
• Worked directly with a board of industry executives and led online workgroups of their subject matter experts in the US and UK to model business processes and data.
• Improved the schedule and credibility by researching and following an established methodology.
• Wrote position papers and Excel dashboards to monitor a highly technical process.
• Authored all technical artifacts, including modular workflow patterns in UML and BPM&N.
• Served as the Scrum-of-Scrum Master for a multi-vendor integration and helped present it at a national convention.
• Built a continuous integration server to intercept network traffic, validate, correct, capture timings, and post scrum milestones online.
Accelerating a Startup to the 1st Funding
Served as a fractional CTO/advisor to an innovative, early-stage startup for booking travel more enjoyably and affordably.
I led the completion of an MVP to be used for the 1st round of funding using Python and FastAPI, PostgreSQL, ChatGPT-4, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and potentially Bubble. I also provided advice on dealings with a 3rd-party software vendor that is underperforming.
I led the completion of an MVP to be used for the 1st round of funding using Python and FastAPI, PostgreSQL, ChatGPT-4, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and potentially Bubble. I also provided advice on dealings with a 3rd-party software vendor that is underperforming.
Education
1986 - 1988
Master's Degree in Computer Science
Georgia Institute of Technology - Atlanta, GA, USA
1982 - 1986
Bachelor's Degree in Mathematical Sciences
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill - Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Skills
Libraries/APIs
Node.js, REST APIs, React, Vue, jQuery
Tools
Slack, Pivotal Tracker, Jupyter, Git, GitHub, IntelliJ IDEA, Postman, Aha!, BigQuery, GitLab, RabbitMQ, Grafana, Jira, Confluence, ChatGPT, Bubble, Celery
Frameworks
Ruby on Rails (RoR), .NET, Flask, Bootstrap, Django, React Native, Angular, Laravel, Django REST Framework
Languages
XSD, Web Services Description Language (WSDL), XSLT, HTML, Python, C#, C++, C, JavaScript, SQL, Ruby, TypeScript, PHP, XML, JADE, Go, R, GraphQL, Domain-specific Languages (DSLs), Cypher, CSS
Paradigms
Event-driven Programming, RESTful Development, Agile, Microservices, Scrum, Agile Product Management, ETL, Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), Desktop App Development, HIPAA Compliance, Data Science, BPMN, B2B, B2C, Mobile Development, Continuous Integration (CI), REST
Platforms
OS X, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Visual Studio Code (VS Code), AWS Lambda, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Docker, Linux, Kubernetes, RStudio, Windows, Heroku, Azure, Mobile, Algolia, Raspberry Pi, iOS
Storage
JSON, Relational Databases, MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Performance, MongoDB, Microsoft SQL Server, Data Lakes, NoSQL, Elasticsearch, Google Cloud, Redis
Industry Expertise
Healthcare
Other
Architecture, RESTful Web Services, Code Architecture, Data, Data Engineering, APIs, CTO, Scrum Product Owner, Digital Transformation, Startups, Technical Project Management, Leadership, Technical Architecture, Full-stack, Software Architecture, Back-end, Technical Leadership, Cloud, Data Modeling, Cross-functional Collaboration, Thought Leadership, Hands-on Implementation, Team Leadership, Information Architecture (IA), Pub/Sub, Time Series, Internet of Things (IoT), FastAPI, HVAC, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), GraphDB, Chrome Extensions, eCommerce, Machine Learning, Serverless, SaaS, Energy Monitoring, Energy Management, Scripting, Timescale, VOLTTRON, Enterprise SaaS, Software, Software Development, Venture Capital, Venture Funding, Fundraising, Chatbots, CI/CD Pipelines, API Integration, Azure Event Grid, Redis Streams, Embedded Python, Low Code
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