Brian Wojtczak, Developer in London, United Kingdom
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Brian Wojtczak

Verified Expert  in Engineering

Software Developer

Location
London, United Kingdom
Toptal Member Since
December 12, 2017

Brian gained experience in a wide range of technologies and languages through developing automated self-service hosting platforms. He excels at acquiring skills in unfamiliar technologies, as well as applying the skills he already has to getting projects completed. Brian has successfully worked with both large multinational project teams, and as the sole developer for small companies.

Portfolio

CacheNetworks
Go, Node.js, IP Networks, Content Delivery Networks (CDN), Team Leadership...
CacheNetworks
Go, Vue, MongoDB, Redis, Docker, PHP, JavaScript, Python, Leadership
Hanzo Archives
Kubernetes, Go, PostgreSQL, Docker, Python, Leadership

Experience

Availability

Part-time

Preferred Environment

Go, Python, Git, Agile, Vue

The most amazing...

...software I've created is lexical analysis library (grammar, parser, tokenizer, compiler) for network switch and router configuration.

Work Experience

Head of Software Development

2021 - PRESENT
CacheNetworks
  • Oversaw all software development processes within the company, including project timelines and tasks. Managed all members of the development team.
  • Implemented administrative tools and interfaces to assist the customer support teams.
  • Built back-end technology for automated provisioning and management of the main CDN product.
Technologies: Go, Node.js, IP Networks, Content Delivery Networks (CDN), Team Leadership, Management, Leadership

Software Developer

2019 - 2021
CacheNetworks
  • Implemented new CDN functionality and features in response to requests from end users. Collaborated with both end users and stakeholders within CacheFly.
  • Enabled easier monitoring and management of the global network by implementing a real-time internal dashboard and web admin tool using Python, Vue, and WebSocket.
  • Implemented agent software to allow for easy remote control and configuration of all servers.
  • Advocated for software development best practices and ensured others were aware of the reasons for the methodology.
  • Implemented new back-end systems to provide optimized automation of provisioning and maintenance tasks.
Technologies: Go, Vue, MongoDB, Redis, Docker, PHP, JavaScript, Python, Leadership

Senior Software Engineer

2018 - 2019
Hanzo Archives
  • Migrated legacy software platform from Amazon Machine Images to Docker containers.
  • Helped design and implement low maintenance on-premise variant of SaaS offering through the use of custom orchestration of Docker Swarm.
  • Assisted with ongoing migration from Python 2 to Python 3.
  • Researched and designed new functionality for integrating e-discovery workflows with Slack.
  • Maintained existing legacy software written in Python 2.
Technologies: Kubernetes, Go, PostgreSQL, Docker, Python, Leadership

Senior Developer

2015 - 2017
1&1 internet (United Kingdom)
  • Instigated the process of porting old software from Delphi to C#.
  • Implemented modern software for automated configuration of Cisco switches.
  • Introduced a continuous integration and deployment system for Docker images.
  • Was a member of the team which created a self-service container hosting platform based on Docker, Kubernetes, and OpenShift.
  • Introduced a pattern of using Python 3 for building REST APIs.
Technologies: Kubernetes, Go, Selenium, C#, Django, Python, Docker, OpenShift, Leadership, Technical Writing

Technical Architect | Lead Developer

2013 - 2015
Fasthosts Internet
  • Improved a self-service domain registration system to scale to hundreds of TLDs.
  • Created a large-scale Ruby on Rails shared hosting platform.
  • Introduced new technical coding and documentation standards department-wide.
  • Collaborated with internal non-technical product owners to design solutions for implementation by development teams.
  • Coordinated with suppliers and regulators to ensure technical compliance.
Technologies: JavaScript, PHP, Python, C#, Leadership, Technical Writing

Developer

2011 - 2013
Fasthosts Internet
  • Contributed to updating and modernizing the self-service domain registration system.
  • Introduced unit testing to back-end components of the service platform.
  • Led development for a project to introduce multiple different types of storage to the self-service virtual private server platform.
  • Triaged and closed operational issues. Required investigating the root cause and implementing fixes as appropriate.
Technologies: JavaScript, PHP, Python, Delphi, C#

Technical Manager | Developer | System Administrator

2000 - 2011
Lawyers Online
  • Created a full in-house customer relationship management (CRM) for service, order, and task management.
  • Developed automated invoicing with direct debit payment reconciliation.
  • Built an automated broadband ADSL and WLR3 telephone line provisioning.
  • Developed automated server management for web and email hosting.
  • Customized network router firmware to include auto-provisioning capabilities and company branding.
  • Developed an email antivirus and spam filtering service with web-based quarantine controls.
  • Implemented a new dual-homed IPv4 and IPv6 network.
Technologies: C++, Lua, Tcl, JavaScript, Perl, PHP, Leadership

Fasthosts Domain Registration System

https://www.fasthosts.co.uk/domains
The Fasthosts domain registration system allows anyone to find, purchase, renew and manage domain names.

I participated in the system's modernization and led further development for several years. I also introduced many modern development practices and improved performance and scalability to accommodate many daily users. Furthermore, I built primarily as a declarative state synchronization machine, implemented using an asynchronous event-driven model for performance and scale, built in C# with .Net 4.5 on the back end, and integrated with an existing PHP-based customer self-service portal and Drupal-based marketing website.

Lawyers Online Billing System

With Lawyers Online being a small company with big ambitions, an automated billing system was vital. A significant amount of manual labor is avoided by implementing paperless invoicing. Invoices are sent automatically by either email or fax and are integrated with the direct debit system to automatically take recurring payments from clients.

I designed it in collaboration with the rest of the business and developed it almost exclusively by myself. I built it with PHP on both the back and front end, but I extensively used jQuery in the user interface. Integration with financial systems was done using various proprietary XML over HTTP protocols.

Webhook Handler

https://hub.docker.com/r/astrolox/webhook-handler/
An intentionally very simple and lightweight application that receives and handles webhooks. Based on a configuration file, this web service will execute the commands users specify when it receives a specific authenticated HTTP request. It is particularly useful for triggering the redeployment of Docker containers when an automated build completes on Docker Hub. It is intended for development and prototyping environments, not for use in a production environment.

Languages

Go, Python, PHP, C#, JavaScript, Tcl, Lua, C++, SQL, Delphi, Perl, HTML, XML

Frameworks

Django REST Framework, Django, Laravel, .NET, Selenium

Tools

GitHub, Microsoft Visual Studio, Bitbucket, Atlassian Suite, Jira, Docker Hub, IntelliJ IDEA, WebStorm, PyCharm, JetBrains, GitLab, Git, RabbitMQ, Jenkins, Subversion (SVN), PhpStorm

Paradigms

API Architecture, REST, REST API Architecture, Kanban, Agile Software Development, Agile, Scrum, ITIL, Management, Test-driven Development (TDD)

Platforms

Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Ubuntu, Debian, Amazon EC2, FreeBSD, OpenShift, MacOS, Drupal, Windows

Other

Software Architecture, HTTPS, SMTP, HTTP, SSH, LDAP, System Administration, Linux Administration, Back-end, Software, Network Protocols, Architecture, ITIL V3 Foundation Certified, Software Design, Leadership, Technical Writing, IP Networks, Content Delivery Networks (CDN), Team Leadership, Cisco, GitFlow, Cryptography, Domain Name Registration, DNS, PCI, PDF

Libraries/APIs

Vue 2, jQuery, Vue, Node.js

Storage

PostgreSQL, Redis, Microsoft SQL Server, MongoDB, MySQL

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