Here is “a little” about my technical career. I understand the competitive nature of hiring, so if you need more background on myself, here it is…
Born in Canada to immigrant parents, I was taught to treat and respect others as I would like to be treated and respected. I was also taught that hard work pays off which I have evolved to working smart in order to solve problems more efficiently.
After my parents saved enough to purchase my first computer, I was instantly hooked and gravitated towards figuring out the HOW of how computers and its software worked. Later on I would end up purchasing my own parts to build and update my own computers and learn how to code and develop web applications. I of course ended up becoming the IT person for my friends and family and ended up fixing countless computer issues.
Upon completing a website (HTML, PHP, JS, CSS) for a company in South Africa, it was clear that my passion shifted towards developing websites. I then started a web development company with some friends and we amassed a healthy portfolio of clients.
First published website in 2001 for a travel company in South Africa called Africa Awaits.
While continuing my web development career, I became partners in an amusement company where I was lead developer for a table-top interactive touchscreen system called INTEVO. We attended annual trade shows across the United States and Canada and sold units world wide.
I was in charge of all aspects of the software which allowed user’s time on the machine from a coin or bill acceptor. I also created Flash based touchscreen games that were programmed in AS2 / AS3 which had a monthly leader-board to award prizes for high scores.
Doors then opened for us to build our own digital touchscreen jukeboxes and operate them across the greater Toronto area. I was tasked to manage the software and build / maintain the hardware required for the jukeboxes.
As the route grew, I developed a customized online route management program to keep track of where the jukeboxes and other amusement devices were located and how much money they made.
As the amusement industry began to shift, I was hired by Guidelines Advertising as a web and interactive touchscreen kiosk developer.
At Guidelines Advertising we exclusively served home and condo developers throughout North America and executed all aspects of their print and digital marketing needs. Specifically, my responsibilities included transforming highly detailed design files into their online web and interactive kiosk counterparts.
Websites were mainly used to showcase the housing units, floor-plans and provide potential buyers the ability to register for upcoming purchase dates. Touchscreen kiosks were created with Angular and Firebase and were installed at the sales centres to provide users with up to date information regarding the development and the amenities available throughout the community.
With my experience, I was able to bring in a new suite of features that not only helped to increase their revenue, but also modernized their entire web department.
I first introduced them to responsive websites and interactive touchscreen kiosks, then I also built an online booking system for potential buyers to book appointments with the sales centre, I flew the drone to capture aerial photos of development areas, I edited videos for use on social media and websites, and allowed the designers to push the boundaries of their designs with new interactive features.
After almost a few years at Guidelines Advertising I joined Yellow Pages Canada as Senior Web Developer to lead their Web Prestige department. The department manages the company’s top 3% of client’s nationwide and offers solutions to more complex website requests and issues.
Since taking charge, I quickly ended up working with the national director of product and various key assets to produce and launch a new product called Web Premium.
Web Premium introduced a custom suite of features that we developed to enhance our client’s websites. Features such as a Location Finder for businesses with multiple locations, Project, Service, Staff, and Testimonial Managers, a Promotional Manager that allowed users to create and manage their own promotions and a Gallery to display images in a column or slider. Please visit my Dev page to learn more.
Each feature was developed with our end user in mind so that they may manage certain aspects of their website on their own. This allowed our clients to have more control and afforded us the time to continue improving the features via the feedback we would receive from them.
My responsibilities didn’t stop there however. I also worked closely with our Project Manager to estimate and scope out new builds and custom requests, managed the servers, field technical internal and client queries, worked with the designers on UX/UI, translate PSD’s to web, provided sales training and support, worked with the SEO team to implement strategies, managed 3rd party websites and several other tasks and duties.
Off the clock, you can find me researching new tech, playing around with my 3D printer, loading up a video game, setting up a board game, attempting to create board games, trying new recipes or watching a movie, show or sports. My interests may seem vast, but life is too short not to try new things!