Objective

Though I am not currently seeking a position, I would be happy to hear of any Internet engineering position that will leverage my database-centric Web development background and help me grow as a systems architect, software engineer, mentor, and manager.

Email

nate@perry-thistle.net

Skills

  • I have a well-rounded skill set with experience in Technical Management, Web application design, System Administration, and Quality Assurance.

  • I am expert in database-driven content and catalog Web sites, content management systems, and content presentation, with an emphasis on e-commerce front- and back-end systems.

  • I provide indomitable leadership and project management through all phases of project execution and have been intimately involved in the information architecture, user interface and application design, build, test, and release cycles of numerous Web projects.

Experience

July 2006 — Present: Software Engineering Director

Foodbuzz

Lead the design and development of an online food and dining community Web site where users can contribute all kinds of content, videos, and photos as well as submit restaurants and rate and review them. Users may also communicate through threaded comments and forums, vote upon and bookmark content. All of this activity is tracked and used to produce a Buzz quotient which effectively let's the community drive the display of content on the site.

September 2002 — May 2006: Director of Technology

Performance Learning Systems, Inc.® (PLS®)

Planned, executed, and managed major projects, relationships with vendors, independent contractors, and employees while successfully keeping the technology department in-budget.

Shepherded PLS from a Monolithic Web production model into a powerful multi-site Bricolage CMS implementation, allowing PLS' internal departments access to a complete, on-demand, publishing solution. This improved the overall quality and consistency of the sites and enabled marketing to produce cost effective campaigns that increased online registrations by 32%.

Led the re-creation of the PLS Web site including the Information Architecture, User Experience, and design processes, resulting in a 300% increase in traffic over two years.

Researched and implemented Learning Managements Systems (LMS) such as Moodle and ATutor, allowing the company to grow a successful online graduate course business with little additional expenses which is now growing by 55% per year.

April 2002 — May 2006: Systems Administrator

tristream (A subsidiary of Performance Learning Systems, Inc.)

Configured and maintained Linux machines to work together to provide Dynamic Address Assignment, email, SMB and AppleTalk file-sharing services to Macintosh, Windows, and Linux systems in a Local Area Network.

Selected and installed SmoothWall Coporate Server as an immediate fix to an insecure firewall situation while also upgrading the flexibility, usability (including VPN), and management of the firewall.

Remotely recovered and migrated an entire production machine's networking configuration, data, and duties to a fresh computer and Linux installation after it was compromised, including all existing Web sites, supporting MySQL databases, and services including the primary name server (DNS) for the domain.

October 2000 — July 2001: Senior Software Engineer

Standard Media International

Participated in the candidate selection, interview, and hiring process. Managed and motivated the team of engineers and database administrators.

Created and implemented technical processes including project definition/review, resource management, documentation, coding standards/peer review, data preservation/migration, and code development/deployment systems.

Designed database schemas, authored stored procedures, and assisted in the hardware, software, and language selection for the complete redesign of relational news Web site, utilizing multiple data feeds, a large taxonomy, and heavy content automation.

April 1999 — February 2000: Senior Content Technology Engineer

Beyond.com (Purchased BuyDirect)

Led the creation of a dozen joint Beyond/Symantec multi-currency Web sites.

Created stored procedures to support internal and external Web site processes.

Established new employee education guidelines and course curriculum. Trained and mentored employees in the use of Vignette's StoryServer.

April 1998 — March 1999: Associate Software Engineer

BuyDirect (Spun-off from C|NET)

Built Web based interfaces to manage Web site database content.

Added client- and server-side JavaScript enhancements to the Web site.

Scripted front- and back-end Web site and underlying process testing. Implemented and maintained a Web based defect-tracking solution.

April 1997 — April 1998: Quality Assurance Specialist

CNET, e-commerce division

Tested downloadable software purchase and product installation processes on all supported platforms.

Handled escalated customer support issues to expedite problem resolution.

Resolved overall Web site stability and compatibility issues.

Education

New Mexico State University

Community College of the Air Force

Honors

Awarded the Air Force Commendation, Achievement, Good Conduct, National Defense Service, and Expeditionary medals as well as the Southwest Asia Service medal with one Bronze Star for service in Desert Shield and Operation Restore Hope.

Honorably discharged from both Active and Reserve Air Force duty.

Standards

Valid XHTML Strict 1.0

Valid CSS!