Meet John, common name, uncommon dude.

Native Californian, root beer lover and sandcastle maker, I’m not one of those kids that went into college knowing exactly what they wanted to be when they grew up. I had to find my way.

Passionate about films and technology but pigeon-holed into project management for years, I’d decided enough was enough and pivoted when my baby girl was born. (Do I mention the part where I left my wife in the hospital one night on her birthday, hours AFTER my baby girl was born to finish a coding class? She gave me a high-five on my way out! haha)

Realizing that coding encompasses a lot of my God-given interests and talents, I hit the ground running, wearing 100 hats at a hearty handful of startups. (All start-ups that have been acquired now, thank you very much.)

Funny how when you find the right thing, you fly.

Tinkerer, builder and curious bird; I’m the guy who pulls all-nighters fueled by hot chocolate and Tame Impala, until it’s done right. I build my own servers and make my own, slow-rising pizza dough.

After years of hard work, I found myself in leadership roles, hiring new stellar humans and building successful teams.

Carrying on the mantra that “Happy chickens make better eggs. Happy people make better products.”

Creating happy teams is my jam. Creating work I’m proud of that brings people’s ideas into life is my butter.

Making dreams come true fuels me but living the dream is why I get up in the morning. Encouraging others that the work we do is important, but so is living. Coding allows me the freedom and flexibility to work hard and play hard. And I make sure the people around me are doing the same.

Because I know what it’s like to feel stuck on a path you don’t love. I know what it’s like to eat crappy pizza and be a part of a sad team.

None of that on my watch, you know?

I love the teams I lead and the visions we bring to life.

Look forward to working with you… and sharing a slice.

TL;DR

The work stuff:

  • Experienced in Agile methodologies (also know waterfall)
  • Sourcing, interviewing and hiring engineers
  • Onboarding, mentoring and managing teams
  • Natural leader
  • Team player (experience working closely with executive, engineering, marketing and product teams)
  • Certified ScrumMaster
  • Really good at running efficient meetings (stand-up, grooming, retrospectives, planning and touch base) but I also know when a meeting should be an email
  • Deliver products on deadlines
  • Excellent communicator
  • Self starter and go-getter with just the right amount of chatty
  • Helpful, kind, knowledgeable and forever learning
  • Privacy and data protection nerd

In case you missed it, here is my resume again.

The home stuff:

  • Husband to 1 and dad to 3
  • Amature film maker (won an award once)
  • Semi-professional woodfire pizza maker (dough and sauce by hand)
  • I speak Portuguese and toddler (Bluey and Peppa currently on repeat)
  • Root Beer connoisseur (never diet)
  • Completed a LEGO MBA program (Master Builder Academy)
  • Love old movies, new movies, and you can catch me at the theater (sometimes even by myself)