DESCRIPTION
Systems Architect and Engineering Leader with 28 years of experience building and modernizing complex SaaS platforms across FinTech, media, and eCommerce. Currently leading a distributed engineering team at a FinTech startup, where I have driven the shift to AI-native development practices — deploying agentic workflows for code review and project management, integrating MCP servers with self-hosted GitLab, and establishing AI-first engineering policies. I design systems where AI agents are first-class architectural components, not bolted-on features. Seeking Agent Builder, Agent Orchestrator, AI Architect, or Head of AI roles at small companies or startups building cutting-edge products.
US Citizen & German Green Card Holder — no work restrictions in either country. Open to remote positions worldwide. Preferred location: Atlanta, GA, USA.
AI PIVOT
For the past 18 months, I have been singularly focused on the AI transformation of software engineering — not as a side interest, but as a full professional pivot. This has included:
- Deep study of LLM capabilities, limitations, and emerging patterns across foundation models (Claude, GPT, Gemini, open-source)
- Hands-on work with agentic architectures: agent design, tool calling, MCP servers, multi-agent coordination, and autonomous iteration loops
- Building production AI workflows: AI-first code generation policies, automated code review via agents, MCP-integrated GitLab pipelines
- Designing and delivering an AI-native development bootcamp for my engineering team, teaching a five-role separation model for responsible AI-assisted development
- Building Skillr — an open-source universal AI skill manager that syncs to 6 providers — as both a personal tool and a portfolio piece
- Publishing 5 practitioner-level articles on AI-native engineering, epistemic curation, and the real-world dynamics of AI-augmented teams
- Continuous evaluation of the AI tooling landscape: Claude Code, Codex CLI, Cursor, Copilot, Windsurf, Cline, and their evolving capabilities
28 years of systems thinking didn't become obsolete — it became the foundation for understanding how AI agents should be architected, deployed, and governed in production.
EXPERIENCE
Head of Software Development & Systems Architect
Immotege GmbH · Leonberg, Germany (Remote)
Nov 2020 – Present
Led architecture, development, and AI transformation of a multi-tenant FinTech SaaS platform. Managed a distributed team across Montenegro, India, and Latin America.
- Established AI-first code generation policy across the engineering team, making AI-assisted development the default workflow for all new feature work.
- Integrated Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers with self-hosted GitLab, automating issue triage, merge request analysis, and developer feedback loops.
- Deployed AI agents for project management workflows and automated code review, reducing manual review overhead and accelerating merge cycles.
- Designed and delivered a structured AI-native development bootcamp for the engineering team, built around a five-role separation model (Think/Execute/Edit/Review/Iterate) with hands-on exercises, tool orchestration frameworks, and team accountability conventions.
- Designed LLM-based document ingestion and categorization system for automated processing of financial documents.
- Architecting an LLM-powered financing feasibility assessment engine to automatically evaluate application viability.
- Designed and governed a modular monolith architecture with defined service seams, enabling future microservice extraction without rewrites.
- Built hybrid cloud infrastructure with Docker, Kubernetes, and AWS, improving deployment efficiency by 30%.
- Implemented CI/CD pipelines via GitLab, reducing release cycles by 25%.
- Led a distributed team of 5 developers, establishing coding standards, documentation frameworks, and review workflows.
- Served as project manager and technical writer during early project phases.
Senior Back-End Developer
ITPlusX GmbH · Stuttgart, Germany
Jul 2016 – Sep 2020
Built RESTful APIs and web applications for diverse agency clients. Led modernization of legacy systems to microservices.
- Created RESTful APIs and web applications with Laravel/Lumen and Typo3 for diverse clients.
- Migrated legacy monoliths to microservices, enhancing system scalability and maintainability.
- Introduced end-to-end testing with Selenium and Docker, cutting production bug rates by 25%.
- Maintained and optimized clients' legacy codebases and Linux infrastructure.
Senior Back-End Developer
Werbewelt AG · Stuttgart, Germany
Apr 2015 – Jun 2016
Built Laravel-backed solutions for SPAs and eCommerce. Introduced modern Git workflows.
- Created Laravel-backed solutions for single-page applications.
- Introduced Git/GitLab workflows, streamlining team collaboration and code review practices.
- Maintained Magento eCommerce sites and integrated social media APIs.
- Built extensions and customizations for the Typo3 CMS.
PHP Developer / Infrastructure Engineer
boingMedia GmbH · Göppingen, Germany
Jul 2014 – May 2015
Modernized internal tooling and managed Linux infrastructure.
- Transitioned internal tools to object-oriented PHP, modernizing development workflows.
- Managed Linux infrastructure, ensuring 99.9% uptime for critical systems.
Freelance Web / PHP Developer
Self-Employed · Atlanta, GA, USA
Feb 2010 – Dec 2013
Delivered CMS and eCommerce solutions for small businesses.
- Developed CMS and eCommerce solutions using WordPress, Magento, and early Laravel builds.
- Delivered custom web projects for small businesses, enhancing online presence and revenue.
Web Developer / Lead Engineer / Senior QA Automation Engineer
Various (CNN, mediaOcean, VeriSign, IHG) · Atlanta, GA, USA
Jan 1996 – Jan 2010
Early web development pioneer at CNN. Led development and QA teams across major media and tech companies.
- Pioneered web development at CNN (1996–2002), building CMS integrations and content platforms.
- Led special content projects for CNN, CNN Sports Illustrated, NASCAR, and Cartoon Network.
- Senior QA Automation Engineer focused on building automated testing frameworks across media and tech firms.
- Managed QA and development teams at mediaOcean, VeriSign, and IHG.
SKILLS
AI & Agentic Systems
System Architecture
Backend & Languages
DevOps & Infrastructure
Testing
Leadership & Process
PROJECTS
Open-source universal AI skill & prompt manager. Write skills once in portable YAML + Markdown, sync native config files to Claude, Cursor, Copilot, Windsurf, Cline, and OpenAI with one click. Features multi-model test runner (Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini, Ollama), version history with diff viewer, skill composition, template variables, prompt linting, and a marketplace with 25 pre-built skills.
Semblance AI
[https://github.com/eooo-io/semblance-ai]RAG system and curated dataset pipeline for domain-specific AI applications. Includes data curation tooling and retrieval-augmented generation components.
PUBLICATIONS
Medium
A practitioner's framework for orchestrating multiple AI tools across planning, execution, editing, and review — treating each tool as a specialized component, not a silver bullet.
Medium
How AI redefines software engineering roles and why skill, creativity, and human judgment remain essential in AI-native workflows.
Medium
Exploring the risks of uncurated AI training data, intentional bias in model alignment, and the case for principled epistemic curation.
Medium
Arguing for structured, curated knowledge foundations in AI training rather than brute-force ingestion of unfiltered internet corpora.
EDUCATION
Georgia Institute of Technology
C Programming, Perl Programming, Unix System Administration
Continuing Education · 1999 – 2000
Georgia State University
Music Theory / Music Industry Management
BS (Incomplete) · 1992 – 1994