David Blackstone

Experience

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  U.S. Navy Reserve

  Jan 2011 - Dec 2012

  ➤ Management:• Collaborated with Squad Leaders to ensure completion of larger, long-term goals and required paperwork by personnel.• Organized goals, tasks, and events, staying under budget by 10% while increasing overall morale.• Broke down larger goals given by CO into smaller, more manageable tasks for squad leaders.• Conducted 1-on-1s to turn around under-performers, removed those that did not improve. ➤ Management: • Ensured 100% pass rate within the battalion for physical requirements by offering additional training and assigning trainers as appropriate.• Organized smaller teams to allow for more direct engagement with those that had trouble meeting physical requirements.• Kept motivation high for physical training by praising and rewarding effort as well as success.

  • Executive Officer

    Jan 2012 - Dec 2012

  • Physical Training Officer

    Jan 2011 - Dec 2011
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  Book Demon

  Dec 2012 - Dec 2014

  Founder

  ➤ Management:• Interviewed and hired several US software developers for Digital Ocean-hosted project.• Created budget and ensured teams adhered to timeline for web development project.• Coordinated back-end, front-end and design work to ensure completion in fastest time possible.• Brought in end-users to act as stakeholders for feedback on user experience, and brought forward changes to the user interface as needed.

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  Georgia State University

  Jan 2015 - May 2016

  Researcher

  ➤ Management: Ensured all students assigned to the Data Structures class passed by rewarding those with greater ability, greater freedom, and through doing so, allowing myself more time to work directly with the students that needed more assistance.➤ Machine Learning (ML): Gained experience applying machine learning to various data sets working with Sunspot Big Data research, map de-anonymization research, and Boids obstacle avoidance research. ➤ Java: Displayed a high level of work ethic through taking on responsibility for over 50% of all students seeking tutoring by available research assistants. Show less

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  GE Digital

  May 2016 - Jan 2018

  Enterprise Applications Engineer

  ➤ Management: • Successfully led the hiring process for a new Atlanta office location, conducting interviews and selecting top talent to build a high-performing team.• Implemented effective onboarding and mentoring strategies for new hires, ensuring their smooth integration into the team and accelerating their productivity.➤ Python, Cloud (AWS/Azure): Executed a seamless data migration process by transferring multiple terabytes of data from vROps and VMware to a Data Lake on an hourly schedule, enabling efficient data storage and accessibility. ➤ Ruby, Java, Node.js, SQL, SDLC, Cloud (AWS/Azure): • Collaborated with others to build out 3-stage continuous integration and continuous development (CI/CD) pipeline, load-balanced servers, and secure authentication system, gaining teamwork experience building an automation system from the ground up. • Created Chef cookbooks to ensure consistent builds of Rundeck, MariaDB, and Vault throughout the node cluster, gaining experience with load balancing, Chef, and the software development life cycle (SDLC). Show less

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  Atlanta Classical Academy

  Jan 2018 - May 2018

  Teacher

  ➤ Management: • Kept tasks challenging to allow for identification of students that were excelling and students that needed assistance, maximizing efficiency of supervisory efforts.• Planned out the semester to ensure a complete breakdown of the subject matter into challenging, but manageable portions that kept a high pace throughout, creating a pace far exceeding other groups.

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  Doctor.com

  Jan 2018 - May 2018

  Software Engineer

  ➤ Management, SQL: Offered what became the final decision for the new architecture for SQL database, reducing complexity in the architecture and improving the time cost for query writing and use, leading to an overall lower cost for server use for the company.➤ .NET/C#, SQL, TypeScript, Less: Worked as primary engineer on re-design of review aggregation product, ultimately increasing viewable metrics by 28%.➤ React and Redux/Recoil: Added code for Redux within React project, saving future time on maintenance through simpler error checking throughout all pages in the new product offering. Show less

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  Integra Connect

  May 2018 - Jan 2021

  Software Engineer

  ➤ Management, SDLC: • Strategically organized project requirements into Jira tasks for each Sprint, enabling coordinated work on manageable tasks, leading to clear demonstrations of completed work to the client.• Tracked individual and team progress, accurately forecasting the number of deliverables per individual and for the team, facilitating more stable Sprint planning without overburdening employees.• Conducted comprehensive code reviews for team members during each Sprint, ensuring adherence to coding standards and enhancing code quality.• Provided guidance and leadership to a team of 7 local and offshore employees, facilitating effective communication and collaboration through Stand-up, Sprint Planning, and Sprint Retrospective Scrum ceremonies.• Motivated the team to achieve Sprint goals, ensuring task reviews were conducted to maintain proper coding standards and drive successful project completion.➤ Machine Learning (ML), SDLC, Cloud (AWS/Azure): Spearheaded the architecture and development of a Natural Language Processing (NLP) project for analyzing and recommending diagnoses of lab results, enhancing healthcare services with advanced Machine Learning (ML) capabilities. ➤ .NET/C#, SQL, Model-View-Controller (MVC), React and Redux: • Contributed 57% of the code for the re-write of the Patient Portal using C# and .NET, React, and Redux/Recoil, resulting in a user-friendly system that greatly improved navigation for end users. • Took full ownership of the development process by writing a comprehensive collection of stored procedures, views, verification code, and processing code for the Interface Re-Architecture project, ensuring efficient data handling and seamless system functionality in SQL. Show less

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  Gopuff

  Jan 2021 - Jan 2023

  Software Engineer

  ➤ Management: • Successfully trained and empowered the team in utilizing Flutter, Dart, React, Recoil, and Material UI V5 code, resulting in increased proficiency and productivity.• Prioritized tasks effectively and guided the team through reworks in front-end code bases, enhancing code quality and optimizing performance.• Orchestrated collaboration among developers from multiple teams, facilitating cross-team building and testing of new delivery preference features, ultimately enhancing workday information.• Strategically designed a new scheduling system and implemented an algorithm that reduced absenteeism from 23% to 15%, significantly improving workforce attendance and operational efficiency.➤ Flutter and Dart: • Developed a high-quality driver-side delivery application for both iPhone and Android platforms, achieving the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) milestone and enabling efficient and user-friendly delivery services.• Implemented a self-help flow MVP that reduced driver support contact rate by 6%, improving overall driver satisfaction and decreasing support dependency.➤ React and Redux/Recoil: • Successfully delivered the MVP for the managerial side driver scheduling system, providing advanced scheduling capabilities and streamlining managerial operations.• Executed a seamless full in-place upgrade of the Material UI design library for the managerial side driver scheduling system, enhancing the user interface and overall user experience.➤ Python, Machine Learning: Developed an Optical Character Recognition (OCR) script to detect document orientation and convert licensing PDFs into a standardized format for efficient upload and processing.➤ Cloud (AWS/Azure), Node.js, Golang:• Strategically planned and continuously refined the structure of front-end and back-end code bases to accommodate changes in the hours disbursement system, ensuring smooth system functionality and optimal performance. Show less

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  Orchestra Labs

  Dec 2022 - now

  Founder, CEO

  ➤ Leadership, Management: • Established 2-year and 10-year roadmaps for development• Hired team of engineers and designers to build Symphony site and Proof of Stake chain• Hired team of community managers to ensure both growth and retention of the user-base➤ Architecture, GoLang: • Designed and tested dual-elasticity balancing system for Symphony's decentralized stablecoins.• Built the POC for Symphony in GoLang• Built the MVP for Symphony in GoLang• Re-worked MVP to ensure fit with Cosmos SDK, allowing for use of ready-made IBC channels➤ React, Jotai, Tailwind: • Updated website to use Tailwind• Designed and tested swap dApp.• Designed and tested browser extension wallet.➤ Cloud:• Created CI/CD pipelines for automatic versioning and deployments➤ Marketing:• Grew user-base to 6000 users for test-net using only organic marketing strategies Show less

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  HungerRush

  Jan 2023 - Jan 2024

  Software Engineering Manager

  ➤ Leadership, Management: • Aligned and executed PCI compliance strategies, ensuring regulatory adherence and risk mitigation.• Established cohesive OKRs for focused goal setting within the engineering department of 61 engineers, spanning 6 engineering units.• Mentored and coached newer managers and leader-level ICs.• Directly reported to the Chief Information Officer (CIO).• Assisted team members with conflict resolution.➤ Team Building and Collaboration:• Performed hiring, onboarding, and development of motivated personnel, fostering high performance for a team of 10 engineers.• Orchestrated collaboration among a diverse team of engineers and contractors from multiple countries and time zones, covering 4 different code areas.• Streamlined collaboration among managers and developers across multiple teams, ensuring effective cross-team testing and seamless coordination.➤ Process Optimization• Implemented processes enhancing parallelism, improving ticket resolution time by 48%.• Significantly minimized errors by implementing full end-to-end error logging and automated test coverage on every pull request, resulting in a remarkable 89% reduction in error rate.• Moved team away from low-reliability Azure File-Sync to high-reliability Redis.• Amended release process to streamlined system designed for CI/CD pipelines.➤ Datadog, Sentry, Cloud (AWS/Azure): Regularly monitored server metrics and logs using Datadog, Sentry, and Cloud platforms (AWS/Azure) to identify areas for improvement in team processes and product performance.➤ C#, .Net: Upgraded the .Net version from 4.0 to 4.8, enabling the integration of Sentry code and enhancing the overall system stability and reliability. Show less