About
Database platform engineer specializing in PostgreSQL, Infrastructure as Code, and AI retrieval systems. At the enterprise level I design the AWS CDK constructs teams use to self-provision secure Postgres, and I was part of the Tiger Team that elevated PostgreSQL to a standard database offering at a Fortune 100 insurer. On the AI side I build production retrieval systems end to end — embedding and ingestion pipelines, hybrid vector search with pgvector, and LLM features on Amazon Bedrock.
SpecializationDatabase Platform Engineering & AI Retrieval (RAG)
Core StackPostgreSQL, pgvector, AWS CDK, Amazon Bedrock, Angular
Impact400+ enterprise RDS instances, Postgres elevated to a first-class platform, zero P0 incidents
StrengthsReusable CDK constructs, embedding pipelines, hybrid vector search, cross-team enablement
Experience
Consultant Database Platform Engineer
- Led Tiger Team initiative to standardize Postgres and Aurora platforms. Effort drove alignment across technology teams and shaped long-term RDBMS strategy.
- Elevated PostgreSQL to a first-class managed service by designing and implementing an AWS CDK construct for RDS PostgreSQL/Aurora with IAM-driven automation for schema and role creation.
- Designed and lead the implementation of OpenSearch and Neptune CDK constructs.
- Improved reliability by managing 400+ RDS instances. Engineered per-instance CloudWatch alarms integrated with BigPanda to auto-create ServiceNow incidents for Postgres support team.
- Accelerated releases by migrating multiple repositories from Concourse to GitHub Actions, standardizing CI/CD pipelines, and training teams on automation practices.
- Delivered technical POCs across RDS services.
- Cut onboarding time by building PostgreSQL role and schema automation tool.
- Established Amazon Aurora as supported enterprise database, strengthening dependability, performance, and supportability across teams.
- Unified data teams by organizing and leading Postgres Book Club that enabled Oracle and SQL server DBAs to build PostgreSQL expertise.
- Fast-tracked environment setup by creating DVDRentalDemo to showcase end-to-end full-stack provisioning with CDK constructs and GitHub Actions CI/CD.
Specialist Software Engineer
- Led production support team at Nationwide to new levels of operational excellence by automating key tasks, significantly reducing errors, and enhancing efficiency, contributing to seamless project execution without any major issues or P0 incidents.
- Created Concourse pull request checks that improved CI workflow
- Enhanced product quality and team productivity by developing and refining an innovative SOAPUI testing pipeline. Automated testing process for multiple lines of business, resulting in a more user-friendly, consistent, and time-efficient workflow.
- Expanded role to requirements space, quickly becoming proficient in requirements analysis to support the team.
- Took on roles of project manager, release manager, and environment manager when needed.
Senior Software Engineer
- Entrusted with taking over as Lead of the ODM Prod Support area.
- Led a team that integrated Monitoring and Observability over to Big Panda.
- Created Concourse pipeline that runs ODM regression tests and sends teams notifications of progress.
- Generated pipelines using Jenkins, Artifactory, and Harness to automate deployments to ODM test environments.
- Ensured integrity of production deployment process as well as communication with other teams.
- Gained valuable leadership experience by being voted Lead of the Automation Guild Pilot Hackathon.
- Reduced production support resources by 50% through automation efforts.
- Presented automation activities at Nationwide managers’ meeting.
Software Engineer
- Reduced test case repository size by 40% with a Bash script that automatically removed unneeded fields.
- Improved database integrity by creating a script to identify test cases in the repository with invalid policy numbers that could not bypass the database.
- Saved developer time and manual work by creating a GUI that automated prerelease work for merging test cases.
- Entrusted to help complete the biggest release of the year.
- Found and fixed numerous ODM code errors that had gone undetected for years.
- Commended by manager for being an asset in every situation, having a go-getter attitude, and being eager to learn and grow.
- Jumpstarted team’s automation efforts by participating in a Hackathon and creating a Jenkins pipeline.
- Delivered code faster and more efficiently by initiating the creation of a Jira bot that connected Jira to GitHub, automating the process of moving cards and associating pull requests.
- Volunteered as automation representative on CLS Automation Guild
Intern
- As part-time employee, completed the amount of work normally achieved by a full-time associate.
Education
University of Iowa
BS - Computer Science
GPA: 3.21
Skills
Databases & Vector Search
- PostgreSQL
- pgvector
- Amazon RDS
- Amazon Aurora
- SQL
- Hybrid Search (FTS + RRF)
- HNSW Indexing
AI & Retrieval
- Amazon Bedrock
- RAG Pipelines
- Embeddings
- Semantic Search
- Agent Tool Use
- Prompt Engineering
Cloud & Infrastructure as Code
- AWS CDK
- Lambda
- Step Functions
- API Gateway
- CloudFront
- Cloud Security
- Observability & Monitoring
Delivery & Leadership
- CI/CD Automation
- GitHub Actions
- Python
- Angular
- Node.js
- Leadership & Mentorship
- Cross-Team Collaboration
Contact Me
Have a question or want to work together? Send me a message!