Skip to main content

Pk_ToDo:

  • Update the heading hierarchy and review all Q&A
  • Make this content more interesting... How can I captivate the audience???
  • Potential: Play with making these expandable (MDX) (should also compare this component approach to the <details> tags)

PK_API_ToDos: Simple text feedback box: "Any other questions you'd like me to answer?"

Pk_ToDo_Long_Term: Youtube Videos??

Front End or Back End – Which Do I Prefer?

I’ve worked extensively on both, and i do enjopy aspects of both, but if I had to choose, I lean toward back-end development. Here’s why:

Why I Prefer Back-End Development​

  1. Problem-Solving Focus
    I enjoy tackling deep technical challenges—optimizing database queries, designing APIs, implementing authentication systems, or improving application scalability. These problems are more aligned with back-end work.

  2. System Design and Architecture
    I love designing the big picture—how systems interact, how data flows, and ensuring everything is robust and secure. Back-end work lets me flex those muscles.

  3. The CLI Is Our GUI
    Developers often prefer using CLIs for their simplicity, speed, and focus on critical paths. At the first company I worked at, I built a CLI application that worked perfectly for me and other developers. However, non-developer colleagues also wanted to use it, so I added a simple GUI on top to make it accessible.
    My point is this: I’d rather spend my time optimizing critical paths than adding buttons or visual components for broader accessibility. Writing your own test runner follows the same principle: focus on building exactly what you need without unnecessary overhead.

  4. Hands-on with Infrastructure
    Setting up servers, managing APIs, and working with cloud services like AWS ties into my interest in making systems work seamlessly.

My Experience with Front-End Development​

While my preference leans toward back-end development, I’ve built many front-end applications over the years. Some of my earlier projects relied on legacy approaches, like fully handcrafted HTML, CSS, and plain JavaScript, without modern frameworks or libraries. These projects were functional but not always intuitive, responsive, or visually appealing. I believe in understanding the foundations deeply—here’s why I sometimes write my own test runners and prefer approaches like documentation-driven development.

In recent years, I’ve shifted toward using modern front-end frameworks like React, Vue, and Angular. This allows me to focus on creating polished, user-friendly, and responsive experiences, but I still have a lot of respect for the craftsmanship involved in building something entirely by hand.

My Ideal Role​

I thrive most in roles where I can work across the stack, bridging the gap between back-end infrastructure and front-end experience. I see myself as a problem solver who enjoys being part of the entire journey—whether it’s building the architecture or perfecting how users interact with it.

What are you most proud of? / What's your favorite software project you've worked on, or engineering problem you've tackled?​

Nothing and everything.

I have a problem in front of me, and I solve it. I've never run into a problem I couldn't solve.

So another answer to this question could be that my technical breadth and depth allows me to solve problems quickly.

Usually I build things that I need, sometimes I build something on a whim, or just out of curiosity, but usually it's something I need: For exmaple:

  • Not a full list, chek out my github for more

These are usually very straightforward.

And the same thing for clients:

  • Monolith CRUD Apps
  • ETL Pipelines
  • Webscraping (Data)
  • Static webpages (No backend)

...so it usually boils down to the business requirements, and those don't often require heavy optimization.

So the things that I need to build just aren't inherently challenging, and that is something I would like to change.

What value do you offer?​

Basically I know when to use which tools, I have the experience, I've made the mistakes Reddit Webscraping examples. Over-engineering first portfolio website Excel/vba financial program - chose excel for a business reason (people know it), but this wouldn't work for my intended use case.

How will you benefit from joining our company?​

The generic answer is that if I applied for a position at your company, then that position and your company are in alignment with my long term goals. I know this may seem like a cheap non-answer, but it's the truth. I am financially stable enough that I don't need to work, so if i applied to your firm, then it means I believe in your mission (or at the very least I think you are working on some really cool problems and I'd love to be a part of the team)

What is the first act you’ll perform when you start?​

I'd get to know the team, the toolset, understand the current challenges. Hopefully that will lead me to some ideas for process improvement, employee engagement, cost reduction, really just anything to improve business outcomes.

Here are a few things I may suggest if you aren't already using them: Pk_ToDo: Update​

The Basics:​
  • Docusaurus for documentation
  • Version Control
  • Unit Testing (obviously this depends on the application... I still prefer less type safety and non-TDD for small scripts)
  • ChatGPT for looking up things quickly. Previously I would have suggested the Grepper chrome plugin, but asking chatGPT is just quicker. Some examples:
    • git ignore files with a specific extension
    • node import json file
  • Tableau Server for moving towards being a data driven organization
AWS​
  • CI/CD Processes such as Cloudformation
  • Cost optimization with Antimetal

If you were still working here three years from now, what do you think your most significant contribution would be?​

Position Specific

Describe a situation when you and a coworker (superior, peer, or subordinate) disagreed. Take me through the disagreement and how you discussed your viewpoint.​

View change "a production deployment" PK_ToDo_Expand - Working through the Night

Describe an ambiguous situation that you organized, resolved, or executed.​

Pk_ToDo_Expand - Our flight to London was delayed, so we only had 1.5 days for my two day Tableau course. Working through the Night

Describe a situation where something went wrong.​

Our flight to London was delayed, so we only had 1.5 days for my two day Tableau course. Working through the Night

How do you educate yourself?​

How don't I educate myself? Look, I'm only going to work in an industry or a role if it interests me. Use my idle time wisely - Train in Portugal - I design my life with personal and professional development in mind Commute to DeVry, to oh22Data

How would your coworkers describe you?​

I think the best answer to this question is to give specific examples:

Example:​

Alot of people have said that i come up with out of the box solutions. For example, my colleagues were impressed by my Javascript SQL generation script=s for Athena. For me it seemed pretty straightforward, I have large SQL statements that I need to use from time to time... writing them by hand would be a huge waste of time. I then added these utilities to source control and sent out a notification email so that my colleagues could also benefit from the time savings that these scripts offer.

This shows my ability to:

  • Come up with original solutions
    • (which comes from my breadth of knowledge. Most of my colleagues at this client do not have front end knowledge (they are moreso data engineers), and they even admitted that their solution would be something like copy pasting into excel, which is obviously much slower and less generic)
  • Determine when a task is worth automating
    • Not only for myself, but also how such automation may have a larger impact across the organization

Example:​

One of my colleague's would often ping me when he had a question about Tableau. I once reminded him that Google exists, and his response was "You are my Google".

This exemplifies my ability to:

  • Gain substantial expertise when I decide to focus in on a single language/stack/ecosystem, etc.

Example:​

Early on in my career I was tasked with creating and presenting a 2 day course to several of our clients. After one of these classes our CEO told me that he liked that I explained the concepts from the ground up, ensuring the students mastered the basics before moving on to more complex topics. This role was in Germany and I had students from all other, the vast majority of whom did not have English as their mother tongue.

This speaks to my ability to:

  • Organize and tailor content in a manner that is highly effective for audiences all levels and backgrounds.

Example​

I had an interviewer ask me to explain how generics work in Typescript. I said, "Well I can tell you how they work in C#, or how templates work in C++, and I would assume it's the same". So I told him how they work nd he said that he had never interviewed someone who got the question right but in other languages 😆 I said well yeah, all these languages borrow features from one another based on their specific goals and ideals... like why Go doesn't have try catch!!! This depicts my:

  • breadth of tech knowledge/skills.

What motivates you?​

Anytime I see potential.

Do you prefer working on a team or by yourself?​

I find this question a bit odd. But here are my thoughts:

  • Business objectives will almost always require some degree of collaboration. Collaboration is good. The best ideas originate in brainstorming sessions.

  • There are definitely tasks that must be done alone.

  • I use chatGPT heavily. This is honestly like having a superstar co-worker. My productivity is probably close to 5-10x due to having chatGPT. Some examples:

    • PK_ToDo_Content: Add examples I have posted to linkedin
    • Node.js Logger
    • Linkedin Post

So the ideal Best results produced when working in the same physical location MSFT Teams is great I actually enjoy meetings (assuming that I'm actually getting some value from the meeting)

Describe your ideal boss.​

There's not really much I expect:

  1. Leaders develop leaders.
  2. Someone who fights for our ideas Lets say we have some process Someone who explains why we do things a certain way, rather than just demanding that we do it that way. and they would be open to alternatives. Army: Paid to do, not to think

Greatest Strength:​

So I have a whole rant about this question Any technical skill or soft skill can be mastered with time determination and the proper resources it's also context dependent, a strength in one situation can be a weakness in another. So I can answer this as what I am currently strong at.

My 30 second elevator pitch goes like this:

I am extremely adaptable. I have a uniquely strong ability to build an appropriate solution for the business case. I avoid avoiding over-engineering, and I managing technical debt very well. In summary I am very good at managing projects at every stage, from the seed of an idea all the way to scaled production where stability is business critical. I can do this as an individual contributor and when leading a team. My experience as an independent contractor has given me the ability to play any role; which all depends on the client needs - Pre-Sales, Requirements Gathering, Architecture, Implementation and Project Management; I can do it all. My personal projects require me to wear every hat... but I don't really look at it that way, it's just a question of what needs to be done. (Of course I do get the purpose of delegating, it's just that in the past I haven't had (or wanted to commit) the funds to outsource any roles for my personal projects)

Technical Skills:​

Exceptional generalist, know when to use which tools -- webscraping reddit examples. I pick up these new skills quickly.

Soft Skills:​

Teaching - Oliver complimented the way I taught the Tableau course Patient - I will work with someone until they understand it. I get joy out of seeing them learn something

Biggest Weakness:​

Can't shut off my brain, lol. Again I think that anything can be mastered. I am very analytical and organized, but I also have methods and processes to get the creativity flowing. My educational background is quite diverse, feel free to ask more about this if you are interested.

Technical Skills:​

  • Hard science knowledge - Biology, Chemistry, Physics
  • CompSci - Design Patterns, DS&A, containerization

Soft Skills:​

This is a bit more difficult to answer. So first of all, I'm always consuming content, reading books, listening to podcasts, etc. that will improve my soft skills. In my first role, I was an individual contributor, I didn't lead a team... in fact it was such a small company that there weren't teams. The flipside to this is that my soft skills would not atrophy.. I needed to be Architect, Developer, Project Manager, Business Analyst, etc. Obviously personal projects work the same way, when you only have yourself you must wear all the hats.

Sometimes I have trouble determining the level of detail needed to explain a problem. So I aim to be concise in my communication, but I don't want to remove important pieces. Is this detail relevant? Does this item take attetnion away from the overall message?

Some people might consider this a weakness -- I don't accept mediocrity.

What important truth do very few people agree with you on?​

This is a question taken from Peter Thiel's book "Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future", but I think another way of asking this is "what is a a commonly held belief that you find odd?"

Example 1 - Conferences​

When discussing professional development, I often encounter the viewpoint that attending conferences is largely dependent on employer sponsorship. Many express reluctance, citing, 'My employer isn't willing to pay for that.' However, I find this perspective quite limiting. Personally, I've invested in attending numerous conferences, covering my own expenses for about 95% of them. This approach has not only empowered me but also opened doors to a world brimming with innovation. To me, these conferences are much more than mere professional gatherings; they represent my vacation time. The excitement of being amidst groundbreaking advancements, such as those showcased at BiotechX and DefCon, is truly invigorating. There, I've witnessed the forefront of synthetic biology, engaged with individuals working on DARPA projects, and explored the intricacies of reverse engineering in hardware and software. This proactive investment in my professional growth and passion for innovation is akin to how others might spend on leisure pursuits like Comic Con. It underscores my belief in the value of personal investment in professional development, a commitment that has been immensely rewarding and enriching.

Example 2 - Employee Engagement​

In the conventional sense, an employee's alignment with the company's mission and dedication to customer experience are seen as paramount for their value within an organization. However, I believe an employee can still significantly contribute without a deep connection to the company's mission or a direct concern for the customer experience. For instance, consider a technical role at Netflix. Personally, the aspect of ensuring a movie streams without buffering might not spark my passion. Yet, the opportunity to tackle Netflix's large-scale, cutting-edge technical challenges can be highly motivating. These challenges present complex problems that demand innovative solutions, offering immense growth and learning opportunities.