Profile

A highly experienced Solution and Application Architect, primarily in the utilities sector, with a proven track record of:

• Delivering projects on time and to budget.
• Delivering cost savings and creating new revenue opportunities.
• Delivering innovative customer services across digital channels.
• Robust legacy and multi-channel integration.
• Managing quality and change with offshore, third party development and test teams.
• Balancing long-term strategic aspirations with immediate business needs.
• Building excellent working relationships with stakeholders at all levels within organisations.
• Presenting complex, technical matters in a clear, straightforward way.

In addition I have:

• In-depth experience across the full software development lifecycle.
• A strong background in development.
• Excellent spoken and written English.
• Excellent organisational skills.

My core skills include:

• Multi-Channel and Legacy Integration
• Web, Mobile and Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR)
• SMS and Voicemail
• Agile/Scrum and Waterfall
• Enterprise Application Integration (EAI)
• Service Oriented Architecture (SOA),
• Web Services,
• XML technologies
• Oracle, SQL Server and MySQL Relational Databases
• Exist XML Database
• Object Oriented Design and Development

 

I am a volunteer office holder at my local rugby club responsible for the club’s web site and membership database.

 

Professional Experience

Solution Architect – Rakiro Consulting

October 2010

Accomplishments

• Successful analysis of a complex system within very short timescales
• Preparation of documentation to board-level quality

Key Technologies

• PHP
• MySQL
• Smarty templates
• SVN

Overview

This fixed term two-week role involved analysing a financial company’s web site and back-end application as part of the preparation of a major transformation plan. The analysis was undertaken on the company’s site in Estonia.

I was responsible for analysing and documenting the current application and infrastructure, identifying potential problem areas and suggesting how and where improvements could be made.

 

Solution Architect – British Gas

September 2010 to August 2012

Accomplishments

• Introduced new revenue potential by opening up the web site to a new customer sector (landlords)
• Delivered competitive advantage over rivals by introducing innovative new customer services via web, mobile and IVR
• Reduced the load on call centres – on target to save £5.7M over 3 years
• Integrated Smart Meter data and real-time SMS gateway with channels and legacy systems
• Successfully operated hybrid Agile/Waterfall model
• Managed offshore development and testing
• One project won a company “Best Innovation” award
• Generated and monitored statistics to support business benefits case

Key Technologies

• SOA, Web Services, JDBC, XML
• JSP web pages
• Genesys IVR
• OS Soft Meter Data Unification System (MDUS)
• HTTP SMS Gateway
• SAP Netweaver PI middleware
• SAP ISU
• Siebel CRM
• Legacy Oracle systems

Overview

In this role I was the Lead Solution Architect for several projects within the company’s multi-channel “Drive to Online” initiative. This aimed to maximise customer engagement via the digital channels by providing innovative and improved customer services. It successfully delivered reduced call centre costs and introduced a competitive advantage. The new services were rolled out on the web, mobile and IVR (Interactive Voice Recognition) channels.

Functionality delivered to the channels included:

• Enabling landlords to bulk-buy service contracts for multiple properties
• Enabling customers to book priority repair appointments in real-time via the legacy Work and Contract Management systems
• Enabling customers to track, reschedule and cancel current and future appointments
• Email, SMS and voicemail appointment confirmations and reminders
• Retrieval of meter readings from Smart Meters via OSI Soft MDUS
• Graphic display of energy consumption, energy costs and CO² generation
• Energy consumption comparisons
• Allowing customers to set energy consumption budgets and targets

 

Architect/Developer – John Hubbard

June 2010 to August 2012

Accomplishments

• Improved web site availability and performance
• Improved web site search functionality
• Reduced hosting costs
• Removed reliance on an out-of-support platform
• Zero-downtime migration

Key Technologies

• Linux
• Apache
• PHP
• MySQL RDBMS
• JQuery

Overview

The web site of the artist John Hubbard (http://www.johnhubbard.com) includes a searchable database of the artist’s works, an image gallery and a suite of maintenance pages. It provides a valuable resource for researchers and potential purchasers so reliability and speed are vital.

I had sole responsibility for converting and migrating the site from an expensive and out-of-support platform to a more economical and robust open source platform.

 

Solution Designer/Developer – British Gas

April 2007 to May 2010

Accomplishments

• Introduced a new Energy Performance Certificates revenue stream to the company
• Implemented real-time appointment booking via the web
• Integrated the web site with SAP ISU, Siebel CRM and legacy Oracle systems
• Introduced SOA model to legacy integration
• Reduced call centre costs

Key Technologies

• SOA, Web Services, JDBC, XML
• JSP web pages
• SAP Netweaver PI middleware
• Legacy Oracle systems
• Oracle PL/SQL

Overview

In this role I was a Solution Designer/Developer on a wide range of projects that included the introduction of several high business value systems.

A real-time appointment booking project that was the first in the company to integrate the legacy systems, the web site, Siebel CRM and SAP ISU. It also included integration with a PCI compliant third-party payment gateway to support e-commerce.

An Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) system provided a new revenue stream for the company. The system received EPC requests from external partners via secure Web Services and secure file transfer and managed their progress from initiation to completion. A separately developed intranet front-end integrated with the system via JDBC.

 

Solution Designer/Developer  – LogicaCMG

May 1997 to March 2007

This was primarily a technical role enhancing and maintaining very large-scale legacy Field Work Force and Contract Management systems for a major U.K. energy supplier.

Significant business benefits delivered included:

• Improving customer retention by automatically adjusting and reissuing rejected contract renewal quotes.
• The introduction of a pricing Rules Engine that allowed business users to control contract pricing without the need for expensive IT involvement.

I also wrote proposals and functional specifications for LogicaCMG’s client and technical and module test specifications for other developers.

Key Technologies

• Oracle Forms and PL/SQL
• C and Pro*C
• XML/XSLT
• JRules Rules Engine
• Perl
• Shell scripts

Solution Designer/Developer – Vanguard Plc

1997 to 1999

This client, a major mobile telephone supplier and distributor, required a web-based fulfilment system for internal use and to offer as a value-added service to their business partners.

Significant business benefits delivered included:

• Attraction of new business partners
• Improved customer retention
• Streamlined order fulfilment and tracking
• Accurate stock control
• Customer relationship management
• Business partner management

I was solely responsible for designing, building, testing, hosting and supporting the system.

The system won a Mobile Telecoms Industry award.

Key Technologies

• Linux
• Apache
• PHP
• MySQL