Hey.
I'm Mark.

handsome guy

great to meet you.

whoami?

I'm an engineering leader that has been working in the software engineering field for 15+ years (wow, time really flies!)

I have extensive experience building impactful customer products, growing high-performing engineering teams, and turning complex technology problems into measurable business outcomes.

Where it all started....

In the early days of my career while finishing my Computer Engineering degree, I was busy helping a non-profit educational org run a top-tier IT help desk, wrangling PBX systems and Cisco switches and administering Microsoft servers (shudders).

After that, I worked in MarCom for several years at a few truly fantastic web shops located in the DFW area (yup, I'm from Texas, howdy y'all). That was where my love for web development, PHP, Content Management Systems (WordPress anyone?) and "innovative" new tech, like smart home assistants, began.

From IC to Tech Leader

Then came a major growth phase in my career. I moved from an IC role to technical leadership, eventually becoming Director of Production Software. For 8 years, I worked in FinTech, building APIs and helping the company grow its network of integration partners. Our system provided an online application for retail customers to quickly and securely apply for loans and leases, via specialized POS systems and mobile devices.

My manager saw my strength, not just with tech, but also with people, coaching me and giving me more responsibility.

After several promotions and a lot of success, I've enjoyed the rewarding aspect of helping individuals and teams become stronger ever since.

The company grew fast and went big, achieving a $1B valuation, and was eventually bought (as it goes) by one of the largest pawn retailers in North and Central America.

What I'm Doing Now

Lately, as Head of Backend Engineering at Visable Labs, I'm leading EU development teams to connect buyers and suppliers on an AI-enhanced B2B e-commerce platform.

As part of Alibaba.com, I have been fortunate enough to see the rapid development and impact of AI on the tech industry, including both customer-facing products and DX. It has been a truly exciting and fascinating journey to be a part of.

What is this site about?

Somewhere - between the late nights, debugging spaghetti code, production fire drills and cryptic error messages, I realized that my experience was really starting to add up.

That's when I discovered my motivation to make a positive contribution to the dev community by sharing what I've learned through writing.

After all, the best way to learn is to fail, and the second best way is to fail again... but different-ly than before ...or something.

And that requires...

learning

I hope we can learn something new - together.



There Might Be A Better Way.

Stories, insights and “aha!” moments from life with technology.