Mr. Ross Wintle

I am a skilled and experienced software developer who works with PHP, WordPress, Laravel and JavaScript. I currently work for well-known WordPress plugin development shop Delicious Brains, building and maintaining their websites and infrastructure. Before that I was a freelance website developer for 10 years, working mostly in the UK charity sector.

I'm looking to use my experience and skills in a new product development or web application development rolebuilding the next generation of the best WordPress donations and fundraising plugin.

Technical skills & experience

  • 20+ years in cCommercial software development and IT
  • 10+ years working with WordPress, PHP, HTML, CSS, JS
  • I learn quickly and thrive on complex technical challenges
  • 5 years working with Laravel
  • Experience of server management, hosting, security, networking, email, databases, and APIs
  • Experience of OOP, testing and TDD, and functional programming
  • A good computer science degree and a background in safety-critical software engineering
  • Really fast at typing
  • Can use a mobile phone with the best of them!

Other skills & experience

  • I am innovative, creative and love problem solving.
  • I consider broader systems and users, not just code and technology.
  • I work well both on my own and in teams, remotely and in person, with both customers and other developers.
  • I have great communication and collaboration skills.
  • I have run my own business, delivered training courses, managed projects and lead teams.
  • I've spoken at conferences and meetups, and contributed to tech communities.
  • Great barista skills: my V60 pour-over is especially good.

Work History

Senior WordPress Developer

Delicious Brains, Inc

September 2021 - Present

I worked on the sites team maintaining and developing the Delicious Brains websites, eCommerce platforms, APIs, and associated infrastructure.

Responsibilities:
  • Full-stack complex WordPress theme and plugin maintenance and development
  • Development of custom APIs and integrations
  • Maintaining and improving complex, legacy codebases
  • Maintenance of Linux server infrastructure
  • Diagnosing and fixing errors and performance issues
  • Improving processes and documentation
  • Technical writing and podcast appearances
  • Migration and management of a large email marketing list
  • Occasional customer support
Technologies and Skills:
  • Complex, custom WordPress themes and plugins
  • WooCommerce
  • Modern, object-oriented PHP with Composer
  • HTML, CSS/SASS, JavaScript, MySQL
  • Git and GitHub
  • Linux, SpinupWP, Digital Ocean, Amazon Lightsail
  • Drip email marketing and HelpScout - including APIs

As a web developer I am constantly learning and developing, turning my hand to new technologies and problems, keeping up with trends in both technology and design, and sharing what I learn with others as I go.

Working for a fully-remote company I am responsible for managing my own time and work, and collaborating with my colleagues from Winnipeg to West Bengal, using modern collaboration and communication tools.

Web Developer and Technology Consultant

Freelance, as Oikos Digital Ltd

June 2010 - September 2021

I worked primarily in the charity, non-profit and campaigning sector, doing website development, technology consultancy, IT support and website hosting. I worked for organisations of all sizes both on my own and through digital agencies.

Responsibilities:
  • Complex WordPress Theme and Plugin development
  • Consultancy on using the web as a tool for business, communication, fundraising, etc
  • Requirements definition and project management;
  • Technical support (domains, DNS, hosting, etc)
  • Documentation, end user training, ongoing site support
  • Advice and auditing of performance, accessibility, privacy & regulatory issues and general website health audits
Technologies and Skills:
  • Complex, custom WordPress theme and plugins
  • WooCommerce, ACF and page builders
  • Laravel application development
  • API's and integrations
  • Hosting, SysOps, Email, Networking

As a self-employed freelancer I was hard-working, committed, flexible, organised and passionate about helping my clients. My successful freelance career of over ten years demonstrates that I have business, networking, communication and management skills as well as technical skills.

Hosting Management Systems Engineer

Cable & Wireless Worldwide PLC

2002 - February 2011

As part of the systems monitoring team, I was responsible for all aspects of the hosting monitoring platform, and for ensuring the availability and performance of over 8000 servers and network devices.

Responsibilities and skills:
  • Platform and product development
  • 2nd- and 3rd-line support of monitoring systems
  • Systems administration
  • Development and maintenance of scripts and tools
  • Customer, supplier and licence management

I occasionally had team leader responsibilities and represented my team in change and process-improvement programmes.

Software and Safety Engineer

Praxis Critical Systems Limited

1998 - 2002

At Praxis I quickly advanced from their graduate intake to leading teams, meeting clients, and being responsible for key project deliverables. I also worked on Praxis's static code analysis tool.

Responsibilities and skills:
  • Design, development, verification and validation of high-integrity and safety-critical software
  • Product design, coding, documentation, and support
  • Safety engineering/analysis; safety case development
  • Delivery of technical training courses
  • Project management, team leading, customer meetings, and bid support

Education

University of York

BEng Computer Science Degree (2:1 Hons)

1995 - 1998

Key topics studied:

  • Algorithms and data structures
  • Language and complier design
  • Logic and mathematics
  • Analogue and digital electronics
  • Object-oriented and formal software design methods
  • User interface design

New College Swindon

A' Levels

1993 - 1995

Subjects:

  • Computing - grade A
  • Mathematics - grade A
  • Physics - grade B

Technical Skills in Depth

Web and software development skills

WordPress theme, plugin and application development, Laravel application Development, HTML, CSS, SASS, TailwindCSS, PHP, JavaScript, various JS libraries and frameworks, front-end build tools, MySQL, OOP, testing and TDD, Bash scripting , HTML, CSS, SASS, TailwindCSS, PHP, JavaScript, jQuery, VueJS, AlpineJS, MySQL, OOP, testing and TDD, Bash scripting, browser extensions, Electron apps, browser APIs (media, geolocation, etc), Apache, nginx, DNS, APIs, Gulp, Grunt, Webpack, Laravel Mix, Composer, NPM, PHP package development , HTML, CSS, SASS, TailwindCSS, PHP, JavaScript, jQuery, VueJS, AlpineJS, MySQL, OOP, testing and TDD, Bash scripting, Laravel Livewire, Roots/Sage, browser extensions, Electron apps, BotMan + Chatbot tech, Alexa Skills, browser APIs (media, geolocation, etc), Statamic, MS SQL, Apache, nginx, DNS, APIs, Gulp, Grunt, Webpack, Laravel Mix, Composer, NPM, PHP package development, command line, VPS's, Digital Ocean, AWS, cPanel, SpinupWP ServerPilot

Dev Tools

Multiple editors and IDEs, testing and debugging tools, Git, GitHub and verison control, server mangement VS Code, Sublime Text, PHPStorm, iTerm, wp-cli, esLint, phpcs, phpunit, PHPStan, Postman, Sequel Pro/Ace, MAMP, Laravel Valet, Docker, Git, GitHub, BitBucket, SourceTree (Git client), Laravel Forge, Tinkerwell, Spatie Ray, Invoker, HELO, Chrome and Firefox browser dev tools

Other tools, apps and knowledge

Facebook and Facebook apps, Google Analytics, Fathom Analytics, Search Engine Optimisation, Google Workspace, Trello, Slack, ScreenFlow and audio/video recording/editing

Server Administration

Unix (Oracle Solaris), Windows, Linux (Ubuntu, RedHat, CentOS), VMWare

Systems Management Tools (from previous role)

BMC Patrol/Performance Manager, BMC Dashboard, BMC Portal, IBM Tivoli NetCool, HP Insight Manager, Symantec NetBackup, BMC Remedy Service Desk and others

Scripting and languages (from previous roles)

Perl, batch files, ASP, C, Ada, SPARK

Other Experience

Side projects

  • caniphp.com - like caniuse.com but for PHP language features
  • Turbo Admin
    A WordPress plugin and browser extension to add an Alfred/Spotlight-like command palette to WordPress.
  • WP UI
    An attempt at an Electron/VueJS app for managing WordPress data and sites. The aim is to be a GUI version of WP-CLI.
  • Beyond WP
    A resource to level-up WordPress developers by introducing them to resources and tools from outside the WordPress space.
  • Sync Pinboard
    WordPress Plugin to sync WordPress pins to a custom post type, complete with Gutenberg block for display of pins.
  • SchoolBot
    a smart, parent information system using Laravel + BotMan
  • UK Government Petition Tracker
    Laravel app to track UK Government petitions over time
  • Peekobot
    a simple, choice-driven chatbot framework written in just over 100 lines of vanilla JavaScript (and some CSS).
  • WP to Laravel
    A video course introducing the Laravel framework to WordPress developers
  • Zap the Map
    A virtual, local, treasure-hunt game using geolocation.

Talks, Articles and Podcasts

Extra-Curricular

I have a wide range of other skills and experience from both inside and outside work:

  • Sports team captaincy and leadership of volunteer projects
  • Development and delivery of training courses for volunteer organisations
  • Committee member and treasurer for sports & social clubs and community groups

I have a family with two young children who keep me very busy. As well as being a "recreational coder", I'm a keen cyclist, love the outdoors, and attempt to grow food in my garden. I am an active member of a small community church.

Awards

  • Being Freelance Non-employee of the Week