What's your role?
I am a full stack developer, and my grand poobah title is front-end architect. My role involves delivering a variety of new features to our users at the RCAF. Having a strong background in front-end development, I advise our team on front-end strategy and framework selection.
How did you get involved with #DigitalAF?
I worked alongside Jon, Ellen, and Chris at the Flight Deck during a coop term back in 2019 to help kickstart the Dispatch project. We were able to deliver a highly impactful project and drive innovation within the RCAF, all the while having an amazing team dynamic. So when Chris reached out to me and asked me if I wanted to work with the team again, I knew it was an opportunity I couldn't pass on.
What is the contribution you have made that you are most proud of?
I contributed to a wide variety of complex projects while working at #DigitalAF, so it's kind of hard to pick one that I'm most proud of. But if I had, I'd say the Daily Flying Schedule. This project enables our users at the RCAF to work from home, allowing them to be with their families over the holidays, and avoid unnecessary exposure to COVID.
If you could redo something, what would it be?
On the last few projects I worked on at the #DigitalAF, I learned the value of conducting user interviews. As a developer, I find it tempting to get ahead of myself and try to code up a solution as soon as I'm presented with a problem. It's critical to get as much information about the user's needs as it will prevent a lot of code refactors and headaches down the line. So if I could, I would go back and do more user-oriented planning for some of the projects.
What is your vision for the future?
Our goal at the #DigitalAF has been to empower the RCAF with modern software/tech, however, I think we should also strive to help make it a leader in the software space.
Skills
- Ruby on Rails
- AngularJS
- HTML5
- CSS
- User Interface (UI)
- Docker
- Microsoft Azure
Wheel's Up
Listen to Grace talk about going zero-to-value in under 60 with Rails.