// software architect & builder

Hi, I'm Michael.
I conjure order from chaos.

Cloud · Distributed Systems · Automation · AI Engineering

I build cloud systems, data pipelines, and AI tools. From the first architecture sketch to production support, I stay involved in the code.

See my workResume
01

About

I'm a senior software engineer and software architect with 15+ years building production software. I like figuring out how a system should work, then writing the code and looking after it in production. Most of my recent work is in Python and TypeScript on AWS and Google Cloud: backend services, distributed processing, data pipelines, and browser automation. I also build AI-assisted research and development workflows with hosted and local models. When a project needs frontend or mobile work, I build that too.

I run Wojo Studios for consulting, independent products, and experiments that sometimes turn into products. Away from the keyboard I'm a husband and dad to three vibrant redheads, a woodworker, a DIY enthusiast, and a homesteader (one rabbit, three cats, and twelve chickens at last count). If I'm not building software or a game, I'm probably building something in the shop, camping, or on a trail.

Languages

  • Python
  • TypeScript
  • JavaScript
  • SQL

Cloud & Platform

  • AWS
  • Google Cloud
  • Docker
  • Linux
  • CI/CD

Backend & Data

  • Node.js
  • FastAPI
  • PostgreSQL
  • Redis

Automation

  • Selenium
  • Playwright
  • Chrome DevTools Protocol

AI Engineering

  • OpenAI
  • Claude
  • Gemini
  • Local LLMs

Frontend & Mobile

  • Angular
  • React
  • React Native
  • Expo
15+
years shipping software
20+
projects shipped end-to-end
12
chickens on the homestead
3
redheads at home
02

Experience

  1. Mar 2024 - Presentcurrent

    Senior Software EngineerTrueCordis, LLC

    I build backend systems that collect, process, and enrich data for research and reporting. That includes Python and Node.js APIs, event-driven AWS and Google Cloud services, queues, SQL/NoSQL databases, and browser automation. I handle the architecture, implementation, and production support, including authentication, idempotency, retries, fault recovery, and structured logging. I also contribute to Angular applications, infrastructure, and CI/CD. Recent work includes moving Firebase Realtime Database to Firestore and combining document extraction with LLM analysis for AI-assisted research.

    • Python
    • TypeScript
    • Node.js
    • Angular
    • SQL Server
    • PostgreSQL
    • AWS
    • Google Cloud
    • SQS
    • Cloud Tasks
    • Selenium
    • Playwright / CDP
    • Docker
    • LLM workflows

  2. Jun 2026 - Presentcurrent

    Learning Platform Administrator & Mobile Developer (Volunteer)Our Lady of Good Counsel Homeschool Community

    I help our homeschool community run its own Canvas LMS. I look after hosting, DNS, email, deployments, backups, and restore testing, and help teachers and families when something breaks. I also develop the mobile app with React Native, Expo, and TypeScript, including Canvas OAuth/REST integration and push notifications.

    • Canvas LMS
    • Ruby on Rails
    • PostgreSQL
    • Redis
    • Docker
    • Linux
    • React Native
    • Expo
    • TypeScript
    • AWS SNS
    • APNs
    • FCM

  3. Mar 2014 - Presentcurrent

    Founder | Software Engineer | WizardWojo Studios, LLC

    I founded Wojo Studios to build software and games, take on consulting work, and try out ideas of my own. Projects include cloud services, automation, custom applications, and self-hosted platforms. I use hosted and local AI models in my development work and build game-art tooling with Godot, Blender, Spine, ComfyUI, and Flux.

    • Python
    • TypeScript
    • AWS
    • Google Cloud
    • Docker
    • Godot
    • Blender
    • OpenAI
    • Claude
    • Gemini
    • Local LLMs

  4. Nov 2019 - Mar 2024

    Software Product ArchitectKS2 Technologies, Inc.

    Architect and lead developer for HomeSalesOne, a SaaS platform for configuring and selling new homes. I led application architecture, product development, integrations, production support, and CI/CD modernization. Homebuilders sold 18,000+ homes and processed 75,000+ DocuSign contracts and addenda through the platform.

    • Angular
    • Java
    • JavaScript
    • Python
    • SQL

  5. Oct 2016 - Nov 2019

    Application Developer / Scrum MasterOptions Clearing Corporation

    I developed software for OCC enterprise risk systems and maintained an internal framework for QA and post-deployment checks. My configuration automation cut setup time by 30% across roughly 25 environments. I also served as Scrum Master for the Enterprise Risk Systems team.

    • Ext JS
    • Java
    • Python
    • Selenium

  6. Oct 2011 - Oct 2016

    Software EngineerKS2 Technologies, Inc.

    I built web applications, integrations, and mobile apps across several industries. I helped establish KS2’s modern web-development practice and built its first IBM Cloud web application. A model-home lead-capture app I developed ran on 300+ kiosk iPads and captured 50,000+ homebuyer leads.

    • AngularJS
    • Java
    • JavaScript
    • Python
    • SQL
Earlier career Internship & student leadership

  1. Jun 2010 - Aug 2010

    Software Engineer - InternMotorola Solutions

    Designed an upgrade path for SSH and NTP on an embedded Linux system, then implemented, tested, and packaged the OS for release. The work also included reviewing open-source license compliance.

    • C++
    • Linux
    • PHP

  2. Jul 2008 - May 2011

    Sr. Microsoft Student PartnerVolt Technical Resources

    Managed and mentored a team of nine student reps sharing Microsoft product knowledge with the academic community; consistently met or exceeded campaign goals.

03

Projects

Featured / Current Work

Independent products, community platforms, and the tools I’m building now.

Coming soon

Hay Drop Hero

The first game from Wojo Studios. Deliver the hay, save the day: a helicopter, some stranded cows, and weather that does not cooperate. Everything past the key art is still under wraps.

Engineering notes for Hay Drop Hero
Problem
Make a game out of a helicopter, stranded cows, and uncooperative weather.
What I built / role
Independent game development through Wojo Studios.
Key engineering challenge
Getting the art to look consistent while building the game. Some of that work led to the asset pipeline below.
Outcome / status
In development. Everything past the key art is still under wraps.
  • Godot
Private project

Greenlight

Kids request videos, Greenlight screens them, and parents review the borderline picks. It uses rules, transcripts, and AI classification to decide what gets through. Approved videos go into the family’s private Plex library.

Integrates: Plex, YouTube (yt-dlp), OpenAI / Anthropic / local LLMs, SponsorBlock, Web Push

Engineering notes for Greenlight
Problem
Give kids access to useful videos without a recommendation feed.
What I built / role
Designed and built the screening pipeline, background processing, and parent review PWA.
Key engineering challenge
Make rules, channel trust, viewing budgets, and LLM classification work together, with parents making the final call on borderline videos.
Outcome / status
Approved downloads are organized per child in the family library, without autoplay or Shorts.
  • Python
  • FastAPI
  • Vanilla JS PWA
  • PostgreSQL
  • Redis / RQ
  • SQLAlchemy / Alembic
  • yt-dlp
  • Docker
Private lab / in development

AI Engineering / Agent Orchestration Lab

My workspace for experimenting with coding agents, local LLMs, and custom orchestration. I use OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google models for architecture, coding, review, testing, research, and integration work across development machines and Docker services.

Engineering notes for AI Engineering / Agent Orchestration Lab
Problem
Put coding agents to work on real development tasks while keeping their output easy to check.
What I built / role
Building the orchestration and tooling that connect hosted and local models to development tasks.
Key engineering challenge
Swap models and workers without rebuilding the workflow, and check their output with tests and other tools.
Outcome / status
In active development. I’m trying different approaches to coordinating agents and checking their work.
  • Python
  • Docker
  • OpenAI / Codex
  • Anthropic / Claude Code
  • Gemini
  • Local LLMs
  • Agentic Workflows
Coming soon

OLGC Canvas Mobile

An iOS and Android app for our community’s self-hosted Canvas LMS. I’m building access to grades, photo submissions, messaging, and push notifications for parents, students, and teachers.

Integrates: Canvas LMS (OAuth2 + REST), AWS SNS, Apple Push Notification service, Firebase Cloud Messaging

Engineering notes for OLGC Canvas Mobile
Problem
Give families a practical way to use our self-hosted Canvas platform from their phones.
What I built / role
Mobile development and Canvas API integration for parents, students, and teachers.
Key engineering challenge
Handle different parent, student, and teacher permissions, OAuth sign-in, and push delivery on both platforms.
Outcome / status
In development for the homeschool community.
  • React Native
  • Expo
  • TypeScript
  • TanStack Query
  • EAS Build
Operating for the community

OLGC Canvas - Self-Hosted LMS

Canvas LMS, hosted and operated for our Catholic homeschool community. Teachers manage courses and grades, parents follow their children’s work, and I look after the platform and technical support.

Integrates: Amazon SES, Zoho Mail, AWS SNS

Engineering notes for OLGC Canvas - Self-Hosted LMS
Problem
Give teachers, students, and families a learning platform the community can operate itself.
What I built / role
I set up and operate the platform, manage deployments, and provide technical support.
Key engineering challenge
Keep the platform available through upgrades, make sure email arrives, and test that backups can actually be restored.
Outcome / status
In use by the community, with ongoing maintenance and support.
  • Ruby on Rails
  • React
  • Node.js
  • PostgreSQL
  • Redis
  • Docker
  • Caddy
  • AWS
In development

Game / AI Asset Production Pipeline

Tooling to turn game-art concepts into usable sprites. I combine Blender, rigging and animation, generative models, and Python scripts, with human review and correction along the way. The aim is consistent assets that are ready to use in Godot.

Engineering notes for Game / AI Asset Production Pipeline
Problem
Turn promising individual concepts into consistent, usable game assets.
What I built / role
Writing shared art specifications and Python tools for modeling, rendering, and refining assets.
Key engineering challenge
Keep the camera, lighting, style, and frame layout consistent across assets, then review and correct the results.
Outcome / status
An automated Blender smoke test produced a 12-frame sprite sheet. I’m still building out the rest of the workflow.
  • Godot
  • Blender
  • Spine
  • ComfyUI
  • Flux
  • Python
  • Sprite Sheets

Kinda Krunchy

I designed, built, and host Kinda Krunchy, a faith-filled lifestyle blog for homeschooling moms. It covers essential oils, healthy eats, parenting, and crafts on a static Astro site with a custom design.

  • Astro
  • TypeScript
  • CSS

The X Effect

Habit tracker built on the X Effect method from Reddit’s r/theXeffect: put habits on a 7×7 grid and mark a big red ✗ every day you show up. Track online, or print PDF sheets and let the fridge be the leaderboard.

  • Next.js
  • TypeScript
  • React
  • Python

Selected Enterprise Work

A selection of the applications, integrations, and tools I’ve shipped for teams.

HomeSalesOne

A home sales platform where agents and buyers work through options, pricing, and paperwork together. I was the architect and lead developer. Homebuilders sold 18,000+ homes and processed 75,000+ DocuSign contracts and addenda through it.

Integrates: DocuSign, HubSpot, JD Edwards

  • AngularJS
  • Node.js
  • Java
  • Python
  • Docker
  • IBM Cloud
  • MongoDB
  • Redis
  • Tekton

HB Registration

Hybrid mobile app that turns kiosk iPads in model homes into lead-capture tools, feeding home-buyer leads straight into Salesforce. Deployed on 300+ iPads nationwide; captured 50,000+ leads.

Integrates: Salesforce, JD Edwards

  • Apache Cordova
  • IBM MobileFirst
  • JavaScript
  • HTML5
  • CSS3
  • iOS

Excel4Purchasing

An Excel add-in for JD Edwards purchasing. Teams can work with live purchasing data and complete the process in their spreadsheets, with fewer manual steps.

Integrates: JD Edwards

  • Angular
  • TypeScript
  • Node.js
  • Express
  • Office Add-ins
  • Docker
  • Oracle Cloud

AWS Lambda / Selenium

Serverless browser testing: Selenium tests running headless Chromium inside AWS Lambda. Pay-per-run test execution with no grid to maintain.

  • AWS Lambda
  • Docker
  • Python
  • Selenium

AP Automation

An integration between JD Edwards and Basware that automates invoice handling and approval routing, reducing manual accounts-payable work.

Integrates: Basware, JD Edwards, Infor EAM, Active Directory

  • Python
  • SQL Server
  • SSIS
  • XML

IBM Tekton Pipeline Copy

A Python utility that copies Tekton pipeline definitions and environment properties between IBM Cloud pipelines. It saves setting up the same configuration by hand.

  • Python
  • IBM Cloud
Archive / Earlier Work Enterprise tools & student projects

Earlier projects

Digital Postcard

A photo-booth app built for IBM InterConnect 2015. It takes a photo, swaps out the background with chroma key, and produces a digital postcard to share.

  • Apache Cordova
  • IBM MobileFirst
  • JavaScript
  • HTML5
  • CSS3

CPQ Pro

An Excel/VBA tool that turns Arrow CPQ data into quotes, handling large, messy data sets inside the spreadsheet the team already uses.

  • Excel
  • VBA

Maverick Vending Solutions

Senior design project: a web-connected vending machine with real-time inventory tracking and per-user purchase history.

  • ASP.NET
  • C#
  • SQL Server
  • JavaScript
  • jQuery

// what's next

Have a project in mind?

I take on consulting work through Wojo Studios, LLC, from short integrations to ongoing product development. If you'd like to talk shop, say hello.

Say helloWojo Studios