A highly self-motivated and friendly professional, with over 20 years of financial experience as an Application Support specialist, Software Engineer, Analyst Programmer, and Scrum Master, Team Lead, and Support Manager. A good communicator who handles pressure well and takes the initiative; is conscientious, dependable and tenacious; completes work on time. Rapid take on of new systems.
Overview
37
37
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Software Engineer
Schroders Investment Management
11.2022 - 08.2023
Successfully mentored a junior software engineer for six months
Conducted thorough code reviews to identify potential areas for improvement, ultimately enhancing code quality across all projects handled by the team.
Reviewed Engineers' code in Azure releases, identified bugs and maintained Clean Code standards.
Implemented automated build and deployment processes to streamline release management procedures.
Analyzed data to coordinate installation of new systems or modification of existing systems.
Engaged in paired programming sessions to automate repetitive tasks using PowerShell and Octopus code
Updated SQL Server Stored Procedures and created SQL scripts to investigate Azure pipeline data failures
Designed and implemented Azure Serverless Functions to transform CSV files into JSON format
Introduced automated testing procedure, resulting in faster code validation and reduced deployment errors
Organised, collected and sent Quality Engineering team sprint metrics
Revamped 70% of existing major Azure pipelines, optimising build and deployment processes
Worked with software development and testing team members to design and develop robust solutions to meet client requirements of functionality, scalability, and performance.
Consistently met project deadlines by effectively managing time and prioritizing tasks according to importance.
Application Developer
Schroders Investment Management
09.2021 - 10.2022
Guided colleagues during the onboarding process for newly developed in-house system
Transitioned the team from handling 1st/2nd/3rd line support to focusing solely on 3rd line support; Collaborated with 1st/2nd line support teams, enabling to take over initial support responsibilities
These changes reduced pressure on the team, allowing us more time for other tasks.
Collaborated with stakeholders regarding project capabilities and limitations to deliver optimal functionality.
Used SQL Server to develop new applications.
Scrum Master - Tech Lead - Analyst Developer - 3rd line support
Corporate Services IT
12.2018 - 08.2021
Strategically shaped a tailored Agile environment for the Scrum team of 6 people, leveraging Agile delivery methodologies (SAFe)
Led and encouraged the team to adapt Scrum to the way we worked and made the framework work for our many various projects
Planned Sprints and track progress
Facilitated seamless adoption of agile practices, Facilitated scrum meetings, attended PI planning events, resulting in improved collaboration, faster delivery, and enhanced team performance
This led to improved team efficiency by 20% by introducing measurable efficiencies within scrum teams, inducing the use of key agile metrics and agile ways of working
Collaborated with the Project manager on design decisions regarding Communication Surveillance project
Troubleshooting issues analyses of root causes and proposed solutions in Worksite UC4 application
Streamlined legacy code in Credit Risk application resulting in improved system stability, maintainability, and overall efficiency
Updated all visible human readable passwords identified in Azure repository
Mentored junior developer set expectation and collaborated on coding standards and best practices
Addressed the neglected infrastructure updates lead by the Solutions Architect, updated all outdated servers, applications and unsupported databases were removed, all resource changed on CMDB and on schedule
Designed and implemented brand new development of over 10 UC4 (Automic) Job scheduling developments for intercompany file transfer in the Communications Surveillance file transfer application
Supported the Communication Surveillance application's C# Outlook email manager application and a C# program to control Smartnumbers API
Provided support and development for the Compliance application, collaborating with vendors to upgrade the application based on business requirements
Identified, and resolved issue in the PACE test environment
Developed batch SQL programs for weekly data removal
Collaborated with the Luxembourg Application support team to assist in supporting their feeds from the PACE application
Organised and worked with stake holder and developers to upgrade the Archer, Worksite and IdentityIQ applications to the latest versions.
Improved team efficiency by implementing Agile and Scrum methodologies for project management.
Implemented robust security measures to protect sensitive data from potential threats.
Developed comprehensive documentation to facilitate knowledge sharing among team members and support long-term maintenance efforts.
Built strong relationships with stakeholders, ensuring clear communication channels for project updates and progress reports.
Enhanced application performance by identifying bottlenecks and optimizing code.
Estimated work hours and tracked progress using Scrum methodology.
Supervised work of programmers, designers and technicians, assigned tasks and monitored performance against targets.
Collaborated with cross-functional teams to identify opportunities for process improvement and increased efficiency.
1st/2nd/3rd Line Application Support
Data and Reporting Team
02.2012 - 11.2018
SME to 6 overseas engineers for 6 applications including: B-ONE, PACE, Pandora
Supported Intellimatch, MarkitEDM, Vermillion, and several bespoke business apps Credit Risk being one
Led the upgrade and support efforts for B-ONE and Process Monitor, actively managing server and software upgrades across multiple environments
On call duties (supporting Bloomberg, Rimes , weekend patch work and upgrades support and Disaster Recovery support testing, 1st Line Help Desk Support
Designed and implemented PowerShell and Korn shell scripts for monitoring system services, stop files, and processes on Windows and UNIX platforms; as well as leading the way for the first Ansible automation scripts in the support department used on a production application, PACE engines, to go live
Created a comprehensive PowerShell program to analyse Compliance system Log file errors, improving application stability, and auto-restart on failure and send status emails to support and 3rd party teams
Specialized in on boarding new systems, producing support documentation, and contributing to documentation and articles for knowledge transfer
Provided client-facing support for business users and conducted technical training for effective support implementation systems in London and Schroders offices worldwide.
Application Support Analyst
Trade and Accounting Team
02.2010 - 01.2012
Investigated post PACE upgrade daily system crashes
By inspecting the log and dump files, I Identified the ‘C’ code memory leak issue and the application version the failure was first introduced, and worked with PACE vendor’s developer to repair
This saved the company large costs and repaired reputation
Provided support for, Charles River, support and SCD Dimension
Provided training to the rest of the team on supporting PACE.
Conducted root cause analysis on recurring incidents to identify opportunities for improvements in application design or support procedures.
Maintained strong relationships with stakeholders by providing exceptional service and communication throughout issue resolution process.
Analyst Developer/Application Support Analyst
PACE Team
02.2007 - 01.2010
Installed and maintained PACE/STAR servers/engines
Also supported two In-House Web apps based on IIS and IBM MQ messages, Oracle views and PLSQL Stored Procedures
Worked on Bloomberg, Indexes, Per Sec and Daily feeds to PACE and downstream systems
Monitored, database disk-space, servers, application performance and reported statistics to upper management
Provided On Call Support, Weekend patch work and upgrades support and Disaster Recovery support testing, 1st Line Help Desk Support
Developed Korn shell scripts to maintain and monitor PACE/STAR servers and engines failure
Specialized in creating and maintaining Eagle PACE Advanced Portfolio Reports using VB6, and Oracle.
Team Lead/Analyst Developer
Self Employed Contractor
01.1996 - 01.2007
Worked with Clients including: Schroders, Fords, Siemens Business Services, British Gas, Global Asset Management, Thompson Derwent Plc, LogicaCMG.
Application Support Manager- MPG2
British Telecommunications Plc
01.1987 - 01.1996
Education
BSc (Hons) in Computer Science -
University of Greenwich
Woolwich, United Kingdom
Post Graduate Certificate in Human Computer Interaction -
Open University
Milton Keynes, United Kingdom
Post Graduate Certificate in Relational Database Systems -
Open University
Milton Keynes, United Kingdom
Skills
AZURE DevOps
AZ900
MS SQLServer
JIRA
Oracle
Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
C#
SQL
Python
IIS
SSIS
PowerShell
Object-Oriented Programming
Software Development Lifecycle
UNIX
Net
ServiceNow
BMC Remedy
Automic (UC4)
MQ IBM
Git
Splunk
Solarwind
Logic Monitor
Octopus
Ansible
EaglePACE
Star
Charles River
Intellimatch
B-One
MarkitEDMS
Checkmarx
SonarQube
Bloomberg
Factset
Rimes files
L1 –L3 support
Agile
ITIL
SDLC
Certification
A900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Qualification
CISI: Level 3 Award in IT in Investment Operations
Professional Scrum Master Training course
Affiliations
Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI). (Associate member)
BCS member
Institute of Analyst Programmers
Timeline
Software Engineer
Schroders Investment Management
11.2022 - 08.2023
Application Developer
Schroders Investment Management
09.2021 - 10.2022
Scrum Master - Tech Lead - Analyst Developer - 3rd line support
Corporate Services IT
12.2018 - 08.2021
1st/2nd/3rd Line Application Support
Data and Reporting Team
02.2012 - 11.2018
Application Support Analyst
Trade and Accounting Team
02.2010 - 01.2012
Analyst Developer/Application Support Analyst
PACE Team
02.2007 - 01.2010
Team Lead/Analyst Developer
Self Employed Contractor
01.1996 - 01.2007
Application Support Manager- MPG2
British Telecommunications Plc
01.1987 - 01.1996
BSc (Hons) in Computer Science -
University of Greenwich
Post Graduate Certificate in Human Computer Interaction -
Open University
Post Graduate Certificate in Relational Database Systems -
Head of Portfolio Implementation, Multi Asset at Schroders Investment Management LtdHead of Portfolio Implementation, Multi Asset at Schroders Investment Management Ltd
Institutional Client Service Manager at Schroders Investment Management Europe S.A.Institutional Client Service Manager at Schroders Investment Management Europe S.A.