Stephen Ward 074 14 284 883 wardstephen@gmail.com 76 Bollo Bridge Rd.

London W38AU Irish citizen Introduction:

Seven years software development experience across a range of programming languages: PHP developer for the past three years, including significant experience with Wordpress. Four years previously as a software development engineer at Microsoft, consistently hitting targets ensuring the smooth day to day running of large scale automation (mainly VB script).

Key Technical Strengths:

HTML & CSS, PHP & MySQL, jQuery & AJAX My core competencies, these are the fundamental building blocks of any website I build - always on a Linux/Apache server. Adobe CS5+ Photoshop, Bridge, Dreamweaver, Premiere Pro I use all of these on a day to day basis. I am also experienced to varying degrees with most of the other programs in the suite. Photography & Video Editing Keen photographer, also spent 6 months at film school in 2010.

Relevant Employment History:

June 2012 Present: Web Development Manager, Choice Healthcare Solutions, London
ChoiceHS are a medical communications agency, for whom large pharmaceutical companies form the vast majority of the client base. Within 6 months of my arrival, a promotion to my current position of Team Manager had been agreed and in May of this year I led the recruitment of a Junior Web Developer reporting directly to me. My main responsibilities in my current role are as follows: Management of our PHP websites, both client and internal. This includes site and server security, hosting, domain registration & management, general maintenance and continuous improvement. Also, building websites from the ground up based on received designs (which have often been created based on my own functional spec and sketches). Creation of functional specs/mockups of new websites & web based tools, both for clients and internal use. This includes receiving and interpreting client briefs but also conceptualising, designing and developing in-house solutions on an ad hoc basis. Continuous assessment of the security and performance of our Linux/Apache VPS. When I arrived to my current role, all our websites(PHP) were hosted on a Windows/IIS server. I proposed and delivered a full migration of all our sites to a new Linux/Apache VPS. MySQL database design and build as required by various projects. Automation, whenever possible, of repetitive and/or time intensive tasks. For example, I created a web based tool which accepts a search results file from pubmed.gov, then ranks authors according to the number of appearances. This saved the medical writers a lot of time. Build of HTML emails; also managing the send if appropriate for the project. Continuous engagement with the team, especially the account handlers and my client facing colleagues, to find and innovate new client solutions. Continuous assessment of new technologies, such as mobile apps, aiming to deliver creative solutions for our clients. Contribution to the design and build of client proposals and participation in pitches to clients, where appropriate. Training and workload management for myself and our junior developer.

Note: Due to privacy concerns and access restrictions, unfortunately I am unable to provide links to my projects at Choice. However, I am happy to provide demonstrations in person.

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Stephen Ward 074 14 284 883 wardstephen@gmail.com 76 Bollo Bridge Rd. London W38AU Irish citizen
November 2011 April 2012: Web Developer, Digital Eire, Ireland
Digital Eire is a small digital agency, specialising in bespoke websites for small to medium sized businesses. Working alongside a designer, I was able to focus on website structure & functionality. My main responsibilities were as follows: Develop SEO friendly Wordpress websites and HTML emails from scratch based on the PSD designs provided to me, continually providing feedback to improve website usability. Seek out, modify and combine Wordpress plugins to deliver new and unique content display options and smooth, intuitive user experience on our websites. Maintain the security and integrity of the websites using .htaccess, among other methods.

The following are some of the websites I built during this period: http://www.buddabag.com Warning This site now autoplays a video with sound. This site combines Wordpress & Prestashop, an eCommerce CMS. http://www.casarizzini.com http://www.classicdrinks.ie http://www.sendabasket.ie

September 2010 November 2011: Self employed & Studying - Web Designer / Developer
Upon returning from my travels, I made the decision to re-train as a web developer. I felt that the localisation related software engineering I had done up to this point offered limited room for growth. I completed a course in Adobe Dreamweaver which introduced me to HTML & CSS. With my developer background, I was naturally drawn into PHP & MySQL, Javascript, etc. and I enthusiastically pursued them through online tutorials, books and project work. During this period, I designed and developed a number of websites professionally, mainly using Wordpress. Most of them have since been changed to the point that they are no longer relevant to my portfolio. However, two which remain more or less intact are: http://www.energyefficientireland.com http://www/sheelinboats.ie

August 2006 August 2007: Software Development Engineer, Microsoft Ireland (10 month contract extended to 12 months)
Our team hosted a huge set of automation, based mainly around VB Script & SQL Server. We were responsible for syncing the US builds of Microsoft Office 2007 and many smaller projects, distributing for localisation and reassembling for the push to the Ireland build team. My main responsibilities were as follows: Ensure that this automation ran smoothly, investigating, fixing and/or delegating issues. Continuously write new VB scripts to improve the existing automation, handle new projects or provide better real-time, automated reporting on the progress of builds, etc. Create and publish daily status reports on the performance of the automation a process which I immediately automated upon joining the team. This saved half a days work every day, except when issues required further investigation. Continuously create, revise and/or update user documentation of our processes and automation, for use by new and existing team members.

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Stephen Ward 074 14 284 883 wardstephen@gmail.com 76 Bollo Bridge Rd. London W38AU Irish citizen
June 2000 May 2003: Software Development Engineer, Microsoft Ireland
I was hired by Microsoft directly from university. My main responsibilities were as follows: Create productivity tools to help automate the teams processes and generally improve turnaround times for the teams projects. Mainly using VB script, NT script and Perl. Debug and correct localised Microsoft product builds, or escalate bugs as required. Investigate problems in the localised hotfix build process. Working alongside the US team, I was a key contributor in reducing up to 3 weeks from the turnaround times of localised international hotfixes, on which we created a 48 hour turnaround guarantee. This project saw me spend 6 months working at Microsoft global headquarters in Redmond, United States. Train new team members, including permanent staff, college interns and contract workers. Regularly give presentations to department heads, other teams, project managers et al on the work our team was performing.

Education and Training:

Qualification Adobe Certified Associate Diploma in Screen & Media National Diploma in Software Engineering National Certificate in Computing with Commercial Programming Achieved At Fas Training Centre, Ireland Sydney Film School, Australia Carlow Institute of Technology, Ireland Carlow Institute of Technology, Ireland Date 2011 2010 1999 - 2000 1997 - 1999

I speak Spanish fluently, having spent the better part of a year volunteering in Bolivia 2007 - 2008.

References
References can be made available upon request.

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