Hi again! I’m still Scott Russell.

I advise companies and organizations on how to achieve their vision.

I'm an experienced technology generalist working from my permaculture "farm" in an 1840's brick farmhouse in southern New Hampshire. I've been working in startups in various technical, managerial and production roles since I was in grade school. If working hard and failing teaches you anything, I must be pretty clever by now.

I prefer to code in Ruby, with or without Rails, although I've got plenty of experience with Python, Javascript and lots of backend and admin experience. These days, I mostly wear hats that read "team builder", "executive communicator", "stakeholder advocate" and "architect", but I still try to pound out a prodgious amount and awesome code when I have the time.

Of all the parts of my job, I probably love mentoring the most. I pride myself on being able to teach a willing person almost anything. I'm a certified permaculture designer, and I weave that philosophy of permanent culture and systems into solving problems related to people, business and technology.

I'm always up for a challenge, and if I don't have one to dig into, I usually go find one.

If you'd like to talk, schedule a chat on my Calendly page or if you're ready to hire me, download my pdf resume and let me know when the interview is.

Expertise

I used to do web work in Python back when it was very unfashionable (no DCOM support), and some of those systems are still running, more than a decade later. I had a vision for a better web framework and was trying to build it when Rails appeared and I became a complete convert.

I got into Rails pretty early (sometime in 2006), and I've been slinging Ruby pretty hard since, with Javascript making increasingly frequent appearences. I've done some non-trivial work with React and Angular, to stay current and trendy and relevant. I know PHP and enough C/C++ to get by, and I play with ObjC when I want something on my iPhone, but I keep coming back to Ruby and Rails, Sinatra, or something homegrown to scratch whatever itch I'm suffering from. At least until someone figures out a sensible way to deploy Smalltalk.

I mention programming skills a lot because I use code often to solve problems, but I also spend a lot of time soldering, welding, plumbing, sketching, painting, at the microscope, the white board, with a shovel.... I have a lot of passions and inexplicably, I manage to give them all 100%.

I have a passion for creating unique, powerful things.

Experience

Skills

Technology
  • Ruby
  • Rails
  • Python
  • Javascript
  • Java
  • Node
  • Angular
  • React
  • Machine Learning
  • Expert Systems
  • AI
  • Data Analysis
  • Data Processing
  • Data Conversion
  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • AWS
  • GCP
  • Blockchain
  • Ethereum
  • Mobile Development
  • Linux
  • Unix
  • MacOS
  • HTML / CSS
  • SQL
  • Git
  • Photoshop
  • Illustrator
  • Fusion 360
Proficiencies
  • Adaptability
  • Remote Management
  • Mentoring
  • SCRUM
  • Agile
  • Communications (Client
  • Engineer
  • Executive)
  • Leadership
  • Collaboration
  • Writing
  • Technical Writing
  • User Experience
  • SEO
  • Web Analytics
  • Purchase Conversion
  • Social Networking
  • Chaotic Systems
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Talent Acquisition
  • Product Design
In My Copious Free Time
  • Skill Sharing and Preservation
  • Appropriate Technology
  • Permaculture
  • Bushcraft
  • Consensus Decisionmaking
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Sustainability
  • Open Source Support
  • Urban Gardening
  • Brewing Beer
  • Raspbery Pi
  • Coin Mining
  • Data Correlation
  • Chaos Theory
  • Growing Figs and Apples

Embarassing Fruit Ninja Obession :)


Employment

CaféX Communications

Director of Engineering, North America (2014 - 2018)

  • Managing and coordinating remote teams in EST, PST, UK and India.
  • Interpreting demands from clients and sales with designs from UX into product pipelines and sprints.
  • Delivering high-quality production SAAS releases on a predetermined schedule.
  • Ensuring growth of responsibility and skill sets of junior team members.
  • Handling inter-team disputes and conflicts.
  • Working directly with recruiters to find the best talent available.
  • Performing code reviews / PR merges, both in-team and cross-team.
  • Refactoring problems to enable devs to handle big problems a bit at a time.
  • Coordinate with CTO, other directors and team leaders on direction and architecture.
  • Backend and Frontend responsibilities.
  • Helped migrate legacy SVN/Makefile based build system to git/gradle/jenkins workflow.
  • Worked on tech demo strike teams, Proof of Concept deliverables and R&D spikes.
  • Worked on release product teams for Allstate, Wells Fargo, Rakuten, Cisco
  • Developed documentation, for internal consumption and with technical authors for customer use.

As a director, I was responsible for running teams working on billing systems, configuration management systems, customer experience improvement, Research and Development on a collaborative workspace project, and direct ownership of the UX / UI of a flagship product in conjunction with a senior team from Microsoft Dynamics on the Live Assist product, moving it from an on-prem solution into a completely multi-tenant SAAS model in multiple AWS and Azure data centers.

All The Flavors

Owner and Developer (2016 - Present)

Designed, researched, developed and marketed this DIY social website in Ruby on Rails. Visit

Cooter Muck Probiotics

Founder / CTO / Developer (2009 - 2015)

  • Invented and developed products' branding, design, marketing and distribution.
  • Built back-end and customer-facing systems using PHP and Ruby
  • Designed and constructed factory automation and production processes

Cooter Muck grew out my passion to help the environment, my interests in microbiology and my strengths in the technical, mechanical, marketing and design fields.

Cooter muck currently has 3 products available at a number of big-box stores all across North America, and provides mix-in ingredients for other products from well-known brands.

Marcil Tech Group / RSVPair

Designer, Developer (2001 - 2008)

  • Developed PHP frontend, Ruby backend and internals.
  • Maintained high SERP / SEO ranking.
  • Coached internal sales team.
  • Ad-Hoc simulation and analysis consulting.

RSVPair was a directory of air charter planes available in North America.

Marcil Tech Group maintained the website and fielded consulting gigs from current or future air taxi operators that needed advice on taxation, strategic placement, aircraft selection or aquisition.

Portalsmith

Chief Technologist / Software Architect (2000 - 2001)

  • Provided technology direction and drove purchasing decisions.
  • Developed automatic network management tools, intrusion detection, and intelligent firewalling to secure hosting environment.
  • Assisted in sales process, lead generation, presales qualification.
  • Worked with RSS, XML, XMLRPC and SOAP to develop automatic classification of data streams.

Led team developing building web application component solutions for content, billing, user asset and inventory management. Served as Manager of Internet Service business unit, providing internet connectivity to retail customers and hosting services to corporate customers.

Pangaea / Cerepoint

Lead Engineer / R&D Manager (1995 - 2000)

  • Developed an e­Business engine, providing simple controls for complex channel management.
  • Complex pricing engine – Industry analysts referred to this as “the best in our industry” of 1998.
  • Experience with VC and institutional investor interaction.
  • Application of advanced modeling, consumer behavior prediction and complex configuration automation.

Concurrent positions. Managed an engineering department and oversaw IT infrastructure during dynamic company growth, in a mixed Solaris, Linux, Windows, BSD and HPUX environment. Lead architect and project leader on over 12 individual products, over multiple release and support cycles. Prepared successful proposals for 300k ­- 2mm sales opportunities and assisted in pre sales and closing efforts.

While at Cerepoint, I became familiar with almost every position in a growing organization in both contributor and manager roles, including product marketing, trade show coordination, HR administration, sales, sales engineering, support desk management, and the coordination of a pre IPO due diligence team.

RMI, Inc.

R&D Consultant / Software Contractor (1990-1995)

  • Provided technical vision to industry leaders such as Yaskowa robotics, Andover Controls, Groupe Schnieder and GM.
  • Pioneered group control of industrial hardware over the Internet, including “The Javahoe”, an actual Case backhoe controllable via remote web applications.
  • Member of angel investment group's “Technology Strike Team”, helping to jump start technology initiatives in early stage startups.

Developing models on massively parallel systems, predicting air and traffic flow. Designed embedded software and custom hardware for a system of “smart agents” responsible for simultaneously raising both energy efficiency and comfort levels for an HVAC firm. Lead architect, and managed implementation and installation of prototype “intelligent house” systems for security and energy management, using industrial robotics and PLC controllers.

Worked with the Santa Fe Institute researching and educating on the real­world application of chaos and game theory, fuzzy logic and autonomous systems in industrial and sales system Automation.

Education

New Hampshire Technical College

Associate Degree, Robotics and Electromechanical Technology

I developed skills relating to interfacing digital electronics to the real world through servos, actuators, hydraulics and user interfaces.

Most of my work here was on Vax 11 Mainframes and PDP-11 and homebrewed hardware interfaces.

The Barn

Practical Experience in the School of Hard Knocks

Richard Morley, inventor of the Programmable Logic Controller, runs The Barn as a private think tank and startup consultancy in southern New Hampshire. This was amazing place for to mature, where massively parallel computers were available for 10-year olds to work on government contracts with, and 14 year olds were expected to join in on technology tiger teams / skunkworks development.

My time here was largely spent modelling and studying chaotic systems with sensitive dependance on intial conditions as a substitute for intelligence in manufacturing control. I was brought in to consult on streamlining manufacturing companies, to assist in research and prepare reports for clients such as GM and Yaskawa robotics, and to imagine purposes for technologies that had not yet developed uses.

Community Involvement

Montreal Urban Community Sustainment

Volunteer - Director (2007 - 2010)

A community sustainment organization partnered with many community organizations in Montreal and greater Quebec. MUCS spearheads many community initiatives, involved in food security, promoting equitable treatment and community growth. A MUCS member, coordinator and now a member of the board of directors for two years, in which time I’ve been involved in the Zero Food Waste program, which collects and redistributes unused food from local businesses to food security organizations, advised the Community Design Project on cooperative housing, and played various roles in the food cooperative and donation-based community kitchen.

Member of the conflict resolution team and a group that ensures the smooth execution of many MUCS projects and working groups. My role on the board is to ensure sound fiscal behavior and to guide policy development and maintain relationships with NDG and Montreal community organizations and businesses.

Montreal Permaculture Guild

Educator / Coordinator (2008 - 2011)

A core coordinator of the MPG, an organization that tries to define and encourage a sustainable and permanent culture of waste-free living, while supporting and encouraging interaction and harmony with the urban Quebec lifestyle. Regularly facilitates meetings of the MPG, as well as provides logistical support and acts as an educator for classes on permaculture, food preservation, organic urban farming and gardening and energy conservation. Provides IT and logistical support for the organization’s projects and initiatives.

Highlighted Projects

Coming Soon.