Nathan Jones

Stride Consulting

Lead Software Consultant • Nov 2018 — Jan 2026

At Stride, I helped clients meet challenging expectations and improve unscalable architectures by applying Extreme Programming (XP) and engineering best practices. I am passionate about teaching and coaching colleagues through example—demonstrating best practices and engineering rigor daily—while delivering high-quality, working software directly to client product owners.

• Publishing Company (Dec 2025 – Jan 2026): Designed and built an AI-powered storytelling platform combining RPG mechanics with generative narrative. Implemented dynamic story generation using Python, React, and LangChain. Collaborated closely with product and creative stakeholders on narrative mechanics and UX. Delivered the winning proof-of-concept, selected over three competing vendors.
• FinTech Company (Sept 2025 – Nov 2025): Built an alpha capture system supporting trading and investment workflows. Developed backend services in Go and a React/TypeScript frontend. Partnered directly with stakeholders to rapidly iterate on requirements. Delivered a production-ready system in under three months, deployed to AWS.
• Merit (Jan 2025 – Aug 2025): Developed a feedback site that used AI to generate reports for managers; multi-tenanted application in Next.js, React, and TypeScript. Migrated the app to production, resolved security concerns before go-live. Released a chat feedback bot using Server-Sent Events (SSE) and made the site SEO-compliant.
• Peak Reservations (Jan 2021 – Nov 2024): Developed a greenfield reservation management platform. Built a React Native client to support non-web customers; validated mobile viability through real-world usage.
• Peloton (Aug 2020 – May 2021): Improved site accessibility for the ecommerce platform. Updated booking site to include latest product offerings.
• Allied World (Feb 2020 – Jul 2020): Contributed to the development of a new reinsurance platform supporting client underwriting and claims workflows. Improved integration with the shared document management system, reducing friction in document access and improving operational efficiency for underwriting and claims teams.
• Building Link (Aug 2019 – Feb 2020): Worked with stakeholders to design and implement a practical, non-dogmatic agile approach aligned to business needs and constraints. Improved delivery transparency and predictability through tailored processes and focused team structures. Introduced structure to the recruitment funnel, improving hiring consistency and decision-making.
• IBM (Dec 2018 – Jul 2019): Improved search functionality for the Department of the CIO's internal tooling and broadcast system by optimizing how broadcast users managed departmental content and migrating search indexing to Solr. Introduced a new architecture to extend the range of supported content types, resulting in a more maintainable and extensible codebase for the broadcast service. Coached team members on engineering best practices and held regular 1-on-1s, improving code quality, consistency, and overall team effectiveness.

Casebook PBC

Senior Software Engineer • Jan 2018 — Oct 2018

For-profit spin-out of CaseCommons focused on commercialising child welfare and human services software. Contributed to the decomposition of a large monolithic Rails application into a microservice-oriented platform, enabling modular, state-specific vertical products. Developed backend services in Scala and Ruby, with React/Redux web frontends and React Native mobile clients.

CaseCommons

Senior Software Engineer • 2012 — Jan 2018

CaseCommons is a non-profit organisation providing case management software for child welfare services across multiple U.S. states, where I modernised large-scale case management systems using Ruby on Rails and React, led teams applying pair programming and test-driven development, and collaborated closely with product, design, and external vendors.

• CA Child Welfare Digital Services — Intake: Delivered a React-based intake portal integrating with the state's legacy systems. Led workshops on Redux's unidirectional data flow and React component design. Mentored developers on TDD, Agile practices, and engineering best practices.
• Indiana Department of Child Services — MAGIK: Migrated frontend components from Backbone.js to React and Redux. Transitioned a Rails monolith from PGSearch to Elasticsearch, improving scalability and search relevance.

UXC Professional Solutions

Software Engineer • 2010 — 2012

Developed .NET solutions for SharePoint applications while supporting mobile applications at UXC Mobility. Delivered software for a variety of Australian organisations and government departments, collaborating in Agile teams to ensure timely, high-quality solutions.

UXC Mobility

Mobile Software Engineer • 2008 — 2010

Designed and implemented mobile solutions for merchandising, asset tracking, CRM, and ERP on Pocket PC and BlackBerry devices. Worked with Java, .NET Compact Framework, and iOS to deliver reliable applications for disconnected environments, ensuring high usability and operational efficiency for enterprise clients.

Curtin University

Bachelor of Science, Computer Science • 2004 — 2008

Graduated with a Computer Science degree from Curtin University in Western Australia, establishing a strong foundation in software engineering principles and methodologies.

Publishing Company - AI Storytelling Platform

Lead Developer • Dec 2025 — Jan 2026

Designed and built an AI-powered storytelling platform combining RPG mechanics with generative narrative. Implemented dynamic story generation using Python, React, and LangChain. Collaborated closely with product and creative stakeholders on narrative mechanics and UX. Delivered the winning proof-of-concept, selected over three competing vendors.

FinTech Company - Trading System

Lead Developer • Sept 2025 — Nov 2025

Built an alpha capture system supporting trading and investment workflows. Developed backend services in Go and a React/TypeScript frontend. Partnered directly with stakeholders to rapidly iterate on requirements. Delivered a production-ready system in under three months, deployed to AWS.

Merit - AI Feedback Platform

Lead Developer • Jan 2025 — Aug 2025

Developed a feedback site that used AI to generate reports for managers; multi-tenanted application in Next.js, React, and TypeScript. Migrated the app to production, resolved security concerns before go-live. Released a chat feedback bot using Server-Sent Events (SSE) and made the site SEO-compliant.

Peak Reservations - Reservation Management Platform

Technical Lead • Jan 2021 — Nov 2024

Developed a greenfield reservation management platform. Built a React Native client to support non-web customers; validated mobile viability through real-world usage. Spearheaded the initiative to migrate the API codebase from JavaScript to TypeScript, significantly enhancing code maintainability and reducing runtime errors.

Peloton - Accessibility & Ecommerce Platform

Senior Developer • Aug 2020 — May 2021

Improved site accessibility for the ecommerce platform, addressing WCAG compliance issues. Updated booking site to include latest product offerings and implemented comprehensive accessibility improvements.

Allied World - Reinsurance Platform

Lead Developer • Feb 2020 — Jul 2020

Contributed to the development of a new reinsurance platform supporting client underwriting and claims workflows. Improved integration with the shared document management system, reducing friction in document access and improving operational efficiency for underwriting and claims teams.

Building Link - Agile Process Implementation

Agile Coach & Consultant • Aug 2019 — Feb 2020

Worked with stakeholders to design and implement a practical, non-dogmatic agile approach aligned to business needs and constraints. Improved delivery transparency and predictability through tailored processes and focused team structures. Introduced structure to the recruitment funnel, improving hiring consistency and decision-making.

IBM - CIO Department Broadcast System

Senior Developer • Dec 2018 — Jul 2019

Improved search functionality for the Department of the CIO's internal tooling and broadcast system by optimizing how broadcast users managed departmental content and migrating search indexing to Solr. Introduced a new architecture to extend the range of supported content types. Coached team members on engineering best practices and held regular 1-on-1s.

California Child Welfare Intake System

Lead Developer & Team Lead • 2016 — 2018

Led the development of California's Intake system, overseeing a team of developers and collaborating with multiple vendors to successfully design and implement a user-friendly frontend interface. Delivered a React-based intake portal integrating with the state's legacy systems. Led workshops on Redux and React component design.

Indiana Child Welfare Management System

Senior Developer • 2014 — 2016

Key contributor on multiple teams responsible for the development and maintenance of a comprehensive child welfare management system. Migrated frontend components from Backbone.js to React and Redux. Transitioned a Rails monolith from PGSearch to Elasticsearch, improving scalability and search relevance.

Languages & Frameworks

Ruby (10+ yrs), Rails, Grape, JavaScript, TypeScript (8+ yrs), Go, Python, Java

Frontend

React, Redux, Vue, Vuex, Next.js, React Native

Backend & Architecture

Node.js, Express, Microservices, REST, JSON RPC

Cloud & DevOps

AWS, CI/CD pipelines, Git, Docker

Engineering Practices

Test-Driven Development (TDD), Extreme Programming, Agile, Pair Programming