email: matej@5insights.com

Skills:

  • Expert: SQL, Python
  • Mid-level: Rust, Golang, Clojure, Linux command line toolset
  • Read-only: C++, Java
  • understanding of statistics, probability, and linear algebra

Education:

  • Theoretical physics, dropped out after 3.5 years because I got an offer for a well paying programming job and never looked back.
  • Microsoft Certified Professional SQL
  • Machine learning in industry (6 months hands-on Weka education with automotive industry datasets)

Experience:

[2012 - ] Saasbloom - consulting

role: Technical advisor, architect, CTO-for-hire, backend developer, and/or code reviewer.

I’ve worked with 37 software startups. My main tasks were to find, vet and hire solid developers and help non-technical founders communicate with developers (and vice-versa). On some projects I was in a CTO role, until we found a permanent CTO.

[2021-2022] Namastream/HeyMarvelous (2021-2022)

Marvelous is empowering wellness creators to build & sell online courses, memberships, communities, coaching programs.

role: lead backend developer

Interesting challenges:

  • Zapier integration
  • implemented community group administration, permission system, activity feeds, notifications
  • business reporting (complex SQL queries & Django Querysets)
  • optimized video storage from 100TB to 70TB
  • realtime video issues troubleshooting

Tech stack:

  • Python/Django
  • Postgres
  • Heroku
  • AWS
  • Metabase

[2016-2018] ReferralRiver:

Machine learning on email datasets to increase referrals.

role: Cofounder, developer

Interesting challenges:

  • classifying and matching potential customers based on email contacts graph
  • minimizing referral suggestions to eliminate spam complaints
  • implementing administration UI in a functional language (ELM)

Tech stack:

  • Python/Flask
  • Golang
  • Postgres
  • Google APIs
  • Braintree integration
  • SciPy
  • Digital Ocean
  • Elm

[2013-2018] SaaS mentor:

role: mentor/advisor

I mentored aspiring SaaS entrepreneurs through idea discovery, presales/validation, hiring a software team and finally building a product.

The Foundation(thefoundation.com), mentored 300 early SaaS founders

Primorski Technology Park (LEAN methodology)

[2010-2012] Afax.si

I lead a small team that implemented an email<->fax software.

Interesting challenges:

  • orchestration of multiple servers with custom hardware (faxing modems)
  • queuing, retry failed sent/received faxes, optimizing utilization
  • technical and business reporting

Tech stack: Python, RabbitMQ, Postgres

role: lead developer

[2008-2010] Majstri.si

Search engine for handymen in Slovenia.

role: lead developer, cofounder

Interesting challenges:

  • developed a web crawler that finds Slovenian companies
  • trying to understand user query and transform it to SQL
  • internal tools for managing the search engine

Tech stack: Python, Flask, Postgres

[2006-2007] Hermes Softlab

Building and maintaining the Public Payments Administration of the Republic of Slovenia.

role: developer

Interesting challenges:

  • manging complex web of payment queues.
  • complex SQL reports

Tech stack: .NET, WindowsForms, Oracle

[2007-2009] Hermes Softlab

Building a web interface for Population Registry for Montenegro

role: lead developer role

Interesting challenges:

  • moving a large desktop application to web client (AJAX)
  • keeping a full audit trail and permission system for government officials

Tech stack: .NET, ASP.NET, jquery, Oracle

[2007-2008] Hermes Softlab

Building internal tools for- Slovenian DMV & Slovenian Tax Authority

role: developer

Interesting challenges:

  • optimizing SQL queries that tooks days to minutes

Tech stack: .NET, WindowsForms, Microsoft SQL Server

[2004-2006] Premisa

I worked on two projects.

  • laboratory management software

  • built internal Rapid Aplication Development tool

role: developer, tool developer

Interesting challanges:

  • building and improving ORM
  • building a form builder
  • specing and building code generators
  • creating custom SQL database migration tools

Tech stack: .NET, WindowsForms, Microsoft SQL Server

[2002] European Space Agency

Quality assurance and GUI development

role: junior engineer

Tech stack: Java, Swing

Professional interests

  • building tools for developers
  • building internal tools for business operations
  • program synthesis
  • improving throughput and reducing latency
  • visualization and understanding data
  • SaaS business analytics

Misc