Software

I help teams build things they're proud to ship.

I'm easy to work with, and I get things done. I tend to be most useful when engineering feels heavier than it should, and delivery needs to move again.

How I can help

Bringing calm back to engineering.

I'm a proud generalist with sound judgement. Over a decade working across software has given me exposure to all sorts of interesting and difficult problems, so I'm good at joining the dots. When everything feels like it's falling apart, I can read a situation, work out what matters, and help a team find the right path forward.

Often a team just needs another perspective to get unstuck, a level head when things are stressful, or someone to help them get the most out of themselves and each other. In practice that's untangling a technical problem, simplifying architecture, clarifying who owns what, or making decisions easier without another meeting.

Day to day I

  • work with engineers on design and tricky problems
  • support senior engineers as they step into leadership
  • help teams ship more often with less stress
  • keep engineering connected to users and outcomes
  • favour simple solutions that hold up over time

Hands-on engineering

Across the stack, and into the details.

I stay hands-on because context matters. I'd rather understand the real problems people face and solve them together than advise from a distance.

I work across a range of languages and frameworks, and the full stack: from highly interactive front ends through to infrastructure orchestration.

How I work

  • Test-driven development, as a habit rather than a slogan
  • DevOps and continuous delivery
  • Pragmatic agile, not ceremony for its own sake
  • Getting real leverage from LLM-assisted development, without the mountains of slop

I've worked on everything from embedded software running on ultra-constrained, low-power devices to critical national infrastructure that serves millions of people every day. I know how to wrangle real technical complexity, but I lean towards simplicity: getting impressive results out of sensible technology choices.

Get in touch

Engineering feeling harder than it should?

If you're building a product and engineering has started to feel heavy, I'm always happy to chat. Tell me where your team has got to and what's slowing it down.

hello@hortus.dev

I also design and build custom electronics