I'm a Software Engineer based in Tokyo, Japan. 🗾 You can find my profile on LinkedIn.

• Senior Software Engineer
  • primarily with ruby, but also other langs
• ~15 years experience
• located in Tokyo, Japan
• focus on team process, testing and maintainability

• Collaborator: I prioritize solving the right problem for the client. Through collaboration, with product, design and other stakeholders we often discover that the obvious solution is not the best and even the problem itself may not be what we thought.
• Process-Oriented: I have a strong focus on process and believe in fine-tuning it for the team. While Agile methodologies provide a foundation, I advocate for tailoring processes to fit each team's unique needs.
• Mentorship: I've had the privilege of helping numerous engineers skill-up, both within the codebase and in their collaborative processes.
• Advocate for Automated Testing: I firmly believe in the power of automated testing. Well-written tests not only improve build & release confidence they also double as documentation of code and the original intent behind it for years to come.

At Lab Zero, I had the opportunity to build products and consult for a variety of clients, sometimes as a member of a team and other times as the engineering lead on the team. Here are a few examples:

• Engineered a new request management and inventory system for Apple global facilities using GraphQL on Rails for the backend and React & Typescript for the frontend.
• Assisted with ongoing maintenance and enhancement of an older Rails application catering to employee requests, health, and office management.

• Worked with a team to advise and lay the groundwork for new mobile application development initiatives.
• Championed modern development methodologies, emphasizing CI/CD, comprehensive testing, and streamlined release protocols.

• Spearheaded the development and launch of a broad Fin-tech application, as lead developer from inception to initial customer releases.
• Utilized a tech stack of Ruby on Rails and Hotwire.
• Proactively educated the team on best practices for Turbo and Stimulus, elevating the skill set and productivity of fellow developers.
• Oversaw and implemented numerous asynchronous API integrations for deeper KYC.
• Prioritized robust security measures and stringent customer-data protection while balancing the need for longer-term maintainability and speed of release.
• Ensured zero downtime releases.
• Taught training sessions and helped level-up new engineers as they joined.

• Led the development of a real-estate market application, focusing on user experience.
• Mentored and collaborated with contractors to deliver high-quality solutions.

• Managed multiple Rails applications for universities, integrating React frontends and various APIs.
• Emphasized comprehensive testing using RSpec and Jest, ensuring robust and reliable software.

• Managed the entire backend API, web frontend development, and server infrastructure for iOS/Android apps.
• Developed JSON APIs on Rails for mobile clients and built a Vue.js web frontend for existing data.
• Managed AWS infrastructure, ensuring optimal performance and cost-effectiveness.

• Full-time instructor for a 3-month web development boot camp.
• Developed and delivered lessons and coding labs.
• Mentored students on web development fundamentals and related topics (Git, CSS, jQuery, Node, Express, Angular, Ruby on Rails).
• Led implementation of coding standards and style guides to improve lesson consistency and stay up-to-date with modern practices.

• Collaborated with a team on a ground-up rewrite of the company’s flagship software service (RoR).
• Utilized Capybara, RSpec, Selenium, and Cucumber for comprehensive testing.
• Managed infrastructure and led load testing before launch.

• Developed diagnostic software for major PC OEMs.
• Built workflow software for top PC OEMs' repair/refurbishment centers.
• Maintained internationalization components of the build process.

I'm currently open to new opportunities, collaborations, and interesting discussions. Feel free to reach out via email at travis.gaff@gmail.com or connect with me on LinkedIn.

• University of Nevada, Reno | B.A., Biology & Computer Science
• University of Notre Dame | B.B.A., Management Information Systems

• Languages: Ruby, JavaScript (ES6+), Python
• Frameworks & Libraries: Rails, React, Vue.js, Node.js
• Testing: RSpec, Jest, Capybara
• Deployment: CI/CD, Zero Downtime Deployments
• Cloud Platforms: AWS, GCP
• Methodologies: Agile