Experience

When I began my journey in web development field 20 years ago, I didn’t yet realize how exciting, fast-paced, and energizing it would be – nor where it would take my career.

Back then, CSS was still picking up steam, and responsive was not a thing (neither were smart phones). It was simple at its core, but the ability to create and share creations of this kind on the internet was special. Fast forward to today, and standards change before you can implement them, new methods for using age-old tactics are being rebirthed on the daily, and inspiration is never-ending, if you know where to look.

I’ll halt the reminiscing, and give a bit more background on me. I taught myself HTML and CSS when I was in my teens, looking for every exciting creation on the web at the time, and then attempting to recreate it. Before going away to university, I was getting paid to build small websites for local companies, and was able to land an internship at a web and marketing firm in my area. Jump ahead 5 years: I returned home from Central Michigan University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (specialized in Graphic Design), and while seeking a position in the field, reached out to the company that I had interned with. They didn’t have a position available initially, but a few months later, they did – and I joined their team officially as an entry level designer and developer.

My journey at Trademark Productions (now Perfect Afternoon) was all-encompassing. From that initial position, I was elevated into a Project Manager role, where I spent several years bridging the gap between our clientele and our internal team, ensuring that everyone had what they needed, and everyone understood each other. Given my background, I helped to carve out the position of Creative Director in 2014, where I fulfilled a higher purpose for the growth of the company’s offerings and quality output. This is also where I introduced a focal area on UX (and where my love for it truly began) to be an offering and a means to an improved product for our clients, as well as championed the rebrand from Trademark to Perfect Afternoon.

Beginning in 2022, I embraced the role of Chief Operating Officer, as I had naturally become one with our processes, our clients, and methods to achieve our targets. I worked diligently with each of our departments to do everything possible to improve, and become more efficient, in our output and our quality.

My journey at Perfect Afternoon ended in April 2024 – but this is just the beginning for where my passion and motivation to excel will carry me. I’ve made the decision to transition my talents into the gaming industry, where an even deeper passion has laid for decades. My focal areas will be in the UX/UI space, and I’m incredibly excited to be afforded the opportunity to hone my craft further, while finding the team that I know I will be an effective and collaborative part of – all in the effort of creating something amazing (and having fun doing it).

For more details on each of my positions and their roles/responsibilities, please see my resume.