AI Architects in Germany

Product:

• Built a production-ready AI platform for generating brand-aware marketing images and videos from product data, user requirements, and uploaded media.
• Own the platform architecture, technical roadmap, API design, security, deployment workflow, operational reliability, and model-provider strategy.
• Developed the core platform in .NET and built supporting AI and workflow prototypes in Python, applying language-independent API contracts and structured interfaces between services and model providers.
• Implemented reliable background processing with RabbitMQ, persisted workflow state, idempotent handling, retries, failure recovery, logging, secure storage, authorization, and credit accounting.
• Made pragmatic build-versus-buy and model-routing decisions based on reliability, latency, cost, and maintainability rather than novelty.

Agent Orchestration & RAG Systems

• Built and compared agent workflows using Microsoft Agent Framework, LangGraph, and LangChain, including tool use, conditional routing, clarification steps, state management, and hand-offs between agents.
• Implemented reusable .NET components for agents, prompts, tools, model providers, structured responses, and retrieval with pyvector, making it easier to change AI providers without rewriting the core workflow.

• Team leadership: Prioritization and coordination of four cross-functional teams.
• Platform strategy: Development and implementation of strategies to optimize existing IT platforms.
• Stakeholder management: Active management of expectations and communication with internal and external stakeholders.
• Program and innovation management: Prioritization and coordination of cross-department projects as well as innovation initiatives.
• Product Owner consulting: Advising Product Owners with a focus on product development and continuous product improvement.
• Organizational development: Improving communication and decision-making structures across all organizational levels.
• Change management: Implementing best-practice change management methods to ensure continuous optimization and innovation.
• Quality assurance: Ensuring high quality standards in processes, services, and deliverables.

• Architected the Yatta Integration Layer – a config-driven integration platform on Java 25, Spring Boot 4 (WebFlux), Temporal, gRPC and Kafka, enabling new third-party integrations (e.g. AVS fulfillment) via declarative JSON configs with zero code changes.
• Designed and implemented Tink integration with 0Auth IBAN verification to enhance fraud prevention and account validation workflows with Adyen payByBank.
• Architected and implemented an OpenFGA-based authorization model for centralized management of users, groups, and fine-grained access control in the vendor portal.
• Architected and led delivery of the Yatta API Gateway platform using GraphQL Federation, providing a unified enterprise API layer across distributed microservices with centralized authentication, authorization and request orchestration.
• Replaced NGINX + NLB with Istio service mesh and AWS ALB; rolled out WAF, OAuth (Cognito), IP whitelisting and RBAC across environments.
• Migrated CDC from Confluent Cloud connectors to a self-hosted Kafka Connect + Debezium stack, reducing operational cost by ~80% across multiple environments.
• Implemented the Transactional Outbox pattern with Debezium for reliable, exactly-once event publishing to Kafka with Avro and Schema Registry.
• Migrated dunning/payment-recovery workflows from Airflow to Temporal, achieving 99.9% reliability for settlement handling.
• Optimised Apache Airflow with deferrable sensors to handle 1000+ concurrent DAG runs without scaling the worker pool.
• Refactored a monolithic Terraform codebase into 3 modular projects, cutting deployment time by ~45%.
• Stood up full observability with OpenTelemetry, Tempo, Prometheus and Loki; automated dev/staging/prod with ArgoCD, Image Updater and Helm.
• Collaborated with product, operations and engineering stakeholders to define scalable platform architecture and integration standards aligned with long-term business and operational goals.

Scope: Embedded as FP&A Data & AI Architect within the Finance function of a major European refrigeration manufacturer, leading the transformation of manual, fragmented financial reporting into an automated, governance-driven intelligence platform. Driving the shift from Excel-based controlling to structured data architecture, Power BI analytics, and AI-assisted financial operations.

Financial Data Integrity & ERP Governance

• Initiated and led GL vs. subledger reconciliation investigations, identifying and resolving structural mismatches between General Ledger and subledger data that had gone undetected prior to engagement
• Conducted asset analysis to identify items missing from General Ledger postings, surfacing gaps in fixed asset tracking and period-end completeness
• Validated SAP reports, establishing baseline data quality standards for Finance team consumption
• Established systematic SAP data validation framework ensuring ongoing integrity between ERP postings and downstream reporting outputs

Finance Reporting Transformation

• Designed and implemented a structured Transformation Project approach for converting manual Finance reports into fully automated processes
• Created and owns the Data Reporting Audit Log; a centralized tracking system capturing report owners, stakeholders, data sources, manual effort estimates, and automation opportunity scores across the Finance function
• Mapped the full reporting landscape identifying quick-win automation targets and strategic Power BI migration candidates
• Actively reducing manual Excel and PowerPoint dependency across FP&A workflows; replacing point-in-time snapshots with live, governed data models

Power BI & Analytics Enablement

• Introduced and presented Power BI as the strategic reporting platform to Finance leadership, building internal buy-in for the BI transformation roadmap
• Designed initial Power BI architecture aligned with SAP, Salesforce and Oracle data structures and FP&A reporting requirements
• Established report ownership, governance documentation, and data lineage standards enabling sustainable self-service analytics across the Finance team

Transformation Infrastructure & Collaboration

• Configured and deployed Jira as the transformation project management hub, establishing structured sprint workflows, backlog management, and progress visibility for Finance IT initiatives
• Proposed and initiated a dedicated FP&A Communication & Transformation Hub, a structured cross-functional forum aligning Finance, IT, and business stakeholders around the reporting transformation roadmap
• Positioned the Finance function as an active driver of data governance and digital transformation within the broader organization

Outcomes

• GL/subledger reconciliation gaps identified and investigation framework established within first two weeks of engagement
• Data Reporting Audit Log deployed; first structured inventory of Finance reporting landscape in company history
• Power BI transformation roadmap presented and approved by Finance leadership
• Jira-based project governance live; Finance transformation now tracked with full sprint visibility

Technologies: SAP FI/CO · Power BI · DAX · SQL · Excel (advanced) · Power Query (M) · Power Automate · VBA · Jira · Microsoft 365 · SharePoint · Salesforce (Sales Data) · Oracle HCM · Python

• Situation: Increasing demand for privacy-compliant AI solutions for clients in the KRITIS and mid-market sector that need to analyze sensitive media content (audio, video, documents) without sending data to public cloud LLMs.

• Task: Design, deployment, and secure operation of a fully self-hosted AI infrastructure including a custom-built digital management platform for automated media analysis.

• Action: Architected and implemented a multi-tier platform on hardened Proxmox infrastructure with frontend (Nuxt 3, Vue 3, TypeScript, Tailwind 4), backend (Laravel 13, PHP 8.4, Sanctum), data storage (PostgreSQL 16, MongoDB 7), caching/queuing (Redis 7, Laravel Queue), AI workers (Python 3.11, Whisper, DeepFace, Librosa), scheduling (Laravel Scheduler/Cron), and local LLMs (Gemma, DeepSeek, Qwen, Mistral, LLaMA, Phi) via OpenWebUI with segmented network access, API hardening, and audit logging following BSI recommendations.

• Result: Fully GDPR-compliant, on-premises AI platform with zero data leakage to third parties.

• Task: Overall responsibility as an external Head of Cyber Security / CISO-as-a-Service for the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of ISMS according to ISO 27001, BSI IT-Grundschutz, and NIS2.

• Action: Built and managed Cyber Defense Centers (CDC) with SOC operations, integrated SIEM solutions (Splunk, Graylog), established risk-based vulnerability management (Qualys, Nessus, OpenVAS), and conducted regular infrastructure, application, and physical penetration tests.

• Result: Audit-ready ISMS for multiple clients and a 60% reduction in critical vulnerabilities within 90 days.

• Task: Design and execution of NIS2 assessments and operational roll-out plans for KRITIS operators.

• Action: Developed an online assessment tool for automated identification of individual weakness profiles, implemented ISMS optimizations, penetration testing, awareness programs, GRC suite deployment, and delivered C-level presentations.

• Result: Accelerated the consulting process by 50% and successfully prepared multiple clients for NIS2 compliance.

• Task: Incident commander for crisis response, forensics, and business recovery in ransomware attacks and APT campaigns.

• Action: Coordinated with state and federal police (LKA, BKA), performed forensic analysis (OSForensics, Wireshark, Kali Linux), executed disaster recovery and BCM strategies, and developed BTC extortion response strategies.

• Result: 100% recovery rate within defined RTO windows and sustainable post-incident security architectures.

• Action: Planned, built, and operated a hardened multi-VM infrastructure (Proxmox, 15+ VMs) with web and mail servers, Graylog, OPNsense firewalls, CRM/ERP and LLM instances, network segmentation, DDoS mitigation, automated patch management, and backup strategies.

• Result: >99.5% uptime over 20+ years and zero compromises.

• Action: Designed coordinated phishing campaigns with five levels of difficulty, developed e-trainings and webinars in a PDCA cycle, and led red and blue teams.

• Result: Phishing click rate reduced from 35% to under 5% within three campaign cycles.

• Conceptual design and implementation of modular AI assistants for sales and business processes in the Microsoft ecosystem (Agentic AI, Copilot extensions)
• Frontend architecture and development with React + TypeScript for embedded chat and assistant surfaces (streaming UI, hooks, React Query, OpenAPI clients)
• Enterprise-level agent development: reusable skill/agent library, MCP server, review and compliance gates
• LLM integration into the user experience: Anthropic (Claude), OpenAI, tool use, RAG pipelines, prompt engineering, guardrails
• Architecture and code review consulting as well as mentoring in the AI development team
• Integration with Microsoft Graph, Power Platform, and Azure services
• Technologies: React, TypeScript, Anthropic Claude, OpenAI, MCP, RAG, Microsoft Graph, Power Platform, Azure

• Strategic and operational overall responsibility for a specialized agency for UX Writing & Content Strategy
• Product development, client acquisition, and the setup and strategic further development of UX writing systems for clients in the IT and finance sectors

Embedded Analytics & AI-assisted BI

Design and development of an integrated analytics solution based on ASP.NET Core, Power BI Embedded, and LLM services to provide contextual business information.

Development of an AI agent with Function/Tool Calling for secure orchestration of REST APIs, SQL data sources, and technical services within defined business processes.

Build-up of automated BI workflows including workspace management, deployment processes, and scheduled refresh via the Power BI REST API.

Implementation of secure service-to-service communication with Microsoft Entra ID and service principal, as well as integration into existing enterprise system landscapes.

Technologies: ASP.NET Core, C#/.NET, Power BI Embedded, Power BI REST API, LLM API, AI Agents, Function/Tool Calling, Entra ID

• Acquires new B2B customers for an AI SaaS startup in the public tendering space and books product demos with IT decision-makers.
• Qualifies target customers based on a defined ideal customer profile, including discovery, needs analysis, and objection handling.
• Builds domain knowledge in public procurement (EVB-IT, German and EU tender portals) for technical discussions at eye level.

• Delivered MVP-focused full-stack architecture for a health-sector client: Vite/React frontend, backend services on Google Cloud Run, and Supabase for database plus IAM/authentication.
• Supported product requirements engineering and prioritized cost-aware workload placement, implementing browser-side/edge computation where feasible before moving logic to backend services.

• Instructor for applied AI in the courses "AI Implementation Architect" and "AI Business Innovator"
• Running remote training sessions to qualify participants as "AI Implementation Architect" and "AI Business Innovator"
• Building n8n-based automations for the Digital Institut des Mittelstands

• AI Integration (LLM & RAG): Design and build of an internal intelligent RAG system (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) based on LLMs, n8n, and vector data for the automated analysis of technical documents and error logs.
• Design & Implementation: Design of a robust RS-232/UART communication interface for an SBC-based embedded device to control medical shaker systems.
• Architecture & Protocol Design: Implementation of a highly maintainable software structure (OOP, SOLID) and definition of hardware-close, resilient communication protocols including multithreading and advanced error handling.
• Quality Assurance & DevOps: Test automation using xUnit, integration tests directly on the hardware target, and maintenance of technical documentation according to strict medical technology standards via Azure DevOps.

Label: C#, .NET, LLMs, RAG, n8n, RS-232, UART, Multithreading, async/await, xUnit, gRPC/protobuf, Blazor, MudBlazor, EF Core, Visual Studio 2026, Azure DevOps

Technologies: n8n, Notion, OpenAI API, Claude, MS AI Foundry, MS CoPilot Studio, MS CoPilot, LLM, Node.js, Vercel, LangGraph, PostgreSQL, pgEdge, pgvector, Docker, LangChain, Ollama, Open WebUI

• Continuous evaluation and prioritization of internal automation needs
• ~20 AI agents in active use: research, content pipelines, document processing
• 5 n8n workflows for automated data and process control
• Architecture built on the same principles as in customer projects: state management, event-driven orchestration, API integration
• Ongoing operation and further development

Project: Neura Belden BHVA (Belden HI vision Virtual Assistance)

• Translated AI agent concepts into 4 distinct user workflows (General, Redundancy, Network, VLAN agents).
• Designed 6 game-changing features with technical specifications: Predictive Issue Resolution, Cost Optimization Engine, Compliance Automation, Cross-Agent Orchestration, Knowledge Transfer Mode, Root Cause Analysis 2.0.
• Contributed reusable UX patterns and lightweight standards for experimentation-first AI environment: single-file HTML/CSS/JS prototypes, semantic accessibility, responsive grid layouts, and clear component structure enabling rapid future POC iterations.
• Translated early AI concepts into intuitive user workflows and interaction models for 4 specialized agents, focusing on clarity, trust-building, and progressive disclosure to surface complex AI capabilities.
• Documented design trade-offs in accessible language for non-designers.