Grafana Expert in Hamburg

Public sector, regulated environment with legal deadlines and interfaces to justice, finance offices, and authorities. Took over a software product, condition unknown. The handover reported 89 percent completion.

Description / Results:

Review of the current state showed only two months of remaining runtime until year-end. Stabilized the product base in four weeks, including setup. Process logic proven instead of estimated: 181 workflows with 28 steps each verified against the legacy system.

• Designed and implemented a Python-based ETL pipeline with the Dagster framework to transform raw energy data from heterogeneous sources using InfluxDB and visualizations in Grafana
• Defined time-based and dependency-based jobs
• Deployed to managed Kubernetes clusters using Helm
• Integrated InfluxDB Cloud
• Prepared data for use in Grafana, including cleaning, normalization, and time-based resampling in Python
• Developed dashboards and visualizations in Grafana
• Developed unit tests with mocking using pytest
• Set up a CI/CD pipeline in GitLab

Technologies: Python, Dagster, InfluxDB, Grafana, pandas, pytest, REST, CI/CD, GitLab, Container, Kubernetes, Helm, Docker, Cloud

• Building an AI & Data Consultancy Practice with the goal of helping European companies adopt Artificial Intelligence and modern data platforms
• End-to-end further development of a production system using modified coding agents (OpenCode). Tech stack: Kubernetes, Argo, Keycloak, Typescript, Grafana, GitOps, DevOps, Playwright
• Internal research project on the use of coding agents in the field of mathematical logic for creating formal models. Use of Cursor IDE and Codex, Codex CLI. Architecture design, quality control and refactoring, as well as writing code and tests. Repository (open source) available pre-launch
• Research on the role of mathematical logic as a formal language that connects IT and AI with business processes
• Project lead for collecting and deploying parking recommendations for rail vehicles with significant savings potential based on real-time data in a mobility and transport company
• Project lead for collecting and distributing process measurement points for real-time control in a mobility and transport company
• Deputy application owner for an app used for communication in the dispatching and provision of rail vehicles

• Remodeling of the system architecture for an Azure-based platform aimed at rapid development of new functionalities
• Modeling of a staging concept for the fulfillment of diverse customer and QA needs
• Creation of requirements for, and oversight of, a proof-of-concept supplier project for a Flutter app with highly advanced BLE functionalities
• Comparison of multiple observability platforms for feasibility and requirements fit within the project environment
• Creation of a mobile app architecture based on domain-driven architecture
• Position of technical advisor and accountable solution architect for two development teams
• Execution of architecture reviews and alignment of changes with architectural expectations
• Skills & Technologies: Microsoft Azure , App Services, NodeJS Mono-repository, microservice architecture, domain driven design, self contained systems, requirements engineering, CI/CD, DevOps, API design, solution architecture

traigo is VTG's digital rail logistics and fleet management platform. It processes large volumes of telemetry, mileage, geofence, sensor and wagon-movement events in near real time and provides operational services for rail logistics customers across Europe.

As part of Team Customer Selfcare, I worked on the design, implementation, optimisation and operation of large-scale backend services and event-driven processing pipelines — covering both feature development and operational ownership of business-critical production systems. I also regularly acted as first responder for production incidents, data inconsistencies and performance investigations across multiple distributed services.

• Design and implementation of event-driven backend services.
• Migration and replacement of legacy processing pipelines.
• Development of replay / rebuild mechanisms for large event datasets.
• High-throughput asynchronous event processing on SNS / SQS.
• Database and query optimisation for PostgreSQL and DynamoDB.
• Design of scalable read / write models and aggregation pipelines.
• Production troubleshooting and operational support.
• Performance tuning and infrastructure scaling.
• Design and stabilisation of integration and system tests.
• Technical concepts, architecture documentation, and cross-team collaboration.
• Support the further development of existing GitLab CI/CD pipelines

Geofence & Wagon Stay Processing

• Algorithm to detect vehicles within geofences (entry, exit, dwell time).
• Event sourcing with guaranteed chronological order within the affected time window.
• Refactored geofence event and wagon-stay processing logic for performance.
• Resolved race conditions and event-ordering problems in distributed services; server-side filtering, aggregation and optimised query pipelines.
• Repair and replay tooling for corrupted or inconsistent movement data.

Fleet Metadata & Mileage

• Modernised the service; migrated storage from DynamoDB to PostgreSQL to improve traceability and accelerate new features.
• Scalable mileage aggregation and replay mechanisms.
• Read / write models and optimised queries for high-volume mileage calculations.

Sensor & Telematics Integration

• Integrated telemetry and sensor processing pipelines.
• Snapshot and state-calculation logic for sensor systems.
• APIs and persistence models for wagon sensor data; data-quality improvements.
• Further development of a service using gRPC for intra-service communication.

Movement Segment Processing & Routing

• Migrated services to new movement-segment event streams.
• Built replay and rebuild tooling for segment correction.
• Optimised throughput and reliability for high-volume event processing.

Condition Monitoring & Wagon Analytics

• APIs and backend services for wagon condition monitoring.
• Brake-wear prediction processing and wagon analytics functionality.
• PostgreSQL views and optimised query models for operational dashboards.

Operational Reliability - First Responder

• Investigated production incidents and distributed-system failures; DLQ analysis, replay and operational recovery.
• Tuned database performance and AWS infrastructure under production load.
• Improved observability, monitoring and operational tooling.
• Supported rollout strategies, monitoring and post-deployment stabilisation.

I implemented a Zero-Trust architecture for robust, military-grade maritime container mini data centers based on VMware & Tanzu to support containerized GIS workloads for ground forces. The main focus was on securing communications, workload protection, and data access in contested electronic battle environments affected by jamming, interception, signal manipulation, and constantly changing operational conditions. I designed and architected use cases so that every element of workload, identity, and system could continue to operate independently and securely even in degraded or disrupted scenarios. In parallel, I defined the enterprise and solution security architecture with LeanIX, Bizzdesign, and HOPEX as enterprise architecture, repository, and governance platforms to maintain architecture inventory, relationships, traceability, target pictures, and security governance in complex environments. For the architectural designs, I used Sparx Enterprise Architect to describe formal architecture views, interfaces, trust boundaries, and system architecture in both IT and OT environments. IriusRisk was used for threat modeling of the solution to identify architecture-driven risks, derive security requirements, and detect countermeasures and design gaps directly from the solution models. Risk and compliance management was supported with Archer. Architecture decisions, control gaps, and operational risks were translated into controlled governance and auditable compliance measures. For documentation, collaboration, and visual design, I used Confluence to maintain Architecture Decision Records, Security Blueprints, and workflows. I used Lucidchart and draw.io to create design artifacts tailored to stakeholders. I also defined OT security concepts with support from electrical and mechanical engineers in the areas of oil, vehicle onboard systems, rail, power plants, pharma, gas turbines, and nuclear technology. I created the end-to-end OT security strategy, starting with global policy, developed into standards and procedures, and finally aligned with Bell-LaPadula, Purdue Model, SABSA, TOGAF ADM, CENELEC 50701, IEC 62443, and NIST standards. In addition, I worked with engineering team leads to identify critical KBP assets and place them under protective measures that segmented SCADA, PLC, and HMI assets. I drove collaboration between Security, IT, and OT teams to create standardized workflows and use cases for the OT security solution catalog, while integrating Defense-in-Depth and Zero-Trust principles into operational environments. A key part of my work was integrating multidisciplinary engineering, security, and operations stakeholders into a unified security blueprinting strategy and ensuring that architecture, threat modeling, governance, and documentation were technically strong and operationally practical.

• Planning, steering, and monitoring the Corporate Responsibility Tech Enablement project for IT
• Concept and implementation of the EUDR (EU Deforestation Regulation)
• Concept and implementation of the Eco-Design Regulation
• Continued support of projects within the Corporate Responsibility strategy
• Definition and review of guidelines (e.g. governance, success metrics) and, if needed, analysis of issues and their solutions
• Overall project management, marketing, communication, and quality assurance for the projects
• Creation of the project plan including timeline/roadmap, budget, and resources
• Ensuring compliance with budget and deadlines
• Defining guidelines for project control, methods, and priorities
• Planning and tracking resources and effort, also together with other IT teams
• Evaluation of projects and preparation of results (reporting to management)
• Identification and reduction of risks
• Regular communication with stakeholders
• Steering internal and external stakeholders and service providers (Jira, Confluence, backlog management, task tracking, SharePoint, MS 365 platform etc.)
• Development of standards and process automation

Label: Azure Cloud, Jira, Confluence, Power BI, SAP BW, AWS, Miro, Bee360, Draw.io, SharePoint, MS 365 platform, Trello etc.

• Project lead ‘Cloud Migration’ for moving the on-premise production environment to Scaleway.
• Transformed a Docker-Swarm legacy setup to a modern Kubernetes-based cloud environment.
• Architected a GDPR-compliant cloud landscape and deployment setup – 100% European sovereign cloud.
• Hands-on bootstrapped the cloud environment with Terraform, ArgoCD, and GitLab Pipelines CI/CD.
• Replaced the legacy VPN with modern mTLS PKI and deep AD integration.
• Managed an 11-headed agile team using Kanban, moderating team meetings and plannings.
• Successfully finished the migration, moving infrastructure, services, and data, from planning to execution.

• Consulting, planning, and adapting (extension and rebuild) of the existing test framework to cover necessary test cases as part of quality assurance for initiative implementations
• Executing cross-team manual test cases during regular sprint cycles
• Setting up test automation
• Advising front-end and back-end development on quality assurance aspects
• Building a framework for end-to-end test cases
• Performing software quality assurance across various projects within a program
• Supporting the creation of test cases
• Coordinating within the team with all relevant stakeholders

• Architected and deployed LLM based AI agents, RAG pipelines, and vector search solutions for decision support across retail banking department.
• Developed and shipped robust AI pipelines with guardrails, error handling, monitoring, and fallback logic ensuring high reliability outcomes and compliance with data privacy.
• Developed and deployed ML models to identify transactional anomalies, improving fraud detection and risk assessment in high-volume datasets for credit risk modelling.
• Built, evaluated and fine-tuned ML models to generate propensity scores for customers used to drive personalized targeting campaigns for credit cards and personal finance/loan products.
• Developed an NLP pipeline using BERT embeddings and spaCy NER for SMS/email analysis and customer query logs.
• Trained machine learning models using Isolation Forest to classify user behaviour and detect anomalies.
• Extracted, cleaned, enriched and feature engineered datasets from different sources to build feature stores that powered ML model training.
• Led development of dashboards using Power BI, Grafana, and Prometheus to monitor model performances, KPI trends, and marketing metrics.
• Built multi-touch attribution models using logistic regression and time-decay weights to evaluate lead quality.
• Developed scalable ETL pipelines from CRM, T24, SAP, and ERP, supporting millions of monthly transactions.
• Integrated testing and CI/CD workflows for robust data pipeline deployment.

• Technical consulting to meet regulatory MiCA requirements for a digital trading platform
• Design and development of backend components and APIs to comply with transparency and auditability requirements
• Optimization of core functions in order execution and market data delivery with a focus on performance and reliability under high load
• Conducting job interviews and structured onboarding of new developers
• Successful and timely implementation of the regulatory MiCA requirements, ensuring uninterrupted operations
• Reduction of user issues and common support requests by fixing complex backend problems
• Strengthening the development team through effective onboarding, mentoring, and knowledge sharing

• Extended the document management system with a standard CMIS (Content Management Interoperability Services) interface
• Implemented CMIS core services like navigation, access rights, search, CRUD operations, and versioning in Java
• Implemented based on RESTful / OpenAPI services
• Delivered as a fat-jar and native container image
• Deployed on-premises and serverlessly as an Azure Container Application using Terraform
• Improved team autonomy through infrastructure engineering and short feedback loops
• Established observability with OpenTelemetry, Azure Monitor, and Azure Logic Apps
• Introduced Terraform and trunk-based development processes
• Ensured quality with BDD tests in C# using SpecFlow and Testcontainers
• Created Azure DevOps pipeline integration tests
• Introduced cloud deployment processes
• Trained staff in cloud and Terraform

• Responsibility for testing and quality assurance of application processes
• Creation and execution of test cases based on defined acceptance criteria
• Documentation of deviations and analysis, as well as initiation of necessary corrective actions
• Ensuring the flow of information within the team and with other specialist departments
• Maintenance and further development of test automation
• Adapting Selenium-based automation to every release and sprint change
• Extending test automation with new processes
• Performing security tests
• Identifying typical vulnerabilities (e.g. XSS, SQL injection, insecure headers) through automated tests in the CI/CD flow
• Use of technologies Selenium (including integration with security scanners such as OWASP ZAP), Unix/SQL environments and optionally Cypress, SAP, C#, Java, GitLab, Jira, Confluence, REST API, Postman, HP-ALM, SSI, Octane, WinSCP.

• Consulting on a wide range of open science hardware projects in the fields of electronics, mechatronics, and optoelectronics
• Comprehensive system analysis and DFM optimization of a novel open hardware miniaturized two-photon microscope
• Exchange with scientists from renowned academic institutions to align the customer’s work in the best possible way
• Production coordination with local and international partners for PCB assembly, CNC machining, and optics
• Process analysis for product design, production planning/execution, product lifecycle, and product data management
• Coaching employees from all departments on the requirements that complex technical products place on business processes
• Development of a comprehensive PLM & PDM concept tailored to the needs of development and manufacturing
• Initiating intensive and direct cross-departmental exchange to identify improvement potential
• Planning shopfloor layout improvements with the production team and supporting the implementation process
• Quick onboarding of two new English-speaking colleagues in technical product management and development
• Ad-hoc and in-depth training of employees in the use of software tools such as KiCad or Autodesk Inventor
• Consulting on long-term development into a scalable, even stronger partner for the open science hardware community