NGINX Experts in Germany

• Industry: Insurance, Trade, IT
• Customers & Projects: Consulting and selling insurance and similar services
• Main tasks: Insurance consulting (health insurance, retirement planning, wealth building); commercial services, inside and field sales; sales data analysis and forecasting; customer consulting and support; opening a new sales headquarters for private and business customers; business development & innovation management; business use case development; process optimization; stakeholder management; team leadership and training; preparation and delivery of trainings;
• Technologies used: Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Draw.IO, Camunda 8, Java (8, 17,21,25), Git, Spring Boot, Spring Batch, Spring Data REST, Spring Web, Spring Security, J-Unit, Playwright, Lombock, Vaadin, H2, PostgreSQL (16, 17 18), pgAdmin, Docker, LLMs, JasperSoft Studio, JasperReports

• Developed a browser-based platform for Kubernetes no-code deployment and cluster management
• Developed a CLI in TypeScript to deploy resources in the cluster without leaving the browser UI.
• Implemented DevSecOps pipelines: image scanning, SBOM, policy enforcement, supply-chain security, and used Kyverno. Implemented IAM integration for the command-line utility tool.
• Designed role and permission models for Keycloak, OAuth/OIDC, and social login flows.
• Used LLMs to convert user intent into diagrams.
• Worked on integration with multiple sovereign clouds like StackIT, Hetzner, CIVO, UpCloud, plus public clouds like AWS, GCP, and Azure
• The technology stack includes Java, Spring Boot, Kubernetes, OpenAI, Kubernetes multi-tenancy using vCluster, Karpenter, RBAC for CLI, Helm, React

• Fully on-premises LLM document-examination platform for a compliance-critical banking domain: agentic LangGraph pipeline with deterministic verification, every AI judgment structured and source-anchored; ~960 automated tests, zero data egress
• GPU throughput engineering (quantized serving, speculative decoding, prefix caching): 9.5x extraction speed-up, 500+ multi-document case files per day on a single A100
• AI-native EDI/EDIFACT integration platform (~116k LOC Java 25 / Spring Boot 4, 1,900+ tests): LLM-drafted partner mappings machine-verified before go-live (DFDL conformance, field-coverage checks, dry runs), ~99.5% byte match on real customer files — replacing weeks of manual mapping per partner

Development and further development of an internal platform for managing and providing technical resources, virtual machines, and infrastructure services. The platform supports self-service processes and covers functions that are conceptually comparable to cloud management solutions like Azure or AWS.

• Responsible involvement in the design, development, and implementation of new backend and frontend features
• Hands-on development with Java, Spring Boot, Python, and Angular
• Implementation of REST interfaces, business logic, validations, and integrations into existing system landscapes
• Further development of modern web interfaces with Angular, including connection to backend services
• Participation in architecture and design decisions within the team, especially with regard to scalability, maintainability, and clean interfaces
• Containerization and deployment of applications with Docker, Kubernetes, and Helm
• Support with CI/CD processes and deployment to Kubernetes-based environments
• Work in the environment of vSphere, Broadcom, GitLab CI/CD, ArgoCD, Maven, npm, and NuGet
• Close collaboration with developers, business teams, DevOps, and other technical stakeholders
• Analysis of technical requirements, deriving suitable solutions, and independent implementation in an agile team
• Use of GitHub Copilot to support code generation, refactoring, test case creation, and technical documentation

Methods/ tools/ technologies: Languages & frameworks: Java (21), Spring Boot (4.x), Python, Angular, Robot Framework, Kubernetes, Helm Persistence: PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Hibernate, Liquibase Architecture & communication: REST, gRPC, GraphQL, Apache Kafka, OpenAPI, Microservices, Event Driven, Domain Driven Design Cloud & infrastructure: Terraform, Docker, Rancher, Helm, Ansible Security: OAuth2, MS (Entra ID), web security, Keycloak (extensions for detailed group rights) DevOps: GitLab CI/CD, Ansible, Maven, Gradle, Grafana, Prometheus, Git, GitHub Copilot Testing & QM: JUnit, Robot Framework, automated component and integration tests, E2E tests with Playwright, Testcontainers, EasyMock Methodology & approach: Kanban, JIRA, Confluence, Clean Code

• Building a data integration platform for high, medium, and low voltage assets for contextual analysis of time series with master data from the SCADA control system (IEC 60870 104), INIS, and SAP.
• Responsibility for the architecture and implementation of the solution, as well as sparring partner for the Product Owner.
• Use of Kotlin, Spring Boot, Maven, TimescaleDB, PostgreSQL, liquibase, Elements IoT, Docker, Kubernetes, Grafana, Python, jupyter, and various API gateways.

• Short description: Lead a group-wide project to establish standardized cloud governance for Microsoft Azure, including policies, security and compliance controls, automation, and cost and operations control while preserving the autonomy of decentralized business units within regulatory boundaries.

• Tasks and activities:

• Overall responsibility for the design, setup, and implementation of an enterprise-wide cloud governance structure (Azure), incl. target picture, roadmap, and operating model.

• Management of internal and external stakeholders (C-level, IT, Security, Compliance, Cloud Architecture, DevOps) incl. decision-making and escalation management.

• Planning and facilitation of workshops on cloud strategy, governance principles, and the design of areas such as Identity, Connectivity, and Platform Management.

• Definition, implementation, and rollout of cloud policies (Azure Policy / custom policies), security standards, and compliance requirements (including GDPR, ISO 27001, BSI C5).

• Building a cloud governance framework aligned with the Azure Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF), incl. landing zone and guardrail concepts.

• Introduction of automation solutions for governance, security, and cost control (policy/control automation, IaC, CI/CD-based control mechanisms).

• Implementation of cloud security and compliance monitoring mechanisms as well as continuous improvement processes.

• Establishment and operationalization of FinOps in an enterprise environment (central and decentralized FinOps teams), incl. cost management strategies, reporting, and guardrails.

• Integration of governance policies into DevOps processes (e.g. CI/CD principles for security and compliance checks, GitLab Runner concept in spokes, GitLab CI/CD for CAF landing zones).

• Implementation of access concepts incl. RBAC design and "break glass" mechanisms (emergency access) as well as certificate automation (ACME / step-ca).

• Achievements:

• Created a unified, auditable governance and control set for Azure (policies, standards, compliance mapping) and thus laid the foundation for scalable cloud usage in a regulated environment.

• Established repeatable automation for governance, security, and cost control (IaC + CI/CD), reducing manual effort and implementation risks.

• Improved operational and decision-making capabilities across central and decentralized units (clearer roles, responsibilities, escalation paths, balance between autonomy and group requirements).

• Significantly increased workload compliance for lift-and-shift migrations.

• Technologies used:

• Microsoft Azure Policy, custom policies.

• Terraform, OpenTofu, Terragrunt.

• step-ca (ACME).

• Entra ID.

• Azure Firewall.

• Azure networking, hub-and-spoke architecture.

• Azure vWAN (evaluation).

• Azure Front Door, Azure Application Gateway.

• Azure ExpressRoute.

• Azure Key Vault.

• NetBox.

• GitLab (on-premises).

• Infrastructure, concepts used:

• Cloud shared responsibility model.

• Hub-and-spoke connectivity / central shared services (from a hub-spoke context).

• Central governance with decentralized delivery (business unit autonomy with guardrails).

• Methods used:

• Scrum.

• Stakeholder management (C-level to engineering).

• Cloud governance, Azure Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF).

• DevOps, CI/CD.

• Cost and FinOps approaches: tagging/chargeback models, budget/alert concepts, reserved instances/savings plans vs. on-demand scenarios, sensitivity analyses.

• RBAC, "break glass" concepts.

• ACME / certificate automation.

• GitLab Runner concept in spokes, GitLab CI/CD pipelines for CAF landing zones.

• Led migration to GCP using Terraform, GKE, and GitOps, improving deployment consistency and scalability
• Implemented Datadog observability stack via Terraform and datadog-operator
• Established automated end-to-end tests and on-call processes, improving incident response and service reliability
• Migrated from NGINX Ingress Controller to Kubernetes Gateway API (NGINX Gateway Fabric)
• Migrated stateful services (PostgreSQL and Redis) to GCP, improving scalability and operational reliability

As project manager for the Odoo implementation at a small company, I was responsible for designing, implementing, and training a fully integrated CRM and accounting system. Through structured requirements analysis, precise data migration, and targeted change management, I was able to complete the rollout in just eight weeks. The project led to a significant reduction in manual tasks, faster business processes, and increased real-time transparency.

Main Responsibilities

Requirements analysis and process mapping Configuration of Odoo modules: CRM, Sales, and Accounting Data migration (Excel/CSV → Odoo) and quality control Creation of workflows, automated email rules, and dashboards Conducting training sessions and providing support after go-live Project coordination (budget, schedule, stakeholder communication)

Key Achievements

Full implementation of the Odoo suite within the set timeframe (8 weeks) 30% reduction in accounting time and 25% acceleration of the lead-to-sale flow 100% customer satisfaction after go-live, based on survey results Successful migration of 100% of existing master data without data loss Establishment of a sustainable support infrastructure (3-month post go-live support)

Impact

Improved decision-making through real-time dashboards and automated reports Increased efficiency and cost savings (≈ €8,000/month) Scalability for future growth (additional modules can be integrated seamlessly) Strengthened sales and finance departments through seamless process integration

This summary highlights how I created concrete and measurable value for the company through structured project work, technical expertise, and targeted training.

• Development and introduction of operations processes
• Preparation of complete documentation packages (including incident management and operations support) to meet compliance requirements
• Introduction of a workshop on IaC (Infrastructure as Code)
• Technical consulting for the project security concept (ISMS)
• Installation and operation of Kubernetes clusters on AWS, on-prem, and Azure
• Hybrid cloud architecture design (on-prem, Hetzner, AWS)
• Analysis and troubleshooting of incidents and system outages
• Network adjustments for firewall rules, gateways, OpenVPN settings, and IPsec tunnels (pfSense)
• Technical consulting on Bitbucket, Jenkins, and GitLab CI/CD pipelines
• Consulting on Ansible deployments and infrastructure automation
• Consulting on building a scalable system in the cloud (AWS / Azure)
• Technologies / Tools: Ansible, Terraform, AWS, Azure, VPN, pfSense, Jenkins, Bitbucket, Kubernetes, GitLab Runner, ISMS, Golang, Prometheus, Grafana, S3, Lambda, RDS, ECS, Cognito, OIDC, Harbor, MinIO, Postgres, Redis, Keycloak, Ceph, Proxmox, CloudFormation, PostgreSQL, Flux CD, Hetzner, IONOS, Sonatype Nexus Repository, Entra ID, Dex IdP, Pulumi

• Designing the audit logging framework
• Implementing APIs for developers to integrate in their codebase
• Implementing ingestion pipeline, database query layer and UI for browsing the audit events
• Improving stability and reliability of the backend system

• Designed, built, and launched an internal event planning web application used by over 100 department leads for a large event, despite having no dedicated testing phase.

• Ensured smooth, failure-free operation during first production use, leading to the tool being adopted for future events.

• Automated catering calculations and related workflows, significantly reducing email communication and manual computation effort for meal planning.

• Managed deployment and hosting on a Linux server using Coolify, including application setup and runtime operations.

• Hired and guided a communication designer on UX while independently owning all technical decisions and implementation.

• Creation, maintenance and hardening of Kubernetes clusters employing Ansible and ArgoCD
• Keywords: Ansible, AWX, Kubernetes, NetApp, Prometheus, CI/CD ArgoCD, SSO, Fluent-bit, HAProxy, Calico, Keycloak, oauth2-proxy, SealedSecrets, kubeseal, Aqua kube-bench, CIS-Benchmarks, Aqua Trivy operator

• Development and maintenance of a news portal CMS with interfaces.
• PHP development with HTML, CSS, SCSS, JavaScript, MySQL, Laravel, documentation of the interfaces and the system.
• Further development of the SSO system based on Laravel with a large API and connections to AWS, SAP, ERPS.
• Reorganisation and development of the news portals on the basis of a publish platform, services and interfaces to Google, Facebook, Twitter, SSO, SAP technical based on NodeJS with TypeScript and AWS.
• Technologies: PHP, Laravel, MySQL, JavaScript, Vue.js, NodeJS, TypeScript, jQuery, CSS, SCSS, SASS, Unix, Jira, Confluence, Git, Apache, Nginx, AWS.

• Understand the customer’s business & technical requirements and translate them into system / technical requirements
• Design and implement Schrodinger’s applications on cloud systems, and experience convincing senior management and senior technical staff of the benefits of their journey with Schrodinger on the cloud
• Provide exceptional technical design and thought leadership, especially around AWS, GCP, and K8s architecture reviews, performance, high availability, cost, and security
• Deep understanding of the Well-Architected pillars and all best practices for building a secure, performant Schrodinger’s applications on the cloud platforms
• Lead technical workshops and advise customers on architectural and strategic IT decisions
• Ensure success in designing, building and migrating applications, software, and services on the cloud platforms
• Educate customers on best practices to ensure their solutions are designed for successful deployment in the cloud
• Work with other team members to ensure quality and customer success
• Define the tickets, tasks, and timelines of projects
• Collaborate with account managers to ensure that the projects are executed according to the defined plan and timeline
• Monitor the progress of the projects, identify risks and issues, and take proactive measures to mitigate them
• Lead and inspire cloud architect teams, provide guidance, and make critical decisions
• Facilitate effective communication and collaboration among team members
• Collaborate with Schrodinger’s managers to improve deployment, support, and configuration of Schrodinger’s applications
• Lead weekly standups and define priorities