Charles C. Chen
.Net Development, Best Practices, and UI Design
East Windsor, NJ
08520

» Summary

Personal Statement

As a developer, I place a great deal of personal importance on my work ethic and the product I deliver. Because I feel that my work is a reflection upon myself, I place great emphasis on building the best product that I can and always with exemplary craftsmanship.

I also believe strongly in industry standard design patterns and best practices as a tool for creating highly reusable components with minimal waste (in cost of man hours and code) and allowing for greater maintainability. I tend to work diligently to document my work thoroughly for the same reasons.

Most importantly, I find great personal satisfaction in building engaging, user-friendly software tools which help users increase productivity in their daily routines.

Find out more about me at my website: http://www.charliedigital.com/. You can also download a Microsoft Word version of this resume.

» Skillset

Languages & Technologies
  • Things I know.
  • ADO.Net
  • AJAX
  • ASP (JScript, VBScript)
  • ASP.Net/.Net Framework (1.x, 2.0)
  • C# (1.0, 2.0)
  • DHTML (X/HTML, DOM, CSS, JavaScript)
  • HTTP
  • Python
  • T-SQL
  • Visual Basic.Net
  • .Net Web Services
  • Windows Workflow Foundation
  • Windows Communication Foundation
  • XML, XPath, XSLT, and XML Schemas
Software & Environments
  • Things I work with.
  • Windows 2000, XP, 2003
  • IIS 5+
  • SQL Server 2000, 2005
  • SQL Server Reporting Services
  • Windows SharePoint Services 2.0, 3.0
  • ETL (SQL Server DTS, SSIS)
  • Visual Studio.Net 2003, 2005
  • Office Development (2003, 2007)
  • Project Professional 2003
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Adobe Illustrator
  • BizTalk Server 2004
  • NUnit
  • Subversion
  • Enterprise Library 1.x, 2.x, 3.x
  • Composite UI Application Block (CAB)
  • Smart Client Software Factory (SCSF)
Methodologies & Principles
  • Things I believe in.
  • Test Driven Design
  • "Gang of Four" Design Patterns
  • Object Oriented Design & Programming
  • Orthogonal Design
  • Iterative Development
  • Unit Testing
  • Code Generation
  • Documentation Generation
  • AJAX/"Web 2.0" Principles
  • Object Frameworks
  • Contract First

» Professional Experience

Zorch Software / First Consulting Group (FCG)
3.2006 - Current, Senior Software Engineer
  • Integral member of product development team working to create a new document management system which interfaces with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel), Microsoft Project Professional, and Microsoft SharePoint.
  • Designed and wrote specification documents for a custom workflow engine.
  • Architected and implemented custom .Net 2.0 workflow engine.
  • Architected and implemented Windows Workflow/Windows Communication Foundation based workflow runtime hosting service.
  • Responsible for assembling project management workspace and setting up/managing Subversion, Trac, and Apache.
  • Authored specification and architectural documentation for development partners.
  • Headed motion to standardize internal patterns and practices.
Immedient / International Network Services
1.2005 - 3.2006, Consultant

Client: Fortune 100 Pharmaceutical Company

  • Created custom .Net (VB.Net) wizard for performing batch updates to project plans in Microsoft Project Server 2003.
  • Responsible for understanding business needs and interpreting use cases into code modules.
  • Documented specifications and created screenflows to present use cases to business users for a custom audit component integrated with Microsoft Project Professional and Server 2003.
  • Wrote custom API to the Microsoft PDS web services to abstract the manual creation of XML documents typically required to communicate with PDS.

Client: Fortune 100 Defense Corporation

  • Wrote custom, spreadsheet like, web application (ASP.Net/C#/DHTML) for resource planning which integrated Microsoft Project Server and SAP data.
  • Created framework (.Net/C#) for automating Microsoft Project Professional using a multi-threaded approach for controlling and monitoring the automation process; implementation also involved the use of various Win32 APIs to capture runtime screenshots for debugging automated processes, trap dialog text content for logging, and perform automated key input in a configurable manner.
  • Wrote complex stored procedures (T-SQL) and Microsoft Reporting Services reports. Created custom web-based, rich UI, query builder to allow business users to generate custom report (ASP.Net/C#/DHTML).

Client: Global Network Services Provider

  • Created a custom Microsoft Reporting Services deployment utility (.Net/C#) for automated deployment of hierarchal report organization.

Client: Investment Management Firm, Hedge Fund

  • Built proof of concept data transformation system using Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004.
  • Helped guide client through implementation and deployment decisions, including platform and technology choices.
  • Created custom ETL process to automate task of importing data from multiple clearing houses.
Butler International
10.2004 - 12.2004, Consultant

Client: Fortune 100 Financial Services Corporation

  • Designed and implemented ETL packages to automate loading of data from disparate systems.
  • Created web based intranet applications and web services (ASP.Net/VB.Net) to automate HR and sales related business processes.
  • Introduced WiX (Windows Installer XML) as a method of creating distributable packages for application deployment.
TekMark Global Solutions
7.2004 - 10.2004, Consultant

Client: KM World 100 Knowledge Management Company

  • Created utility to allow capturing and emailing the contents of a webpage in MHTML format using a custom SMTP client (ASP.Net/C#).
  • Implemented user interfaces to comply with established web standards including full CSS, XHTML 1.0 transitional, and Section 508 accessibility compliance.
  • Designed custom framework to persist data across postbacks and pages without the use of a backing database.
MediaWhiz
6.2004 - 7.2004, Lead Developer
  • Created web based applications for gathering user data and managing user downloadable resources. Applications were written in ASP and ASP.Net (C#).
  • Also responsible for creating Powwa Search which was designed to consume three XML feeds from service/content providers (ASP.Net/C#).
  • Analyzed and solved existing reporting and database performance deficiencies by correcting and optimizing SQL queries.
Velankani Information Systems
6.2003 - 5.2004, Consultant

Client: Fortune 500 Engineering Conglomerate

  • Assembled proof of concepts for top IT decision makers using the latest CMS products and portal solutions, including Plumtree Portal 5.x (ASP.Net/C#).
  • Headed database upsizing effort by analyzing existing databases, troubleshooting conversion errors, and ensuring validity of data after conversion.
  • Analyzed pool of existing intranet applications and developed strategy for unifying identity management and look and feel.
  • Implemented new versions of existing applications as well as new applications to fulfill business needs (JScript/VBScript/ASP.Net/C#).
Independent
5.2001 - Current

Client: Various

Developed various websites for clients as an independent contractor. Responsibilities included visual/user interface design and development, database design and implementation, writing application code, handling server configuration, and hosting setup.

Client: Fortune 500 Payroll Services Corporation

  • Designed and implemented proof-of-concept prototype web based integrated securities trading GUI utilizing ASP.Net 2.0 and Microsoft "Atlas".
  • Designed and implemented custom web based messaging and notifications GUI.

» Education

Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.

B.Sc. - Computer Science, Minor - Mathematics

Awarded the Internet Technologies Certificate from Rutgers University Department of Computer Science for outstanding grades in high level coursework related to Internet technologies including RDBMS, advanced web applications, software engineering, distributed systems, and Internet infrastructure.

» Miscellaneous

Areas of Interest

While I am continually fascinated with a breadth of new technologies, my core areas of competency are .Net solutions, UI development/interface ergonomics and design, patterns and best practices, utilizing open source tools, interpreting user needs, and building highly decoupled systems.

I am currently most intrigued by the prospects of creating rich web-based UIs using "Web 2.0" technologies like AJAX and SOA design principles.