I started in avionics, writing embedded software that had to work every time. Standards compliance, real-time constraints, and a certification process that created shelves full of paperwork. I learned to design for the failure case first.
After a few consulting projects in the fintech and non-profit sectors, I moved on to Nextworld, a Denver-area startup. I've spent most of my career here building a no-code development platform that abstracts the hardest technical concepts for citizen developers with real business problems.
I came up through that organization, from engineer to senior director. Now I run product development as VP. I set the direction for Nextworld's AI-native evolution and shipped it. Our Agentic Development product — an agentic software shop that builds enterprise-grade applications — was my call, and it took convincing Nextworld's founders to jump.
But some machines are made of people, not code. I've run an organization at 70 people and at 12. I've led teams through awkward sizes, painful eras, AI-induced identity crises, tight market-driven deadlines, and exciting launches. I can coach a team and roll up my own sleeves. I've hired well and badly, and I know where to focus my energy and when to trust my leaders.
I work with founders directly. Often they have a working product and a roadmap they don't trust, or an AI initiative that needs someone to say out loud whether it's real. I'm at my best early, when the vision is still blurry.