Web Development CV
Gareth James
Web Designer/Web Developer
A Bit About Me
Experienced web developer with project management and product development accreditations looking to build highly-performant web applications and websites. Well-versed in HTML (including HTML5 and templating languages such as Handlebars, Mustache, Nunjucks, Pug, and Twig), CSS (including CSS3 and preprocessors such as LESS and Sass), JavaScript (including ES2015+, AngularJS, jQuery, and NodeJS), build tools (including Grunt, Gulp, and Webpack), Content Management Systems (including ExpressionEngine, Umbraco, and WordPress), e-commerce platforms (including WooCommerce), and Adobe Creative Cloud applications (including Illustrator, Photoshop, and XD). Other skills include responsive HTML email authoring, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), user interface (UI) design, user experience (UX) design, graphic design, copy writing, and art direction. Also has a working knowledge of back-end technologies such as C#, .NET, PHP, MySQL, and Apache.
Print This PageWeb Developer
Countrywide 2016 - 2018
- Spearheaded a complete redesign of the front-end stack, promoting modern tooling and development methods which ultimately led to a faster, more consistent, and less error-prone production workflow. This included consolidating 50 separate code bases into one by developing a NodeJS-based build system for the company's many high street brands.
- Introduced modern technologies to 50 of the company's branded websites, including support for high DPI screens and a multitude of devices.
- Championed website accessibility at every opportunity and led the way in proactively supporting users with disabilities and those who use assistive technologies.
- Championed progressive enhancement at every opportunity to ensure that all new functionality was accessible to all users, regardless of their web browsers' capabilities.
- Created engaging interpretations of the static wireframes provided, gaining widespread praise for the subsequent increase in user-engagement.
- Designed and built a suite of highly-modular responsive email templates that were used with over 80 of the company's high street brands.
- Built a whole suite of in-house tools to help with automating manual tasks and aid the company's transition towards Continuous Integration (CI).
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Stock Photography Curator
- User Interaction Designer
Web Developer
CKC 2016
- Created a modern and light-weight website fitting the company's desire to position itself as a more aggressive contender amongst its peers.
- Developed a highly-customised WordPress workflow solution in order to streamline content management and system maintenance.
- Delivered a progressively-enhanced app-like web experience to JavaScript-enabled browsers, vastly reducing page load times and increasing perceived page responsiveness.
- Heavily optimised all site assets for mobile, tablet, and desktop experiences, ensuring a highly performant experience for each.
- Created a series of tutorial videos for the client to demonstrate how to maintain and update the website.
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Stock Photography Curator
- User Interaction Designer
Responsive Email Developer
Radisson Blu 2015
- Delivered a fully-documented, highly-modular responsive email template for use in an international email campaign, offering a high degree of customisation at the client end.
- Produced pixel-perfect rendering in Apple Mail, Gmail (online and native apps), iOS native email apps, Microsoft Outlook (2000, 2002, 2003, 2011, 2016, and online apps), and Yahoo Mail, and suitable renderings in Microsoft Outlook 2007, 2010, and 2013 (Microsoft Word rendering engine).
- Provided interactive code examples allowing the client to easily build production-ready emails in any number of combinations.
- Additionally, augmented the number of brands supported to include other well-known hotel chains in the Rezidor family (such as Park Inn and Park Plaza), as well as Sainsbury's Bank and Mastercard.
- Responsive Email Developer
- Web Developer
- Image Editor
Web Designer/Web Developer
Exquisite Car Cleaning Products 2015
- Project managed the company's launch, and single-handedly produced the many online and offline assets required for the company to begin trading.
- Designed and developed a strong brand identity that focused heavily on the company's environmentally-friendly ethos.
- Devised a seamless online and offline user experience, to ensure a simple and concise reordering process - even for those who find shopping online a challenge.
- Created a clean, accessible, and performant website (using WooCommerce for the shop's back-end), designed to be used with devices of all sizes.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Product Photographer
- Image Editor
- Copy Writer
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
The Music Centre 2014 - 2015
- Redesigned the entire website to provide a performant, mobile-friendly experience throughout the browsing and purchase process.
- Created a clean and modern aesthetic with a clear and consistent design language, with clear CTA’s and improved wayfinding.
- Vastly reduced the amount of data required to render each page by rewriting and refactoring legacy code. The size of the CSS file alone was reduced by over 90%, leading to a dramatic effect on initial page load time.
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Top Sports Coaching 2013
- Project managed the company's rebranding project, completing within the tight budget constraints and milestone deadlines set.
- Streamlined the company's user experience, by bringing automated processes online that were previously dealt with manually offline.
- Redesigned the company's branding, bringing it in line with the aspirations of both customers and stakeholders.
- Redesigned and developed the company's website, making it mobile-friendly, easy to navigate, and more useful to its visitors.
- Added bespoke interactive Netball league table functionality, in order to help increase users' time spent on the site.
- Added tight social media integration by creating several Facebook page applications that shared information between the website and the company's Facebook page.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Copy Writer
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Celtic Krystal 2012
- Oversaw the complete rebranding of the group, in order to better position them amongst their peers.
- Redesigned and developed the group's website to better sell their services. This included making the site mobile-friendly, and delivering more useful content to its users.
- Streamlined the online gig listing process, by making data easily editable by band members via the back-end.
- Added interactive functionality on the front-end, to increase users' time spent on the site.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Image Editor
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Take Me Home James 2012 - 2015
- Oversaw the entire project, and personally took care of every detail, from conception through to maintenance.
- Oversaw the UX vision for the company, integrating online processes with the company's offline workings.
- Designed and developed the company's website, as well as several other smaller websites for SEO purposes.
- Designed the company's logo and accompanying artwork, and was responsible for selecting all stock photography during the build process.
- Designed a content strategy, and created all site-wide copy (with fresh content regularly posted).
- Designed and developed a Journey Price Calculator app, for inclusion on the website and social media properties.
- Created and maintained the company's Facebook page, including custom Facebook page applications that pulls in content from the website.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- App Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Stock Photography Curator
- Copy Writer
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Robin Campbell 2011
- Oversaw the project from beginning to end, completing within the tight budget constraints set.
- Redesigned and developed Robin's website to better showcase his body of work. This included making the site mobile-friendly, and using high-resolution graphics throughout.
- Redesigned the website's user experience and created a cohesive content strategy, making the site more useful to users, and easier to use.
- Added rich media (audio and video), interactive elements, and social media integration, to successfully increase user engagement.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Image Editor
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Gill Tembo 2011
- Created a brand around Gill's personality, so that she could successfully express herself through online and offline media.
- Designed and built Gill's website to provide an online platform for her writing, including blogging functionality.
- Set up and integrated Facebook and Twitter social media accounts, in order to encourage user interaction.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Image Editor
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
SoundARC 2010
- Redesigned and developed SoundARC's website. This included making the site mobile-friendly, and using high-resolution graphics throughout.
- Brought in a new design language, using a clean aesthetic with bold shapes and colours.
- Integrated the company's social media accounts, which has helped increase user interaction.
- Added audio and video media players, which has made the site more useful to users.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Stock Photography Curator
- Copy Writer
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
Web Designer/Web Developer
Devine Birthing 2009
- Project managed the company's online launch, creating all web assets required to begin trading.
- Created the company's design language, for use with all online and offline media.
- Designed and built the company's website (including copy writing and stock photography selection), as well as several other smaller websites for SEO purposes.
- Masterminded the company's online content strategy, including creating all properties required - from social media accounts to smaller 'satellite' websites - in order to successfully engineer an SEO campaign designed to create high page rankings in a minimal amount of time. Utilised build tools to rapidly create documentation for the client, demonstrating a visual example of each coded module along with its underlying code.
- Project Manager
- Web Designer
- Web Developer
- Graphic Desinger
- Stock Photography Curator
- Copy Writer
- Content Strategist
- User Experience Strategist
- User Interaction Designer
What I Like To Do
- Music Production - When I’m not doing web-related stuff, I enjoy nothing more than making music. I love every aspect of the production process, and relish experimenting with the latest technology in order to push the boundaries of my music-making ability and am currently in final stages of preparing my debut album for release.
- Blogging - I also use my website as a platform for my infrequent blog posts. The subject matter flitters between music production and web development and reflects the various lessons I’ve learned from working in each industry. I’ve gained so much knowledge from the kind people of the internet over the years, by reading countless articles and blog posts, so feel that in some small way I’m just returning my dues by doing the same.
- The Great Outdoors - Short walks or great hikes - anything goes! I never fail to get inspired when out in the open, and love getting my boots proper dirty. Camping is always a welcome departure from all the modern conveniences too; as long as there’s good friends and good music, I’m there!
- Photography - A bit of a new hobby, but one I enjoy all the same - I do love getting artsy with my camera! I'm really getting into working with different light at the moment, and as for subject matter, portraits, still life, and landscapes are all good with me!