Michael Bina

Michael Bina

Full Stack Developer & Manager

Los Angeles, CA

Experienced full-stack developer and project manager with a passion for building mission-driven tools to create positive change.

Resume

Employment

2019 - 2022

CommuniKitty

Engineering & Project Manager
  • Hired and managed a team of developers to build a web application with a Ruby on Rails backend and React frontend
  • Collaborated with designers to develop a UI Kit, Design Patterns, and UX in Figma
  • Commisioned illustrators to generate artwork for logos, UI graphics, and merchandise design
  • Built an e-commerce store using Shopify to help fund the project and also give back to partner rescues (https://store.communikitty.com)
  • Designed and sold merchandise through Etsy using Printify for distribution (https://www.etsy.com/shop/CommuniKitty)
2017 - 2019

CreativeLive

Senior Software Engineer
  • Worked on the Mobile Apps Team fixing bugs and adding new features using Swift on the iOS App.
  • Worked on the Growth Team designing and implementing tests for user and ROI growth using a Node backend with Angular front-end.
2012 - 2015

Everest

Lead Web/API Engineer
  • Worked closely with the client team to build a REST API on Ruby on Rails to interface with the iPhone application, store all user data, and provide necessary functions for the apps use.
  • Built all web application functionality for users to view and edit their data on the web.
  • Worked with the design team to build all static web pages used for marketing and customer interaction.
2009 - 2012

Michael Bina Web Development

Freelance Web Developer
  • Worked as a front-end developer on the launch of the redesigned Dot429 site, a professional social network for the LGBT community.
  • Worked with the ad agency Eleven Inc to build promotional pages for apple.com and the Apple Online Store.
  • Redesigned and developed the front end to the new online car reservation system for CityCarShare.
  • Designed and developed a number of personal and business websites using custom HTML, CSS, and Javascript, built on top of the WordPress blog engine.
2006 - 2009

Garmin

Software Engineer
  • Led a small team on front-end development of Garmin Connect, a high traffic consumer fitness GPS web site built on the JSF framework.
  • Built highly interative portable widgets using XHTML, CSS, and the latest AJAX libraries.
  • Worked with product managers and designers on defining UI and functional requirements and determining timelines.
  • Worked with back-end team on designing public REST API methods and data structures.
  • Worked with QA team to identify and fix bugs on all supported browsers (including IE6) and platforms.
  • Designed, built, tested, and maintained the Zumo Connect web site with the Struts and Tiles frameworks on top of the MotionBased REST API.
2004 - 2006

UC Berkeley Residential Computing

Programmer
  • Responsible for design, development and testing of an incident tracking system for Network Security and Copyright Enforcement teams.
  • Fixed bugs in web scripts used by dormitory residents and student employees.
  • Developed with Perl on FreeBSD servers using Apache.
2004

Apple Computer

Test Engineer Intern
  • Wrote cross-platform scripts used to test laptop batteries against competitive products.
  • Developed testing methodologies for quality assurance and competitive performance of iPod battery life.
  • Developed on and used primarily Mac OS X, but tested on and used Windows and Linux machines.

Education

2001 - 2005

UC Berkeley

BA, Computer Science & Cognitive Science

Portfolio

CreativeLive

CreativeLive

Role: Growth Engineer & iOS Engineer
Technologies: Node, Angular
Everest

Everest

Role: Lead API/Web Engineer
Technologies: Ruby on Rails
Dot429

Dot429

Role: Front End Development
Technologies: Ruby on Rails
CityCarShare

CityCarShare

Role: UX, Front End Development
Technologies: Struts, JSP
Garmin Connect

Garmin Connect

Role: Lead Front End Development
Technologies: J2EE, JSP, ExtJS

Testimonials

Katherine Krug

Former COO @ Everest
Michael is an incredibly dedicated, hard working and passionate engineer. He was Everest's first web hire and though his expertise was in front-end development, he quickly bit off the challenge of tackling our backend too. Michael is resourceful, positive and works as long and hard as is necessary to ship a great product. As a person, Michael is a truly caring, kind and loyal friend.

Drew Moxon

Product Manager @ Everest
Michael approaches engineering challenges with a positive attitude, high energy, and an ability to adapt quickly. At Everest, he was constantly entrusted with building sublime user experiences within technical or temporal constraints, and his thoughtful and collaborative approach to problem solving helped define the core of our client-server architecture. He knows a lot, and what he doesn’t know, he learns easily and is able to apply: hopping into new frameworks, trying his hand at dev ops, or asking directed questions about designs. On top of that, he has a big heart and infectious essence that make him a good friend and amiable partner on any team.

Kristen Hazard

Founder, Developer @ Suntoucher Software
Michael and I worked together on the implementation the dot429.com site on Ruby on Rails. He was a front end developer and if you go to that site you can see his chops in action. The site looks great due to his ability to code it so that it looks like the designer designed it. He learned Rails quickly and contributed a great deal to the launch of the site. I enjoyed working with Michael and would definitely work with him again

Diana Chow

Software Engineer @ Twitter
Michael is extremely bright and would be a great asset to any team. He has extensive knowledge on the tools and languages he works with, and keeps up with the latest and greatest technologies. He's also keen on both the higher-level design and lower-level code decisions involved in a product, and communicates well to everyone on the team. His code is well-organized and self-describing which makes life easier for everyone else too. He's also incredibly fun to work with and brings lots of enthusiasm and good humor to the office. Basically, any team would be lucky to have him.
See more testimonals by connecting on LinkedIn.