{
  "meta": {
    "theme": "even"
  },
  "basics": {
    "name": "Guillermo Castro",
    "label": "Senior Software Engineer | Back-end Development, Cloud Solutions",
    "image": "https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/39493477?s=460&v=4",
    "email": "guillermo.castro@gmail.com",
    "phone": "+528181623288",
    "summary": "Nearly 30 years of hands-on Java depth, paired with daily production use of AI tools to ship faster and modernize legacy systems. Built and scaled back-end platforms for major retail, e-commerce, and education brands; from Zappos' post-Amazon-acquisition integration work to Cengage Group's learning platform serving 16 million users, as both a direct hire and independent consultant. The Java expert and mentor every team turns to.",
    "location": {
      "city": "Monterrey",
      "countryCode": "MX",
      "region": "Nuevo Leon"
    },
    "profiles": [
      {
        "network": "LinkedIn",
        "username": "javageek",
        "url": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/javageek"
      },
      {
        "network": "Github",
        "username": "codegeek",
        "url": "https://github.com/codegeek"
      }
    ]
  },
  "work": [
    {
      "name": "Fusivo LLC",
      "position": "Owner",
      "startDate": "2009-08",
      "location": "Remote",
      "url": "https://fusivo.com",
      "highlights": [
        "Founded Fusivo LLC as a corp-to-corp consulting vehicle to contract with Savoir Technologies on back-end development engagements.",
        "Delivered high-quality code solutions that improved client systems and processes, enhancing overall efficiency.",
        "Currently maintained in a part-time capacity for billing administration and internal projects while employed full-time elsewhere."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Zillow",
      "position": "Senior Software Development Engineer",
      "startDate": "2025-11",
      "endDate": "2026-08",
      "location": "Remote",
      "url": "https://www.zillow.com",
      "highlights": [
        "Worked with the communications platform team to coordinate, develop, and maintain services for sending all communication from Zillow to the clients using remote collaboration tools (Gitlab, Slack, JIRA, Confluence, Zoom).",
        "Developed new system for sending push notifications to mobile devices (iOS, Android) using third party services (Urban Airship).",
        "Migrated 3 services from legacy platforms and legacy code (Spring Boot upgrades, Kubernetes, Terraform).",
        "Leveraged multiple AI resources (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, Glean) daily to increase performance, including creating multiple skills and plugins for daily project tracking, and a knowledge base with Obsidian.",
        "Maintained multiple services using observability and monitoring tools (CloudWatch, Datadog, Splunk, Grafana, Databricks) with Python scripting."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Zeitview",
      "position": "Senior Software Engineer II",
      "startDate": "2024-10",
      "endDate": "2025-08",
      "location": "Remote",
      "url": "https://zeitview.com",
      "summary": "Zeitview (formerly DroneBase) is an AI-powered inspection platform for critical infrastructure, active in 60+ countries.",
      "highlights": [
        "Developed back-end software using Spring Boot for Asset Intelligence & Visualization, reducing manual review time by an estimated 15-20% for critical infrastructure inspections.",
        "Designed and implemented an asset condition scoring system using Spring technologies, enhancing cloud-native deployment strategies.",
        "Collaborated with remote teams through code reviews and pull requests, ensuring compliance with industry standards, using modern remote collaboration tools (Github, Slack, Google Meet, JIRA).",
        "Leveraged AI coding tools like GitHub Copilot to streamline development processes and increase productivity."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Savoir Technologies, Inc",
      "position": "Computer Systems Analyst",
      "startDate": "2009-10",
      "endDate": "2024-10",
      "location": "Remote",
      "url": "https://www.savoirtech.com",
      "summary": "Nearly 15 years of continuous independent consulting, staffed through Savoir Technologies across successive client placements at Cengage Group, Office Depot, Ferguson, Manheim, and Zappos (each detailed separately below)."
    },
    {
      "name": "Cengage Group",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2019-08",
      "endDate": "2024-03",
      "location": "Remote",
      "url": "https://www.cengage.com",
      "summary": "Cengage Group serves roughly 16 million digital users annually across 100+ countries, reaching about 70% of U.S. higher-education institutions and K-12 school districts.",
      "highlights": [
        "Developed and implemented an API integration for intra-corporate use using Spring Boot.",
        "Designed and maintained a gateway system connecting multiple Learning Management Systems with Cengage Content Systems.",
        "Utilized various APIs, including LTI Advantage, to enhance tool interoperability across platforms."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Office Depot, LLC",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2018-05",
      "endDate": "2019-06",
      "location": "Boca Raton, FL",
      "url": "https://www.officedepot.com",
      "highlights": [
        "Designed and implemented microservices using Camel and Spring Boot for seamless enterprise integration.",
        "Deployed applications on AWS and on-premises using Kubernetes, Jenkins, and Rancher.",
        "Utilized Splunk, Dynatrace, and ELK for troubleshooting, enhancing system reliability and performance."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Ferguson",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2017-12",
      "endDate": "2018-04",
      "location": "Newport News, VA - Remote",
      "url": "https://www.ferguson.com",
      "summary": "Ferguson Enterprises is a multi-billion-dollar North American distributor of plumbing, HVAC, and water solutions.",
      "highlights": [
        "Designed and implemented a microservices-oriented REST backend platform for e-commerce applications.",
        "Utilized Docker and OpenShift for continuous development and integration, enhancing deployment efficiency.",
        "Collaborated with cross-functional teams to ensure seamless integration of new features and technologies.",
        "Contributed to Ferguson Enterprises' growth by improving system scalability and performance."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Ella Paradis",
      "position": "Director of Information Technology",
      "startDate": "2017-06",
      "endDate": "2017-11",
      "location": "Miami, FL",
      "url": "https://www.ellaparadis.com",
      "highlights": [
        "Engaged directly, independent of the Savoir Technologies consulting relationship, between client placements.",
        "Directed a 2-developer team from an external contractor firm, providing comprehensive IT support and enhancing technology solutions for the e-commerce platform Magento under MySQL.",
        "Designed a REST API microservices application, streamlining fulfillment, order management, and inventory tracking."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Manheim",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2016-10",
      "endDate": "2016-12",
      "location": "Atlanta, GA",
      "url": "https://www.manheim.com",
      "summary": "Manheim, a Cox Automotive brand, is the world's largest wholesale used-vehicle marketplace, facilitating roughly $57 billion in annual transactions.",
      "highlights": [
        "Development and support of multiple backend systems using Open-Source frameworks Apache Camel, Karaf, ActiveMQ, PostgreSQL."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Zappos.com",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2009-10",
      "endDate": "2016-09",
      "location": "Las Vegas, NV",
      "url": "https://www.zappos.com",
      "summary": "Zappos is a $1B+ online retailer carrying hundreds of brands, acquired by Amazon in 2009.",
      "highlights": [
        "Implemented robust backend systems for Zappos using modern frameworks like Spring.",
        "Established API connections to external systems including Stripe and AWS, enhancing operational efficiency.",
        "Supported integration of Zappos' proprietary warehouse and inventory system (\"Genghis\") with Amazon's supply chain and fulfillment infrastructure following the 2009 acquisition, streamlining product categorization and warehouse management."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "LeapFrog Enterprises",
      "position": "Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "2008-01",
      "endDate": "2009-01",
      "location": "Emeryville, CA - Remote",
      "url": "https://www.leapfrog.com",
      "highlights": [
        "Developed SOA-based services for the Leapfrog Connect application Leaning Path, enhancing user engagement and functionality.",
        "Utilized Open Source frameworks such as Spring, Apache CXF, and Mule to streamline service integration.",
        "Collaborated with cross-functional teams to optimize Oracle PL/SQL queries, improving data retrieval efficiency by 30%."
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Earlier Experience",
      "position": "Senior Developer / Software Consultant",
      "startDate": "1996-08",
      "endDate": "2007-12",
      "location": "Monterrey, Mexico",
      "summary": "Designed and developed enterprise Java (JEE), .NET, PHP, and Oracle/PL-SQL systems across six roles at Dextra Technologies, eMonterrey, FEMSA Comercio, IIDEA Solutions, Softtek, and H-E-B, spanning e-commerce platforms, ERP applications, and SOA integration for clients including Inktomi, Apple, Portal Software, GE Wind, and Citigroup."
    }
  ],
  "education": [
    {
      "institution": "Monterrey Institute of Technology",
      "area": "Engineering Physics",
      "studyType": "B.S.",
      "startDate": "1991-08",
      "endDate": "1996-06",
      "courses": [
        "Physics Engineering",
        "Electronics"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "skills": [
    {
      "name": "AI-Assisted Development",
      "level": "Advanced",
      "keywords": [
        "GitHub Copilot",
        "Claude Code",
        "Cursor",
        "Codex",
        "Glean"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Programming Languages",
      "level": "Expert",
      "keywords": [
        "Java",
        "Python"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Frameworks",
      "level": "Expert",
      "keywords": [
        "Spring",
        "Spring Boot",
        "Apache Camel"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Additional Languages & Frameworks",
      "level": "Familiar",
      "keywords": [
        "Kotlin",
        "PHP",
        "Quarkus",
        "JEE",
        "Bash"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Cloud & DevOps",
      "level": "Advanced",
      "keywords": [
        "Docker",
        "Kubernetes",
        "AWS",
        "Terraform",
        "Jenkins",
        "OpenShift"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Observability",
      "level": "Advanced",
      "keywords": [
        "Splunk",
        "Dynatrace",
        "ELK Stack",
        "Grafana",
        "CloudWatch",
        "Datadog",
        "Databricks"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Databases",
      "level": "Advanced",
      "keywords": [
        "Oracle",
        "MySQL",
        "PostgreSQL"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Tools",
      "level": "Expert",
      "keywords": [
        "Git",
        "Github",
        "Gitlab",
        "Intellij IDEA",
        "Android Studio"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "languages": [
    {
      "language": "English",
      "fluency": "Fluent"
    },
    {
      "language": "Spanish",
      "fluency": "Native speaker"
    }
  ],
  "interests": [
    {
      "name": "Software Technologies",
      "keywords": [
        "New technologies",
        "Industry trends"
      ]
    },
    {
      "name": "Gaming",
      "keywords": [
        "PC"
      ]
    }
  ]
}