06/2024 - Present

Software Specialist - Game Technology - Forge

Games Global • Durban, ZA

Focus: Forge: An AWS-based remote gaming system for operators, studios, and operations designed to improve scalability, resilience, and reduce technical debt.

  • Co-architected Forge with distributed microservices on AWS, improving scalability and cutting operational downtime, supporting over 1k bets per second per operator.
  • Introduced contract-first API development (OpenAPI), cutting onboarding time for new services.
  • Set up DevOps automation (Nuke, Azure pipelines, AWS Secrets Manager), reducing deployment cycles from days to hours.
  • Co-presented at GDC on Game Client & Service Development on Forge, strengthening partner engagement, resulting in smooth studio integration of over 40 studios.
  • Rolled out the adoption of Testcontainers across teams for reliable local testing environments.
  • Set up proactive monitoring with Application Insights for Kubernetes, reducing mean time to resolution for production incidents.
  • Mentored developers across multiple regions, contributing to the promotion of 3 mentees and a stronger cross-team delivery capability.
07/2022 - 06/2024

Senior Software Engineer L2 – Game Technology

Games Global • Durban, ZA

Focus: A/B Testing: A globally distributed experimentation platform hosted on Azure, allowing studios to test features at scale and optimize player engagement.

  • Led architecture and delivery of a globally distributed A/B Testing system on Azure, enabling large-scale live experiments to validate features and improve player retention.
  • Used Terraform IaC and automated pipelines to achieve production readiness with no to limited downtime.
06/2020 - 07/2022

Senior Software Engineer L2 - Game Technology (formerly Games Derivco)

Derivco • Durban, ZA

Focus: GTP (Game Technology Portal): An enterprise-wide platform used to manage the full lifecycle of online casino games from development, quality assurance, and certification to deployment and operations. GTP Database Refactor: Project to modernize and streamline the Game Technology Portal database.

  • Delivered the GTP Database Refactor, implementing EF Core migrations and schema redesign aligned with Microsoft standards, which streamlined development and cut maintenance costs.
  • Automated Jira–GitLab linking, improving traceability between issues and code changes across distributed teams.
  • Expanded testing quality by expanding Cypress automation coverage, reducing manual QA effort and release risk.
  • Ran demos and mentoring sessions to embed modern database and testing practices across the team.
01/2017 - 06/2020

Senior Software Engineer L1 – Game Technology

Derivco • Durban, ZA

Focus: Titan: A unified game launcher and integration framework for migration and modernization of legacy titles. Archon: A configuration service for online games that centralizes feature toggles and game settings across brands and markets. Archon enabled faster deployments, reduced misconfigurations, and improved operational stability.

  • Engineered the Titan vShim layer, enabling 200+ legacy games to run unmodified on the new Titan (The Unified Game Launcher) platform, saving an estimated multi-year rewrite.
  • Built the Archon Config Testing Framework in Gauge, reducing Sev A incidents by 80% and giving operators confidence to roll out config changes without fear of regression.
  • Streamlined Archon Multi-Dimension, halving duplicate configurations for studios running multi-brand deployments.
  • Ran offshore training in Pune, India, building delivery capacity in the remote team.
07/2016 - 01/2017

Senior Software Engineer L1 – Mobile Downloads

Derivco • Durban, ZA

Focus: Mobile Downloads Android Client: A platform for distributing casino games to players’ Android devices, enabling operators to deliver game content outside of traditional app stores.

  • Delivered and automated Android client applications via Octopus Deploy, cutting release cycle time.
  • Built a dynamic client configuration system and wrapped lobby, making client updates faster and more flexible without requiring full redeployments.
07/2013 - 07/2016

Software Engineer – Bingo

Derivco • Durban, ZA

Focus: Bingo: A popular online gambling product that offers number-drawing games with themed variations (e.g., Immortal Romance Bingo, Granny Bingo).

  • Delivered multiple Bingo titles, including Immortal Romance Bingo and Granny Bingo.
  • Built supporting services such as dispatchers, voucher redemption, and eJabberD integrations, expanding operator promotional capabilities.
  • Collaborated with product teams to ship releases that met regulatory, performance, and entertainment standards across multiple markets.
01/2010 - 07/2013

Software Engineer – Java (Postilion / Realtime)

ACI Worldwide / S1 Corporation • Cape Town & Johannesburg, ZA

Focus: Postilion: A real-time electronic payments platform used globally by banks and financial institutions to process ATM, POS, and online transactions securely and reliably. Online Personal & Business Banking Portal: A web-based platform enabling customers to securely manage accounts, payments, and business transactions.

  • Developed and supported real-time banking integrations (ISO8583 protocol) for Postilion, supporting transaction processing across multiple financial institutions.
  • Added features to the online personal and business banking portal, including bulk payments, report generation, and secure authentication.
  • Promoted to Johannesburg as Technical Lead for client-facing payment portals, owning requirements coordination and delivery.
  • Designed database models, APIs, and UI layers to meet customer specifications, improving transaction throughput.
  • Mentored issue managers, introduced structured incident analysis, and improved SLA compliance for critical financial clients.
11/2008 - 12/2008

Software Developer & IT Assistant (Vacation Work)

LASCAR IT • Durban, ZA

Focus:

  • Developed and deployed a stock tracking solution for Quality Products, replacing manual inventory processes.
  • Provided IT support and managed sysPro/database backups for Quality Products, with no to limited downtime to stock or sales operations.

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