Richard Sharp

Introduction

The year is 1986. A 13 year old boy receives his first computer, a Timex Sinclair 1000. This event ignites a passion for technology and computing, changing the course of his life.

My non-traditional career path has offered me a myriad of opportunities to learn new skills, and to work in a variety different situations. The time I have spent working in fields other than Information Technology has given me experience that sets me apart from others.

I am a passionate problem-solver. I need to be challenged. With the heart of an explorer, I seek opportunities to do things I have never done before. I don’t need to be in charge, but I am comfortable taking a leadership role. In either position, I work well with others.

Experience

2006 - Present — Senior Developer
Web Services Corp, Inc.
Knoxville, TN

My primary role in this position is as a lead developer. When we bigin a new project, I create a development plan based on the project specifications, design and tune the database, and designate which work will be done by myself or any assisting programmers. I take the Photoshop design files and create the page templates using HTML and CSS.

In adition to overseeing projects, I generally handle any of the more complex coding requirements, such as credit card processing and consumption of web services. My work here includes:

• Programming consumer shopping carts, membership systems, and intranet web sites using PHP, Perl, jQuery, AJAX, and standards-compliant HTML.
• Integrations with all major credit card processors, including Authorize.Net, LinkPoint, PayPal, Google Checkout, USAePay, Skip Jack, etc.
• Integrations with third-party services, including UPS, USPS, and Google Maps.
• Working with staff and clients to define project goals and methods, estimate time and cost, facilitate testing and promotion, and document project technical details.
• Use of various PHP extensions and custom code to
  • Generate and modify PDF files
  • Generate Microsoft Excel documents
  • Manipulate images
  • Generate ZIP files
• Maintenance of company web servers, including adjustments of PHP and Apache settings and tuning of MySql tables, installing and upgrading server software, and reviewing log files.
• Wrote company coding standards.

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2004 - 2006 — Chief Technology Officer
Group Travel Planet, LLC
Sevierville, TN

This company, which is no longer in business, was a group travel booking company, which provided online group booking services for hotels and motor coaches. When I started with this company, I was hired to be the sole programmer, as well as the general purpose “tech guy”. Over time, I grew the IT department to three other full-time employees, plus off-shore developers as needed. Because I joined the company at an early stage, I had the opportunity to design, purchase, and set up both the office network and the web hosting servers. As we grew, I was responsible for writing and enforcing all IT and security policies for the company. I also took a lead role in working with partner companies to integrate our technical services, including:

• Orbitz.com - We built the group booking engine used exclusively by Orbitz. My duties included page and logic design of the service, working with Orbitz Customer Service, Information Architecture, Operations, and legal departments to ensure compliance, and handle project management of our developers.
• Amadeus Global Travel - We built a group booking module available to 20,000 independent travel agents that were associated with Amadeus. This was before we had other employees, so I built the module entirely myself.
• Pegasus Solutions - Pegasus Solutions provided hotel information and direct booking engines that allowed our system to automatically create reservations for multiple rooms in each hotel booking system.
• Cendant Group - Cendant Group provided a set of web services that allowed us to create hotel bookings directly with their hotels.
• SideStep - I personally built a set of SOAP web services that allowed SideStep to check hotel pricing and availability for groups, and then hand the customer off to our web site to make a reservation.

In addition to working with these companies, I was responsible for:

• Programming the original core of the web sites and all technology using PHP and Perl.
• Writing documentation for all external services for publication to outside vendors.
• Administration of office network, including Microsoft Exchange Server, domain controller, and Cisco firewall.
• Administration of the web servers, running FreeBSD and MySQL. This included tuning the servers and code to handle heavy traffic loads.

I left this position when it became apparent that the company would soon be out of business.

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2000 - 2004 — Web Developer
Tennessee Online Solutions
Pigeon Forge, TN

• Programmer on a cabin rental management system, written in Visual FoxPro and Visual Basic 6.0, utilizing Microsoft SQL Server.
• Web site development utilizing PHP and MySQL.
• Maintained company web servers running FreeBSD.

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1998 - 2000 — Collision Center Manager
Craig Zinn Automotive Group
Hollywood, FL

In 1994, I worked as a part-time office helper for a dealership body shop. Over time, I worked my way up to become department manager of this collision center. During my two years as manager, I was able to increase profits by 17% while increasing both customer and employee satisfaction. I accomplished this by:

• Working with vendors to obtain better purchase terms for supplies.
• Working with Toyota to develop a new method to process small-damage repairs in 40% of the usual time.
• Working with insurance companies to identify area for improvement, and to create a mutually beneficial relationship with reduced customer complaints while bringing in more business from the insurers.
• Worked with employees to empower them to be more efficient and proactive, and to identify areas for improvement in the business.

I left this position to persue a career in Information Technology.

Education

1990 - 1991 — Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL
Studies in Computer Science.

1991 - 1992 — Florida Atlantic University
Boca Raton, FL
Studies in Computer Science.

1992 - 1993 — Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Studies in Photography.

Industry Certifications

• Microsoft Certified Professional
• A+ Certification
• Network+ Certification

OK, let’s introduce the elephant in the room. Even though I completed 101 college credit hours, I was not able to complete my college degree. My wife and I were married during my fourth year of college, and an unexpected pregnancy (now, my oldest son) and medical complications meant that I had to drop out of school and go to work full-time to support our new family. The opportunity to return to school has not yet come, but I am still hoping to complete my degree. Given the opportunity to do things over, I wouldn't change a thing.

Primary Skills

I have extensive experience with these development tools and skills:

• PHP
• Standards-compliant CSS based design
• jQuery and standard JavaScript
• AJAX
• MySQL
• Apache
• Red Hat
• FreeBSD
• Dreamweaver
• API’s for credit card processors and other vendors
• Employee supervision

I also have moderate experience with these development tools and skills:

• Perl
• Microsoft Exchange Server
• Microsoft Project
• Mac OSX
• Technical document writing
• Technical presentations
• Photoshop

Work Samples

A large number of the web sites on which I have worked require login credentials to access, and some are no longer available online. However, below are some examples that can either be visited directly, or have screen shots.

• Digital Content Center - This site allows clients to market and sell digital content (music, videos, etc.) and tangible items. I was the sole programmer on this site. Features include:
  • Standards-based HTML with extensive CSS formatting.
  • Access-controlled and logged file downloads.
  • Client MicroSite page designer. This feature allows a client to create a one-page website using a custom-built WYSIWYG editor. The MicroSite is then accessed using a custom subdomain of the main site, created programmatically.
    View Editor Screenshots: Screenshot 1 - Screenshot 2. View the live MicroSite.
  • Integration with several credit card processors including Authorize.Net, PayPal, and Google Checkout, for single and recurring charge processing.
  • Complete custom shopping cart including product styles, audio albums, shipping, sales tax, and discounts. (View a sample cart here.)
  • PDF file stamping and encryption.
  • Custom built image slider on home page. (View Here)
  • Extensive use of AJAX, JSON, and jQuery.
  • Complete affiliate commission system.
  • File upload with progress bar.
  • On-demand image resizing and caching.
  • For more information, visit the How it Works page.
• My Law Centers - This site is a membership-based marketing and promotion web site for attorneys.
  • Standards-based HTML with CSS formatting.
  • Dynamically created and managed email boxes for members via integration with Plesk.
  • Template-based mini-websites generated for members, using dynamically created and managed subdomains. (View a sample mini-website here.)
  • Google Maps integration for map display and geocoding. (To view a sample map, click here and search for any zip code.)
  • Extensive use of AJAX, jQuery, and JSON.
• Mobile Device Protection - This site is primarily an intranet for a mobile phone warranty company, with a public site for members to submit and manage service claims. Features include:
  • Recurring credit card billing.
  • Generation of files for import to QuickBooks.
  • Generation of Excel reports via PEAR classes.
  • Integration with third-party vendors Simplexity and Let’s Talk
• Other web sites include:
  • Emi-Jay - A custom-built shopping cart website.
  • Project Lifesaver International - A site used by law enforcement to track patients with flight risk (such as Alzheimer’s patients) who are outfitted with radio transmitters.
  • Learning and Development Center - An learning resource and assessment test website.
  • The White Rock Group - A finance industry employment service.
  • NLB Access - A member site that performs legal deadline calculations for construction subcontractors.