Noel Jackson

Thoughts on engineering, music, design, economics, and cats.

Resume

I’m a versatile, passionate engineer and designer working on the web since 1998. A broad generalist, focused on making the web and the world a better place, I design and build for the future. My experience spans:

  • UX and UI design
  • Frontend development
  • API and database design
  • Systems infrastructure design
  • Experience leading and communicating with diverse teams, in person and remotely
  • Optimizing processes and code, and improving metrics through testing.

Reputation is everything. I have hinged my work on thoughtfulness, attention to detail, and quantifiable artistry, blending thoughtful analysis, elegant UX design, and best-practices software development. I’ve achieved ambitious results, both subjectively and objectively, by focusing on the intersection of user experience design and engineering.

My concentration on intelligent engineering and design underscores my dedication to web standards, building with integrity, and crafting future-friendly products. Past work includes clients like Automattic (WordPress.com), Gawker Media, Newsweek, An Event Apart, Jeffrey Zeldman, Nick Denton, Rolex, and more.

Quantitatively, I’ve produced solid results for established corporations and startups including: doubled page views, 25% increase in sales conversions (Fortune 100 client), 35% increase in signups (14-million-user client), and $100s of millions in hidden revenue, generated for some of the largest publishers on the web.

I first started working on the web 20 years ago. My past achievements include contributing to the first ideas for filtering typographic content in WordPress, PhotoStack (one of the first photo CMS systems), inventing the color engine that went on to power Photon inside of JetPack, and building P2, the first real-time team collaboration system (still in use) for Automattic.

Experience

@hotel

VP of Product, CTO (2021-present)

  • Built and scaled application from 0 to $2,000,000 in 3 months
  • Lead engineering for the entire team and manage 36 code repositories
  • Manage all infrastrucutre in Kubernetes, orchestrated with Terraform
  • Assist in all technical aspects of the company

Dialog Engineers (Nick Denton)

CTO, co-founder, lead designer, principal engineer (2017-2020)

  • Led all aspects of design and engineering for a real-time collaborative story-making platform
  • Developed entire application from design, to frontend, and backend
  • Architected scalable infrastructure and designed intuitive user interfaces
  • Implemented full technical stack including frontend, API, and database design

studio.zeldman

Director of Development (2015–2018)

  • Collaborated with Jeffrey Zeldman to design and develop high-profile websites
  • Managed development processes, automated deployments, and created development guidelines
  • Notable clients: Google, Capgemini, AIGA, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Amnesty International

Automattic, Inc. / WordPress.com

UX Lead Designer and Developer  (2008–2011)

Joined the Automattic, Inc. team as one of the first 20 employees in the company, having previously contributed to the creation of WordPress for several years. CEO Matt Mullenweg personally selected me as a lead UX designer to oversee many aspects of the world’s largest publishing platform. Responsibilities included developing new features, managing teams, and developing a platform that supported 14 million active users. Automattic is now valued at US $2 billion.

  • Created first version of P2, the first real time blogging integration, now the primary communication system used at Automattic.
  • Noted by Matt Mullenweg (Automattic CEO) as the first person to develop filtering mechanisms for WordPress (2003). https://ma.tt/2003/04/on-syndication-and-rolling-your-own/
  • Created and managed the Theme Development and User Experience teams.
  • Redesigned signup process that increased signups by 13%.
  • Store redesign and testing that increased sales by over 35%.
  • Invented color selection engine used in Photon/JetPack with 1 million+ installs. Now used by Twitter.
  • Wrote code for internal plugins that needed to scale for 14 million users.
  • Involved in DevOps/Server Infrastructure related to WordPress VIP hosting, that serves 25% of all internet traffic worldwide.
  • Contributed to WordPress.org, bbPress, Gravatar projects.
  • Worked remotely with over 150 people in 10 timezones.

Gawker Media, Inc.

Frontend Engineer (2007–2008)

  • Optimized UX design for reader engagement and improved site speed
  • Enhanced user experience across Gawker properties

6e6a, LLC (self-employed)

CEO, Engineer (1999-present)

  • Developed web applications for clients including Rolex, Newsweek, Brilliant Bicycles, A List Apart
  • Provided versatile web solutions for a diverse client base including authors, photographers, and city governments

Education

  • Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
  • School of Visual Arts, NYC, USA

Technical Skills

My skill set spans design, frontend development, infrastructure and backend development.

Languages and Frameworks

Expert knowledge of:

  • UX and UI design
  • Figma, Sketch, Photoshop, and more.
  • Unix, bash, make, git, etc.
  • TypeScript, JavaScript, Node.js, React, JSX, react-spring
  • GraphQL
  • Web Standards and Accessibility
  • HTML, CSS, SASS, PHP, RDF, RSS, XML, etc.
  • Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform
  • GCP, AWS, Azure
  • Graph databases, NoSQL databases, Relational Databases

Techniques and Software

I use the following on a regular basis:

Unix, bash/zsh, git, web standards, Sketch, Figma, Postgres, graph databases (Neo4j), Docker, Kubernetes, node.js, CI/CD (Travis, Jenkins, etc), Terraform, Global Scaling, Deployments, GraphQL and REST APIs, TCP/IP and Networking, Chrome DevTools, Multivariate testing, Conversion optimization, React, Redux-like state stores, animation libraries like react-spring, MySQL, MongoDB, and others.

Hobbies

My spare time is dedicated to engineering music. I’ve worked with Billboard-charting artists releasing on Warner Records, Rekids, Ghostly, KMS, Cadenza, No3, and Superfreq, including names like David Guetta, Kevin Saunderson, Dantiez Saunderson, Mr.C (The Shamen), Kate Simko, Daestro, Troy Pierce, Heartthrob, and more.

Notable Achievements