Brandon L. Locke
I solve problems for a living. Sometimes with code.
●●●●● PHP - This is my primary language at InterWorx. I am experienced with the Zend/Laminas framework and I have been working with Laravel in my free time.
●●●●○ Bash - This is hard to avoid when working with Linux. I generally prefer to script in almost anything else, but I will use it when others are not possible.
●●●●○ Python - This is the first language that I learned. At the moment, I mostly use it for scripting and quick proof of concepts.
●●●○○ Go - This is one of my favorites for CLI programming. I love static typing and easy compilation to a single binary.
●●○○○ JavaScript - I use jQuery at work and have started experimenting with some Node.js at home, but I'm still getting into the ecosystem.
"Brandon is contributing much above his position and is a blast to work with. He is a great team member and friend." - Anonymous Feedback from a Coworker
●●●●● Linux - Debian/Red Hat/Fedora. This is my primary development and production environment. I have supported many SysAdmins as part of my employment at InterWorx.
●●●●○ Git - I use git for both professional and personal projects. I have worked on numerous projects automating interactions with git and git-hosts like Github/Gitlab/Gerrit.
●●●○○ CI/CD Pipelines - I largely manage the Jenkins instance used for InterWorx development. I have also set up and managed automated builds/jobs in Github Actions, Gitlab, Drone and Jenkins.
●●●○○ Docker - I've used Docker for both production and development. My experience is mostly with deploying pre-built images, but I have also built some basic images.
●●●○○ Packer - I update and maintain our Packer scripts at InterWorx in order to build AMIs of the product in various states for testing/development purposes.
●●●○○ RPM Packaging - I have worked with packaging and rebuilding RPMs for a number of different programs to release alongside the InterWorx Control Panel Software (also released as an rpm package).
●●●○○ Terraform - I work on tools at InterWorx and have written tools at home to provision development servers on AWS and Proxmox (respectively).
●●○○○ Ansible - I have automated some processes at home and work including: populating InterWorx development servers with information and configuring destructible servers running services like httpd and Docker.
●●○○○ AWS EC2 - I have mostly interacted with EC2 through Packer/Terraform/AWS Cli.
"Brandon is always willing to go the extra mile and go above and beyond his requirements if it means it will help his team." - Richard Buck
●●●●● Problem Solving - Though my education is not related to the field of technology, one of the main benefits it has provided is the ability to see the "big picture" and find out of the box solutions to problems in a timely manner.
●●●●● Customer Support - I have been consistently praised for the ability to offer timely and concise support for both internal and external customers.
●●●○○ Technical Writing - In addition to setting up the technical aspects of InterWorx documentation, I have written a fair bit of the actual documentation on the pages.
"Brandon has shown tremendous growth and continues to excel at any task thrown his way. I have no hesitation throwing bigger and bigger projects onto his pile." - Tim College
Liquid Web ('20 - Present) - Software Developer
Writing new features and bug fixes for the InterWorx Hosting Control Panel in a large legacy PHP codebase, currently based on Zend/Laminas and components from Smarty, Symfony, etc. The product is used by hosting providers to manager servers/accounts/settings used for shared web hosting and is a direct competitor to cPanel.
Notable Features Implemented: MySQL 8 support, PHP Extensions Manager for multiple PHP versions, Let's Encrypt integration via AcmePHP
Wharton Curtis Creative Agency ('17 - '20) - IT Manager
Managed all IT infrastructure and staff members for a company of 25+. SysAdmin for Mac, Windows, and Linux systems. Wrote scripts and small programs to automate repetitive tasks and integrate various services (ZohoCRM, Zoho Projects, OnlyOffice, cPanel, Quickbooks).
Metz Culinary Management ('07 - '17) - General Manager/Executive Chef
Managed three kitchens with 25+ employees. Created menus for catering, daily service, etc. Managed all billing, financial aspects of the business.
"If you're looking for someone who's passionate and willing to go the extra mile, Brandon is your guy." - Caleb Shultz
University of Pittsburgh - Master of Library and Information Science
Pittsburgh Theological Seminary - Master of Arts
Lee University - Bachelor of Arts
"Brandon has shown amazing growth over the past year. His Linux knowledge and development skills are great. His troubleshooting skills seem well above his tenure." - Anonymous Feedback from a Coworker
Command Line Applications - I am a huge fan of writing and finding new CLI apps for accomplishing work in an automated way.
Music - I play bass, guitar, euphonium, trumpet and drums. I'm not great at any of them, but I have fun with it. My favorite genres are: Americana/Country, Indie Rock, and Classic Rock.
Self-Hosting - I self-host some services to make my life easier and to provide myself with more private alternatives to Big Tech services. This also allows me to practice my craft as I write scripts/procedures to help manage these services.
"If there was something [Brandon] didn’t know, he taught himself, he studied it, he made it a part of his mission to figure it out." - Maria Santora
Employee of the Year - ('18) - Wharton Curtis Creative Agency
Above and Beyond Award - ('17) - Wharton Curtis Creative Agency
"[Brandon] has a way of helping to debug a problem and make you feel like it was you who did it." - Anonymous Feedback from a Coworker
"[Brandon] is an exceptional manager and employee and any company would benefit having him on their team." - Shiantal Ferguson