# André Figueira **Principal Engineer & Technical Consultant** 📱 +44 7852 250402 | ✉️ andre.figueira@me.com | 📍 Guildford, UK 🔗 [LinkedIn](https://linkedin.com/in/andrefigueira) | 💻 [GitHub](https://github.com/andrefigueira) | 🌐 [Portfolio](https://polyxmedia.com) --- ## Professional Summary I've been building software and architecting systems for two decades, focused on high-performance, scalable solutions that solve real business problems. At Eagle Eye Solutions, I led the design and implementation of core systems that now handle over 7 billion transactions a year, optimised for low latency, reliability, and long-term maintainability. Alongside my enterprise work, I've independently delivered AI-driven platforms and mission-critical software for brands like TrapMusicMuseum, CopywritingForRecruiters and WideZike. I build systems that actually ship, scale, and solve problems, whether it's trading automation, lead generation, or backend infrastructure. While my main tools are Go, Python, and PHP, I'm stack agnostic. I use what works best for the problem and team. What matters to me is clean architecture, performance, and code that people enjoy working with, now and years down the line. --- ## Experience ### PRINCIPAL ENGINEER **Eagle Eye Solutions** | Guildford, UK | 2016-Present Leading the technological transformation of one of the UK's premier loyalty and promotions platforms, serving major retailers including Tesco, ASDA, and Sainsbury's. Architecting mission-critical systems that power real-time personalized marketing across millions of customers daily. - Designed and scaled a high-performance event processing system handling 7B+ annual transactions with 99.999% uptime - Architected comprehensive notifications infrastructure with customizable event payloads for multi-channel marketing - Led strategic migration from monolithic architecture to microservices, reducing deployment time by 60% - Implemented advanced caching strategies and database optimizations resulting in 40% reduction in API response times - Established engineering excellence standards including mandatory code reviews and 85% test coverage - Mentored team of 12+ engineers, introducing modern development practices including TDD and pair programming - Spearheaded adoption of Kubernetes and containerization, enabling zero-downtime releases - Designed real-time fraud detection system preventing £2M+ in fraudulent transactions annually - Built custom analytics pipeline processing 100M+ events daily for business intelligence ### FOUNDER & CONSULTANT ENGINEER **Polyxmedia** | Remote | 2006-Present Founded and operate a boutique consultancy delivering cutting-edge technical solutions to startups and enterprises. Specializing in AI/ML integration, scalable architectures, and rapid MVP development for innovative businesses. **Notable Projects:** **Mitchs.ai (2023-Present)** - Partnered with award-winning copywriter Mitch Sullivan (clients: BBC, ASDA, McLaren, Guardian) - Developed sophisticated AI-powered SaaS platform using GPT-4, Claude, and custom fine-tuned models - Implemented advanced prompt engineering techniques and RAG systems achieving 95% client satisfaction - Built scalable infrastructure handling 10,000+ advert generations monthly with sub-2 second response times - Integrated Stripe billing, usage analytics, and enterprise SSO for B2B clients **Trap Music Museum (2022)** - Collaborated directly with Technical Director Brandon Wynn for world's first trap music museum in Atlanta - Architected custom ticketing system replacing expensive third-party solutions, saving $50K+ annually - Developed digital waiver system with signature capture and legal compliance features - Implemented QR code-based entry system supporting 1,000+ daily visitors - Created admin dashboard for real-time visitor analytics and capacity management **Various Enterprise Clients (2006-2023)** - Delivered 100+ successful projects ranging from e-commerce platforms to AI-powered analytics tools - Specialized in rescue projects, successfully recovering and launching 15+ failed initiatives - Built custom CRM and ERP solutions for SMEs, increasing operational efficiency by average of 35% ### SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER **WatchShop.com** | Reading, UK | 2014-2016 Led complete technological overhaul of UK's largest online watch retailer, managing £30M+ annual revenue platform. Responsible for entire technical stack serving 500K+ customers annually across multiple international markets. - Architected and built entirely new e-commerce platform from ground up with zero downtime migration - Integrated complex payment ecosystem including Adyen, PayPal, Klarna, and Amazon Pay, processing £30M+ annually - Led responsive redesign initiative resulting in 45% increase in mobile conversion rates - Developed comprehensive suite: custom CMS for 10,000+ products, admin panel, CRM, WMS, and EPOS integration - Implemented sophisticated pricing engine supporting multi-currency and dynamic promotional rules - Built real-time stock synchronization across 5 warehouses and 3 retail locations - Created automated product import system processing 50,000+ SKUs from 200+ suppliers daily - Developed custom recommendation engine increasing average order value by 23% - Implemented ElasticSearch for product search, improving relevance and reducing search time by 70% ### LEAD ENGINEER **Whistl UK (TNT Post)** | London, UK | 2013-2014 Lead engineer for Agent Provocateur and other luxury retail brands under Whistl's e-commerce division. Managed technical delivery for £15M+ annual revenue luxury lingerie brand across global markets. - Architected multi-region e-commerce platform for Agent Provocateur supporting UK, US, EU, and Asian markets - Implemented sophisticated CI/CD pipeline reducing deployment time from 2 hours to 15 minutes - Led team of 6 developers in building new CMS on Zend Framework 2 - Integrated Givex gift card and loyalty systems processing £2M+ annually - Developed real-time POS-WMS integration syncing inventory across 15 boutique stores globally - Built custom sizing recommendation engine reducing returns by 30% for intimate apparel - Implemented multi-language support for 12 languages with automated translation workflows - Created sophisticated promotional engine supporting tiered discounts and VIP customer programs - Developed custom analytics dashboard providing real-time sales metrics to C-suite executives ### FULL STACK DEVELOPER **INVOC (SMIYL)** | London, UK | 2012-2013 Full-stack developer for innovative digital marketing agency specializing in viral campaigns and experiential marketing for premium brands including Audi, BMW, and Virgin Atlantic. - Developed "Secure My iPad in Your Locker" - award-winning Audi campaign for 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics reaching 2M+ users - Built sophisticated Facebook application with OAuth integration and viral sharing mechanics - Engineered IoT integration connecting physical iPad lockers to social media platform using Arduino - Created real-time dashboard showing campaign metrics, social reach, and ROI - Developed white-label competition platform used across 20+ campaigns - Built custom CMS allowing non-technical staff to create and manage marketing campaigns - Implemented advanced analytics tracking with Google Analytics and Facebook Pixel - Developed responsive email templates achieving 45% open rates ### SOFTWARE DEVELOPER **Digital Visitor** | London, UK | 2011-2012 Software developer at fast-growing agency delivering e-commerce and digital solutions for major UK retailers. Key contributor to high-profile projects for Thomas Cook, Tesco, and John Lewis. - Led frontend development for Thomas Cook's holiday booking platform handling £100M+ annual transactions - Built white-label e-commerce platform deployed across 15+ retail brands with combined revenue of £50M+ - Pioneered responsive design implementation before mainstream adoption, increasing mobile conversions by 200% - Developed custom JavaScript framework for complex booking forms reducing abandonment rate by 35% - Created reusable component library accelerating development time by 40% across projects - Implemented A/B testing framework enabling data-driven optimization - Built real-time availability checking system for travel bookings using AJAX and WebSockets - Developed SEO optimization tools improving organic traffic by 150% for client sites ### WEB DEVELOPER **Freelance** | London, UK | 2006-2011 Started career as a freelance web developer during the Web 2.0 era, building custom solutions for 50+ clients ranging from local businesses to growing startups. Self-taught programmer who mastered full-stack development through hands-on project delivery. - Built 30+ custom CMS solutions for SMEs using PHP, MySQL, and jQuery - Developed 10+ e-commerce platforms using osCommerce, PrestaShop, and custom PHP frameworks - Created one of the first UK Bitcoin exchanges in 2010, processing 1,000+ transactions - Built social networking platform for musicians with 5,000+ active users - Developed custom inventory management system for retail chain with 8 locations - Created automated web scraping tools for price comparison websites - Built custom WordPress themes and plugins downloaded 10,000+ times - Established reputation for delivering projects on time and budget, achieving 90% client retention rate --- ## Technical Expertise ### AI/ML Engineering LLM Fine-tuning, Prompt Engineering, NLP, OpenAI GPT, Claude, LangChain, Hugging Face Transformers, TensorFlow, PyTorch, Vector Databases, RAG Systems ### Backend Development Go, Python, PHP, JavaScript/TypeScript, Laravel, Flask, FastAPI, Event-driven Architecture, Microservices, REST/GraphQL/gRPC, WebSockets ### Cloud & DevOps Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, Ansible, AWS (EC2, S3, Lambda, RDS, CloudFront), Google Cloud, Azure, CI/CD Pipelines, GitLab, Jenkins, GitHub Actions ### Data Systems PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Kafka, Google Pub/Sub, Redis, ElasticSearch, Cassandra, ETL Pipelines, Time-Series Databases, Real-time Analytics ### E-commerce & Payments Adyen, Stripe, PayPal, Klarna, POS/EPOS Integration, CRM Systems, Warehouse Management, Promotional Engines, Discount Algorithms, Multi-currency Support ### Frontend Development Vue.js, React, JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML5, CSS3, TailwindCSS, Responsive Design, Mobile-First Development, Progressive Web Apps --- ## Notable Products & Projects - **JSONEditor.io** - Professional JSON editing and validation platform serving 100K+ developers monthly - **Tendies Machine** - Real-time WSB sentiment analysis for meme stock trading with ML-powered predictions - **DownOrNot** - Instant website availability checker service monitoring 10K+ sites daily - **Helix CMS** - AI-first enterprise platform with integrated POS, ticketing, and inventory management - **ProbeLabs.io** - Automated security scanning and vulnerability assessment for enterprise applications --- ## Key Achievements & Metrics - **7 Billion+** transactions processed annually with 99.999% uptime - **£2 Million+** in fraud prevented annually through custom detection systems - **40%** improvement in code quality and team efficiency at Eagle Eye Solutions - **£50K+** annual savings for clients through custom-built solutions - **100+** successful client projects delivered through Polyxmedia consultancy - **20+ years** of professional software engineering experience - **12+** engineers mentored and developed into senior roles - **5** proprietary SaaS products developed and launched --- ## Education **Level 3 Diploma** - Information & Computer Systems Barnet College, London | 2008 **Level 2 GNVQ** - Information & Computer Systems Southgate College, London | 2006 --- ## Professional Approach - **Problem Solver**: Specialized in rescuing failed projects and turning technical challenges into opportunities - **Business-Focused**: Always align technical decisions with business objectives and ROI - **Mentorship**: Passionate about developing junior engineers and sharing knowledge - **Innovation**: Early adopter of emerging technologies with practical implementation experience - **Reliability**: Track record of delivering complex projects on time and within budget --- *References available upon request*