I’m James, a Principal Engineer who’s spent the last six years at the same company. That either makes me loyal or stubborn, depending on who you ask. I work on front-end architecture, developer experience, and the less-glamorous work of keeping large systems maintainable as they grow.
What I Actually Do
Most days I’m thinking about problems like: How do we modernize a platform that generates over a billion dollars in revenue without breaking it? How do we build component systems that work for 10+ different brands that actually want to look different? How do we design processes that engineers will follow without needing constant reminders?
I lead front-end technical strategy across about 50 engineers. That means I spend more time in architecture reviews and Slack conversations than writing code, though I still get my hands dirty when it matters.
My Path Here
I started building websites in 2011, worked in UK agencies for a few years building enterprise WordPress sites and marketing automation, moved to Canada in 2018, and joined Points (a loyalty commerce platform) in 2019. I’ve gone from “person who builds features” to “person who makes it easier for others to build features” to “person who thinks about what features we should even build.”
Why I Write
Mostly to figure out what I actually think about things. I write about front-end architecture, the reality of technical leadership (including the parts that suck), career progression, and the lessons you only learn by making mistakes in production.
If you’ve ever felt like an imposter in your role, struggled to measure your impact, or wondered why your carefully-designed process isn’t being adopted, you might find something useful here.
Let’s Talk
I’m on LinkedIn and reachable at [email protected]. Always interested in conversations about complex front-end problems, engineering culture, or the messy reality of principal engineering.