Thomas Chaplin
About
I’m a Systems Engineer with a passion for optimising processes and enhancing system reliability. Having a background in quality and automation, I bring a unique perspective to architecting solutions in cloud environments. Committed to continuous learning and staying ahead of industry trends, I thrive on challenges and strive for excellence in every project. My values of strong work ethic, attention to detail, and collaborative mindset drive both personal growth and team success.
Links
Experience
Systems Engineer at Tray.io (Nov 2023 - Present)
Leading initiatives to optimise cloud infrastructure and enhance observability, ensuring efficient and reliable operation of Platform as a Service (PaaS) offerings.
Highlights:
- Implemented AWS cost-saving strategies, resulting in 34% reductions in cloud expenditure while maintaining optimal performance and scalability.
- Spearheaded the adoption of Open Policy Agent (Gatekeeper), enforcing policies and enhancing security and compliance across our Kubernetes platform.
- Consolidated three separate pre-production environments into a unified setup, fostering seamless collaboration among engineering teams and resulting in significant reductions in both AWS expenditure and maintenance overhead.
- Engaged in a rotational on-call schedule to provide timely assistance for critical incidents and essential system maintenance, ensuring uninterrupted service availability.
Skills: Kubernetes · Amazon Web Services (AWS) · Terraform · Datadog · Helm Charts
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Sr. Software Development Engineer in Test at Tray.io (Nov 2021 - Nov 2023 ・ 2 yrs 1 mo)
Led multiple initiatives spanning the building, testing and deployment of services during a global expansion with a focus on reliability.
Highlights:
- Led the strategic implementation of automation testing initiatives, driving the transition from Jenkins to GitHub Actions, resulting in streamlined processes and increased efficiency.
- Orchestrated the expansion of CI/CD pipelines to encompass EMEA & APAC regions, optimising delivery workflows and ensuring seamless scalability.
- Championed the adoption of test automation frameworks and methodologies across R&D teams, facilitating a shift left approach.
- Provided mentorship and guidance to engineers, fostering a culture of testing excellence and equipping teams with the necessary skills to operate autonomously.
- Managed and optimised AWS infrastructure utilising Terraform, ensuring robust and reliable services across multiple AWS offerings such as S3, CloudFront, Lambda, and IAM to name a few.
- Innovated by developing custom scripts and internal tools, effectively addressing operational challenges and enhancing productivity within the organization.
Skills: Test Automation · GitHub Actions · TypeScript · Amazon Web Services (AWS) · Terraform
Links:
Software Development Engineer in Test at Tray.io (Sep 2019 - Nov 2021 ・ 2 yrs 3 mos)
Developed automated testing tools and frameworks, substantially elevating the breadth of test coverage for essential core services and applications.
Highlights:
- Interviewed, onboarded and mentored three SDETs
- Introduced accessibility, performance and component based testing resulting in increased test coverage
- Built and maintained UI, API & contract testing frameworks
- Developed multiple internal and open source tools to aid software testing and development
Talks:
Open-source projects:
Skills: Test Automation · TypeScript · React.js · WebdriverIO · Jenkins
QA Automation Engineer at Algomi (Aug 2017 - Sep 2019 ・ 2 yrs 2 mos)
Focused on building internal tools and frameworks to test trading applications in the bond market
Highlights:
- Developed browser testing frameworks to emulate scenarios for buy and sell side trading applications
- Built an extensive API testing framework covering functional and non-functional business requirements
- Performance tested Kafka streaming via WebSocket client written in JavaScript
- Created SQL scripts to aid data population for quality assurance scenarios
- Assisted the CTO in recording demos to distribute to customers
Skills: Test Automation · Java · JavaScript · Selenium · Kubernetes
QA Tester at Seetec (Mar 2015 - Aug 2017 ・ 2 yrs 6 mos)
1st Line Support Technician at Seetec (Jun 2012 - Mar 2015 ・ 2 yrs 10 mos)
IT Support Technician at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (Apr 2012 ・ 1 mo)
Checkout Operator at Makro (Nov 2011 - Dec 2011 ・ 2 mos)
Administrator at Mild Professional Care Ltd (Feb 2011 ・ 1 mo)
IT Support Technician at Austech Computers Ltd (Dec 2010 ・ 1 mo)
Trainee IT Support Technician at Seetec (Dec 2010 ・ 1 mo)
Education / Training / Certifications
Education
Training
- Rapid Software Testing Explored - Satisfice, Inc.
- ISTQB Certified Tester Foundation Level - The Knowledge Academy
Certifications
- UK Driving Licence: Full, Clean
- References available on request