Natacha Tomkinson

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Lead Node Software Developer,  DEFRA

November 2025 —  Present   7 months

• Lead developer on Node.js microservices and front-end applications for the Single Front Door service on the Core Delivery Platform (CDP)
• Built and maintained user-facing front-end services using the Hapi.js/Nunjucks stack on CDP
• Led Platform Readiness Reviews (PRR), aligning services and processes with organisational standards
• Continuously benchmarked team practices against organisational standards, strengthening supply chain security, dependency governance, and PII safeguards
• Improved acceptance criteria and testing guides to give the testing team clearer, testable requirements and model best practice for developers
• Provided prompt and detailed code reviews referencing best practices and authoritative sources, using GitHub Copilot for additional review passes
• Integrated AI agents into team workflow for technical spikes and ticket creation, supported by Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to ground outputs in organisational standards, documentation, and prior decisions
• Contributed to the DAL mock for test data and built performance testing suites on CDP using JMeter
• Facilitated cross-team workshops and collaboration with Grants, IAHW, Version 1, and DDTS CRM Support teams
• Consolidated, prioritised, and refined the backlog to clarify user story goals and delivery sequence
• Mapped the path to MVP, defining delivery scope and sequencing with the team
• Investigated and discovered undocumented Dynamics 365 CRM API endpoints, unblocking integration work
• Introduced and maintained Architecture Decision Records (ADRs) for key architectural decisions
• Resolved dual-write consistency failures by implementing the transactional outbox pattern, ensuring atomic database updates and reliable event publishing to downstream services
• Defined and scoped audit events for microservices, covering security, compliance, and operational visibility
• Scheduled weekly mob sessions using TDD with navigator/driver pattern to promote knowledge sharing
• Encouraged releasing small and often to reduce risk and speed up feedback loops
• Attended SOC meetings to stay aligned with organisational security posture and apply context in design reviews
• Identified knowledge gaps and engaged architects and principal engineers to ensure alignment with organisational standards
• Helped define go-live scope, balancing acceptable functionality with realistic delivery timelines

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Senior Software Engineer,  Hurdle

January 2022 —  November 2025   4 years

• Worked in a startup environment, delivering POC and MVP under short notice for commercial demos
• Migrated functionality from PHP Laravel legacy monolith to Node.js event-driven microservices
• Closely liaised with internal and external stakeholders to scope and deliver new features
• Architected a partners' authentication microservice with JWT in the AWS ecosystem
• Proactively designed and implemented AWS Glue jobs to replicate the production environment in a sandbox setting while excluding sensitive data, enhancing testing capabilities
• Built internal and external user interfaces using Node.js and React.js
• Led the front-end chapter, fostering a culture of collaboration and continuous learning
• Organised regular knowledge-sharing sessions to ensure high-quality standards and continuous improvement
• Led the team in adopting best practices in front-end development
• Facilitated knowledge exchange and collaborated on shared initiatives such as UI component libraries and design system development
• Worked with Terraform and Serverless for infrastructure provisioning
• Designed and documented APIs
• Adhered to OWASP security guidelines
• Followed the principle of least privilege to minimise security risks
• Mentored, coached, and hired team members
• Practiced Test-Driven Development (TDD)
• Created and enriched documentation in the form of READMEs and handbooks
• Set-up and maintained CI/CD pipelines using Buddy
• Used AI tools to improve productivity, with a focus on safety with tools such as cursor and ChatGPT
• Learnt some Go in mobbing sessions during developer's 10% time

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Senior Full Stack Engineer,  Kano Computing

September 2021 —  December 2021   3 months

• Sole developer responsible for building a new platform to deliver content for the StemPlayer
• Focused on back-end development with Kubernetes integration
• Adapted to shifting project requirements, ultimately deciding to move on as the project's direction evolved

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Senior Software Developer,  University of York

August 2019 —  August 2021   2 years

• Supported org-wide migration to the AWS ecosystem and React.js/Node.js
• Closely liaised with internal stakeholders to scope and deliver new features
• Paired with and mentored team members
• Participated in recruitment panels
• Developed web and mobile applications
• Spearheaded the creation of a shared React.js UI component library using Storybook
• Integrated university systems with external APIs
• Used AWS services (Lambda, S3, DynamoDB, EventBridge, SQS)
• Implemented event-driven architecture
• Set-up and maintained CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins

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Full-stack Developer,  Forward Financing

February 2018 —  August 2019   a year

• Built technically performant apps for clients, focusing on both front-end and back-end development
• Improved decision-making processes by enhancing the auto-decline functionality for deals with a high chance of failure
• Created a shared React.js component library and a shared TypeScript utility functions library to improve code reuse and maintainability
• Refactored statistics modules for internal-facing apps to enhance performance and usability
• Worked with a range of technologies including Elixir, Phoenix, PHP, Ruby, Rails, React.js, Sass, CSS, and Node.js
• Leveraged bundling tools such as Rollup and Webpack to optimise front-end performance

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Web and Mobile developer,  WEARVR LLC

August 2016 —  February 2018   2 years

• Developed and maintained a full-stack VR game platform, handling both front-end and back-end development to ensure seamless user experiences and robust system performance
• Implemented and maintained automated testing to ensure code quality and reliability throughout the development lifecycle
• Set-up and maintained CI/CD pipelines using TeamCity
• Worked with Ruby on Rails, SQL databases, CSS, JavaScript, React.js, react-native, rspec, Mocha, Chai, and Jasmine

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Presales Engineer,  Amplience

May 2016 —  August 2016   3 months

• Examined client requirements and provided feasibility estimates
• Developed proof of concept solutions
• Performed client-facing demos using JavaScript

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Systems Analyst,  Amplience

March 2015 —  April 2016   a year

• Gathered requirements and helped clients implement new solutions
• Created XML metadata schemas

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Project Manager,  ChannelAdvisor

July 2013 —  March 2015   2 years

• Trained clients on SAAS solution
• Used regular expressions, FTP, and advanced Excel functions
• Implemented light VBA scripting

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Computer Science, MSc

2020  —  2023   3 years

University of York

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English teaching, C.A.P.E.S. (≈P.G.D.E.)

2006  —  2007   a year

Université Jean Moulin (Lyon III)

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English Language, Civilisation and Literature, Master 1

2005  —  2006   a year

Université Jean Moulin (Lyon III)

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English Language, Civilisation and Literature, BA

2004  —  2005   a year

Université Stendhal (Grenoble III)