Aaron Berkowitz Email & Phone Number

Arlington, Virginia, Us

PBS KIDS strives to make a positive and lasting impact for children across the United States through curriculum-based television shows, digital experiences, and educational resources. As Senior Director of Technology at PBS KIDS, I lead a team of software developers, architects, and engineering managers responsible for building award-winning educational products that reach millions of children and families every day.Team Management and LeadershipWith an emphasis on perpetual learning and individual growth, I built a team of thoughtful and dedicated engineers. It has been a joy motivating the group to bring their diverse perspectives to each project, encouraging exploration in new technologies, and committing to best practices.As the PBS KIDS department grew, I designed, pitched, and implemented a new squad-based team organization that joined engineers, product owners, designers, and other stakeholders into distinct groups, each with its own engineering manager. The new structure allows individuals to focus on specific technologies and products, providing clearer paths for career growth and subject matter expertise, as well as increased productivity and fewer resourcing bottlenecks.Technology and ProductsWhen building products for children, families, and teachers, my focus is centered around accessibility, reliability, and safety. My team is dedicated to building experiences that parents and teachers trust will be safe, fun, and educational. As a membership organization, my team also provides products and tools for local PBS stations.Business OperationsBeyond my engineering responsibilities, I lead and participate in multiple business operations activities that help the department grow and run smoothly. Organizational ImpactI relish being part of a mission-oriented organization and helping out wherever I can. This includes advising senior leadership on strategy, representing PBS, and participating in company wide groups and activities.

Washington, Dc, Us

Full stack web and software developer at digital creative agency. Using the latest web technologies, developed front-end, back-end, and server architectures for interactive, complex, and scaleable websites and web applications. For example: - Developed efficient recommendation engine for Washington based news company to increase engagement with suggested content (PHP, MySQL, CraftCMS) - Developed MVC web application to process brain tissue research grant proposals, export status and analytical reports, and allow effective system administration (PHP, MySQL) - Developed modular layout system to allow content creators for a major marathon to build pages without being tied to predetermined layouts and styles (PHP, MySQL, CraftCMS)Introduced and managed agile methodologies and processes to large projects- Organized and conducted technical team standups and code reviews- Authored technical portions of proposals and briefings- Architected server infrastructures and configurations for load balancing web applications- Consulted UX teams on content architectures for complex content management systemsTechnologies used: Drupal, Wordpress, Craft, PHP, MySQL, MongoDB, Rails, NodeJS, Meteor, HTML5, CSS3, Sass, Less, Compass, Susy, Bourbon, Grunt, Gulp, Velocity, React, D3, Require, Python, Git, Capistrano, Mapbox

Reston, Va, Us

Managed, collaborated, and mentored six person team of front-end, back-end, and mobile developers to support Army.mil, Army.mil’s proprietary content management system, and the U.S. Army’s mobile applications for iOS and Android. - Managed technical team schedule and workload using agile methodology and tools (Pivotal Tracker, OmniPlan)- Worked closely with the design and content directors to give technical perspectives on new pages and features- Conducted code reviews of team members’ work- Lead daily scrum meetings and biweekly scrum cycle planning meetings- Managed source/version control and deployment practices- Optimized cross-browser performance and adhered to Section 508 Standards- Reviewed design team compositions for usability, accessibility, and and technical feasibility- Advised metrics analyst on Army.mil’s infrastructure and helped deeply incorporate metrics tracking throughout the U.S. Army’s digital properties- Contributed all technical details to the weekly and monthly reports to the client- Technologies Used: PHP, MySQL, HTML5, CSS3, Sass, JavaScript, Backbone.js, Mondernizr, Require.js, AngularJS

Reston, Virginia, Us

Manage and collaborate with 5-person team of front-end, back-end, and mobile developers to support Army.mil and CORE, Army.mil’s proprietary content management system built with Codeigniter.• Develop new pages, features, and CORE capabilities using professional knowledge of PHP, MySQL, jQuery, HTML, and CSS• Conduct code reviews of team members’ work before submitting the code for server publication• Lead daily scrum meetings and biweekly scrum cycle planning meetings• Work closely with the design and content team directors to give technical perspective on new pages and features• Review design team compositions for usability issues and offer advice on technical capabilities• Advise metrics analyst on Army.mil’s infrastructure and help deeply incorporate Google Analytics into all pages• Contribute technical details to the daily and monthly reports to the client• Research and implement the latest technologies and trends like mobile-first responsive design and cloud computing• Ensure proper utilization of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Google+) APIs and constructs for an interactive and social experience

Reston, Virginia, Us

Developed new features and maintained existing infrastructure for CORE, Army.mil's proprietary content management system, using advanced PHP, MySQL, jQuery, HTML, and CSS skills.

Responsibilities for start-up political consulting firm included researching fundraising compliance and public records, planning and organizing Political Action Committee events, database creation and management, and designing corporate communications.

Entrepreneurial business owner, founded in 2006. Created films and portrait montages using professional video editing equipment. Established marketing and financial plans for small business.

Utilized technical skills to schedule tours and lectures for constituents. Conducted informative tours of the US Capitol Building for families and school groups. Monitored House of Representatives legislative activities, attended Congressional hearings and briefings as office representative, responded to constituent inquiries, and trained incoming interns.

Tracked breaking news, researched background information, created research binder on U.S. presidential election history. Briefed Chris Matthews and television guests on developing stories. Guests included presidential candidates and analysts.

Washington, Dc, Us

Monitored House of Representatives legislative activities, answered procedural and substantive questions of House members, fielded phone inquires from staff, and delivered messages to Members of Congress.