Benjamin Bowser

Software Engineer

Me standing with a beach in the background

I am a software developer with a passion for learning new programming languages and tools. In my professional career and personal time, I have worked on projects in a variety of languages, including Java and JavaScript. Over the past few years, work opportunities have allowed me to up skill into a full stack developer. My personal work has involved the utilization of the Amazon Web Services platform, which I hope to use in a future role.


Work Experiences

Technical Consultant

Salesforce | May 2021 - Present
  • Implemented Salesforce Lightning solutions based on requirements from external clients.
  • Worked directly with technical architects and external client to refine requirements and architecture.
  • Created test cases to ensure all backend code was functioning as intended.
  • Utilized Apex (Java-like), JavaScript, and lightning framework to build full stack Salesforce experiences for users.
  • Built frontend solutions with JavaScript and used provided UI mocks to create desired experiences.
  • Built and consumed APIs to communicate data between CRM and client systems.
  • Implemented Paymetric (FIS) payment gateway for credit card processing for multiple clients.
  • Utilized GitHub for version control and Jira for story tracking, including code reviews for teammates.
  • Completed desired project functionality for a producer of automated test equipment and lab software deployed to customers in over 45 countries.
  • Built an account management system for one of the largest plumbing supply distributers.
  • Effectively managed time and tasks while completing work for multiple projects at once.
  • Created and grew a social Slack channel to over 400 members in one year with a feature in the company-wide newsletter.

Software Engineer

FIS | June 2019 - May 2021
  • New product development using a variety of enterprise tools, systems, and programming languages in an agile environment to create the largest financial API marketplace in the world
  • Worked with SOAP and REST APIs written in various languages, including C# and Java. Development was primarily backend with code deployed to on-premises servers.
  • Designed and architected new APIs based on user stories gathered through meetings with product teams regarding software requirements.
  • Development on Real Time Payment project to decrease the wait time for banking transactions to fully post. Utilized Java to implement new features and functionality per business requirements.
  • Used Git and BitBucket for version control, along with automated builds occurring in Jenkins.
  • Project development in an Agile/SAFe environment, utilizing Jira to track progress to stay consistent with project timelines
  • Participated in a company run hackathon, creating an Amazon Alexa skill with JavaScript and NodeJS that helps users manage their retirement. The user can use their voice or touchscreen to see different features like account balances, news, and milestones.

Student Networking Assistant - IT

Miami University | May - Aug 2018
  • Assist network engineers in daily operation of managing a large-scale enterprise network for over 15,000 users.
  • Troubleshoot, maintain, and install new equipment, often in networking rooms in buildings on campus.
  • Visit offices and dorm rooms to repair customer equipment and diagnose connection issues, redirecting issue to the proper department if necessary.
  • Work with other non-IT departments to gain access to restricted areas where work will be conducted, including construction sites, tunnels, crawlspaces, mechanical rooms, attics, and other access-controlled rooms.
  • Respond to unexpected outages in a timely manner, usually without knowledge of what caused the issue, including visiting locations to repair connections that serve multiple buildings.
  • Replace and test new and existing fiber optic connections to expand network redundancy within the network.
  • Deliver, setup, and retrieve Cisco telephones within the university telecommunications network.
  • Diagnose and repair problems with Cisco access points to provide wireless network connectivity campus wide.

Projects

IsTayOnTikTok

Closed Source

A spin-off of the former "isTayOnTumblr” website and my tumblr notifier project, this website is designed for Taylor Swift fans to track when she is actively liking posts on TikTok. It is in its infancy still in terms of UI. Code is built with Node.JS and express. Infrastructure is on AWS using EC2, an ALB, and Route53 for DNS. You can check out the project here.

RetireMe Amazon Alexa Skill

Closed Source

As part of the FIS Hackathon called InnovateIn48, I worked with 4 other coworkers over the course of 48 hours to design a solution that could be a future product offering from FIS. My team members and I started from scratch at the beginning and successfully wrote a proof of concept Amazon Alexa skill to help users monitor their retirement. The user can use their voice or touchscreen of the device to access different features like viewing account balance, retirement milestones, and news.

Data Fusion Contest Capstone

Open Source

For my Senior Capstone Project, I worked with two other Computer Science students to create an entry for the 2019 IEEE GRSS Data Fusion Contest. Every year, the Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS) holds a challenge that involves processing remote sensing data. In May 2019, we presented our final project to our department. You can see our poster here.

Tumblr Notifier

Closed Source

A complex web application running on AWS that makes a call to the tumblr API to see if a user has recently liked a post. If the specified user has liked a post recently, the application sends a push notification to a list of users specified to tell them that a user is online. This ideally is designed for tracking when celebrities or famous accounts are online liking posts. I'm continuing to improve this project to add more features in the future.