Alexander Crisler

Professional Summary

Senior Software Engineer with 7+ years of experience spanning cloud-native data pipeline architecture, backend systems, geospatial data processing, and quality assurance. Proven ability to lead projects end-to-end, drive significant performance improvements, and deliver reliable, scalable infrastructure on AWS. Passionate about the intersection of technology and real-world impact, with a strong interest in gaming, data systems, and developer tooling.

Technical Skills

• Languages: Python, C++, C#, SQL, Bash, YAML, JavaScript (React)
• Cloud & Infrastructure: AWS (Lambda, S3, EC2, DynamoDB), Terraform, Terragrunt, Docker
• Geospatial & Data: GRIB2, NetCDF, H3, FTP/API/S3 data ingestion, geospatial data standardization
• Tools & Platforms: GitLab, Bitbucket, Git, Unity, OpenCV, Agile/Scrum
• Practices: CI/CD pipeline design, technical documentation, code review, retrospective facilitation, employee onboarding

Professional Experience

Software Engineer | DTN | Aug 2021 - Apr 2026

• Architected and maintained cloud-native weather data pipelines on AWS, ingesting data from global meteorological organizations via APIs, FTP, and S3, standardizing and converting outputs to GRIB2 format for internal forecast teams.
• Designed and led development of a geospatial cutout service — an AWS Lambda-hosted API — enabling internal teams to request custom extracts of geospatial weather data, expanding self-service data access across the organization.
• Reduced CI/CD build times by over 80% by overhauling GitLab build and deploy pipelines, introducing selective builds based on code changes and service priorities.
• Led the company's migration from Bitbucket to GitLab, managing the full transition of repositories, pipelines, and developer workflows.
• Built an interpolation service to further extend internal weather data tooling, improving data resolution flexibility for downstream customers.
• Identified and resolved performance bottlenecks across the codebase through proactive refactoring initiatives, improving system reliability and maintainability.
• Owned and maintained the team's technical documentation, ensuring up-to-date, accurate references for onboarding and ongoing development.
• Onboarded new engineers and led biweekly retrospectives as part of the team's Agile/Scrum process.
• Grew from adding weather parameters to existing pipelines into independently planning and delivering new platform capabilities, reflecting increasing technical ownership and seniority.

Software Engineer (Contract) | Warpspeed | Oct 2020 - Aug 2021

• Contributed to development of a HoloLens mixed-reality application at an early-stage startup, implementing computer vision features using OpenCV and C# in Unity.

Student Quality Assurance Engineer | NetApp | Aug 2017 - Aug 2021

• Executed tests designed to expose defects in high-performance RAID controller firmware and associated software, tracking defect reports and collaborating closely with developers to drive resolution.
• Developed Python scripts to automate test steps, increasing team productivity and reducing manual effort.
• Assisted in building internal web-based testing automation tools to support ongoing QA workflows.
• Established and monitored Windows and Linux host environments to prepare systems for read/write I/O testing against E-Series storage arrays.
• Performed routine server and array equipment setup and maintenance.
• Trained and mentored newly hired student contractors, accelerating their onboarding and integration into the team.

Education

B.S. in Computer Science | Wichita State University

Research: Developed a machine learning system in collaboration with the cybersecurity department to detect malicious URLs targeting COVID-19 misinformation; co-authored a paper on the findings.

Projects & Additional Experiences

Game Jam Participant and Team Lead

Regularly participates in competitive game jams, leading small teams through rapid game design and development cycles under tight time constraints.

Interests

Marathon running • Recreational soccer • Home cooking & baking • Reading • Gaming & game development