Clarice Bouwer

Co-leading a distributed team of 15 engineers across two time zones while fostering collaboration, mentorship, and improved team morale. Architect and develop complex distributed systems on GCP, oversee daily code reviews, and maintain high standards in UX and DevX, ensuring both product and developer experiences are seamless. Beyond technical delivery, drive business impact by onboarding new partners, contributing to major revenue growth, proactively resolving critical issues, and embedding systems thinking and post-mortems to prevent recurring challenges.

Radical career change from .NET to Clojure and Datomic in a DevOps powered virtualization environment. Develop software across the stack from web to infrastructure using Linux. Developed and maintained cloud-based solutions in Clojure and JavaScript, including a user-friendly interface for managing virtual machine firewall rules and NATs, which reduced manual support calls by 70% and boosted user efficiency. I also improved system performance, delivered full lifecycle projects, and implemented Grafana and Prometheus dashboards for real-time monitoring and proactive issue resolution.

Contributed to high-visibility media and entertainment platforms including Idols, Big Brother, AMVCA, Survivor, and later DStv Now, providing online streaming to millions of households across Africa. Architected, engineered, and supported complex distributed web solutions within Agile Scrum teams, with a strong emphasis on code quality, test automation, CI/CD, and DevOps practices. Beyond technical delivery, mentored junior developers, ensured platform stability during team transitions, and collaborated closely with stakeholders to meet business needs while resolving critical issues and supporting customer queries.

Collaborated with stakeholders to translate complex printing requirements into automated software solutions, developing features with C#, SQL, and Visual Studio that streamlined processes and boosted efficiency. By integrating with XMPie for on-demand variable data printing, enhanced personalization for clients and reduced turnaround times.

Developed and delivered custom event registration websites for major events like Microsoft Tech-Ed and Partner Summits, implementing features such as secure payments, RFID integration, and reporting systems to ensure seamless user experiences. By collaborating closely with clients and managing multiple projects under tight deadlines, consistently exceeded expectations while providing full ownership and on-site support.

Developed and maintained the Global Hotel Reservation web application, a core tool for managing hotel bookings, while designing and implementing new features driven by user feedback to boost efficiency and satisfaction. Provided ongoing support and troubleshooting, ensuring smooth operations and minimal disruption for the business.

At the Computer Training Institute, backed by the University of Cambridge and later acquired by Pearson, I developed learning materials, facilitated interactive workshops, and provided personalized mentorship to students. My efforts in delivering relevant course content and offering dedicated support consistently fostered collaboration, skill development, and a notably low failure rate.

Worked as a freelance web developer together with local businesses to create and maintain their online presence.