(801) 656-5484

My passion is to make life easier for people by building software on the web and mobile devices.  I enjoy staying current while helping others on UX StackExchange and CodePen.
MX
4 years

(2020 - CURRENT)

I was introduced to the world of Fintech during Silicon Slopes Summit in January of 2020.  Many of the concepts intrigued me enough to start researching the industry and ultimately led me to MX. 

I am a Senior Frontend Engineer supporting MX's flagship digital money management product MoneyMap (React/RxJS frontend, Ruby/Rest backend).  The software MX is building, however, goes way beyond digital money management.  We help people burdened by debt become debt free and people free from debt invest to become financially stronger.  This places more people in a position to realize their own individual dreams of improving the world. 

MX will not rest until the entire world is financially strong! 


FamilySearch
5 years

(2015 - 2020)

Our family opted for a change of scenery near the end of 2015 where we exchanged Texas fire ants for Utah snow!  I accepted a position with FamilySearch and absolutely love being surrounded by mountains again.  I have been a core member of 3 different teams at FamilySearch as a Senior Web Developer.  On the Web Indexing team I helped port a desktop Java application to run in a browser as an Angular app.  On the Home team I added features to the landing page using Polymer and native web components with a focus on adding accessibility. 

I finished my time at FamilySearch working on the Discovery and Core teams.  I helped design and build intuitive online experiences to introduce first time users to their family history.  The "Where am I From?" activity was written using 100% React Hook components and a custom useReducer state management system which I architected (patterned after Redux but easier to use).  You can run these Family History Activities at familysearch.org/discovery.

It is very rewarding to help millions of people around the world discover their roots and see how we are all part of one big family.  FamilySearch is the original social network!


SolarWinds
8.5 years

(2006 - 2015)

In March of 2006, I started work as part of a small but amazing engineering team at a private company called TriGeo Network Security.  During that time I helped design and build one of the best Security Information Management systems on the market.  In my role as Senior Developer, I spent most of my time writing low level ActionScript code to bend the Flex framework past its limitations.  I love making components that are both beautiful as well as performant.  We won multiple awards from SC Magazine and were ultimately acquired by SolarWinds in July of 2011. 

Being acquired by a larger company was very rewarding and provided validation to our small engineering team that we had built something awesome.  I eventually relocated to Austin Texas when offered a position as part of the SolarWinds core team.  I was able to have a greater impact on the company by filling the role of UX Developer.  I attended all the UX meetings at SolarWinds and fell in love with design.  I spent 3 years transitioning from a Developer who dabbles in design to a Designer who just happens to know how to code. 

I was able to provide tremendous value to the company by listening to users and rapidly prototyping solutions.  I learned the art of usability testing and iterating over designs to keep the team focused on solving real problems instead of adding features which may or may not get used.  I used techniques such as card sorting and journey mapping to quantify user pain points.  The data I gathered allowed SolarWinds to focus on solutions which reached the largest number of users first and provided the most bang-for-the-buck!


Microsoft
6 years

(2000 - 2006)

I joined Microsoft during the exciting dot com boom.  I worked on the Microsoft Certified Professional web portal for three years followed by another three year position as part of the Office Business Intelligence team. 

During my time at Microsoft I filled the roles of STE, SDET and Test Lead.  I spent most of my time writing code to test other code.  I learned how to store large amounts of data while keeping it accessible.  I managed a team of my peers through a successful new product release.

I will always treasure the time I had working at Microsoft and made some life long friends with the brightest engineers on the planet!
If he doesn't know the language today, give him the weekend and he'll have designed and published a new product for you in it.
Brandon Ward (Director of UX)
I have been continually impressed with his dedication, creativity, and attention to details. Working with him over the last few years has been a pleasure.
Robert Triebwasser (Senior Software Engineer)
Dave Alger is a great asset to any team. He brings energy, ideas, and a can do attitude that is really great.
Chris Anderson (QA Lead)
Thanks for considering me as a new member of your team.  — Dave
/* 
 *