About Me | Joel Maria

Joel Maria

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I'm Specialized in

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Front-End & Mobile UI/UX Design

JavaScript

React

Redux

GraphQL

Next.js

React Native

Gatsby

HTML

Laravel

Python

Angular

Back-End Development

Node.js

Prisma

Django

Firebase

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

Google Cloud

Supabase

01. About me

I’m a Senior Full Stack Developer with over 16 years of experience building web and mobile apps for FinTech, SaaS, and enterprise platforms. I specialize in React, React Native, Node.js, Python, and cloud technologies (AWS, GCP, Firebase), creating scalable and high-performance solutions. I enjoy leading teams, optimizing apps for millions of users, and integrating AI-powered and automation-driven features to deliver smarter software.

02. Interests and Hobbies

I enjoy exploring emerging technologies, contributing to open source projects, and staying active through running, cycling, and hiking. I also love traveling, discovering new cultures, and expressing creativity through photography, music, and design

03. Framework Preferences

I primarily work with React and React Native for building responsive web and mobile applications. On the backend, I prefer Node.js with Express.js or Fastify.js, and Python with Django for scalable and robust server-side solutions. I also have experience with GraphQL, Firebase, and cloud-native frameworks on AWS and Google Cloud.

Employment

Senior Software Engineer, React Native (Contract).

JMS Technologies Inc (Client Confidential - Top Tier Global Audio Streaming Leader) | Boston, MA

Spearheaded the development of a flagship Artist & Label Management Ecosystem used by millions of creators and accessed by 500M+ consumers, leveraging Next.js 15 (App Router) and React Native. Modernized the mobile architecture by implementing the React Native Hermes engine, reducing app startup latency by 35%, lowering memory usage, and ensuring seamless performance across iOS and Android devices at massive scale. Revamped the data layer using GraphQL, achieving a 200% performance increase via advanced request batching, query optimization, and Redux/Context API state management integration.

Mar 2024 - Present

Lead Frontend Engineer

U.S. Bank | Boston, MA

Integrated an AI-powered voice assistant into a React Native banking app with 20M+ downloads, powered by Node.js, Python, TensorFlow, and GraphQL. Reduced app size by 15–20% using Android App Bundles and Proguard/R8, improving performance for millions of users. Led 22+ engineers in delivering a 90+ component library with 80%+ test coverage, significantly reducing development costs.

May 2021 – Jan 2024

Fullstack Engineer - Node.js/React.js (Contract)

Grax | Boston, MA

Launched grax.com with Next.js, Node.js, and Firebase, driving $20M in annual revenue and handling 100M+ monthly API calls using BigQuery and Kubernetes. Switched architecture to Node.js WebSockets, halving latency, doubling concurrency, and saving over $67K/month with zero downtime. Implemented secure OAuth 2.0 authentication with JWT for real-time financial transactions.

Oct 2019 – Dec 2020

Senior Software Engineer - Node.js/React

Costar | Boston, MA

Engineered secure Node.js/Express auth systems with OAuth2, JWT, Okta, and LDAP, supporting 5M+ daily logins. Built 60+ RESTful APIs and a Backend-for-Frontend (BFF) layer unifying microservices across major platforms. Enhanced scalability, resilience, and collaboration through Swagger documentation and robust error-handling middleware.

Jun 2016 – Mar 2019

Fullstack Developer - Fraud Detection

Fidelity Investment | Boston, MA

Built fraud detection microservices with Node.js, Kafka Streams, Redis, and Django, enabling real-time anomaly detection. Integrated external fraud intelligence APIs to automate verification of high-risk transactions and cut false positives. Developed React and D3.js dashboards for interactive visualization of suspicious transaction patterns.

Jul 2015 - Mar 2016

Full-stack React.js Developer

Verizon Wireless Solutions | Boston, MA

Built RESTful microservices in Node.js and MongoDB to manage nationwide cable infrastructure and equipment mapping. Developed cloud management modules for compute, storage, and network automation on Verizon's IaaS platform. Enhanced platform scalability and data synchronization across distributed systems.

Mar 2014 - May 2015

Senior Mobile Engineer (Contract Role)

Bank of America | Boston, MA

Developed native mobile modules in Java and Objective-C, integrating secure biometrics and OCR scanning into a hybrid Cordova/PhoneGap app used by 46M+ customers. Modernized legacy banking workflows by introducing Backbone.js and AngularJS architectures, improving UI performance for millions of users. Refactored large-scale Java monoliths into RESTful web services handling 1.6B+ annual transactions.

Nov 2013 - Feb 2014

CSS3 Lead Developer

TD Ameritrade | Boston, MA

Built a SASS/Compass framework automating sprite generation and vendor prefixing, cutting load times by 40%. Applied OOCSS and Bootstrap/LESS for modular, maintainable, and responsive UI architecture. Delivered a hybrid Cordova/HTML5 app deployed on Android and iOS.

Apr 2012 - Aug 2013

Freelance Back-End and Front-End Developer

Elance | Lawrence, MA | Remote

Built full-stack PHP/CodeIgniter systems including RESTful APIs, data-feed processors, and web crawlers using MySQL/PostgreSQL. Delivered custom enterprise modules such as multi-currency invoicing and image-processing pipelines. Converted legacy assets into high-performance HTML/CSS interfaces using jQuery and AJAX, improving SEO and cross-browser reliability.

Jun 2008 - Feb 2012

Logistic and Last-Mile React Native App

JMS Technologies Inc | Boston, MA

Built npm packages and monorepo structures including 100+ React Native components and 40+ screens. Orchestrated 10+ Docker microservices in Kubernetes (Node.js, Django, Kafka, PostgreSQL) and deployed 60+ serverless Node.js functions to GCP and Firestore. Developed AI-powered GPS navigation with off-route detection and live traffic updates.

Jan 2024 - Present

Education

Tech. University of Santiago, Dominican Republic

Studies in Computer Science

2006-2008

Zend PHP 5 Certification Engineer

Zend Technologies