Alex Beuscher

Portfolio & Resume

I am a web developer and entrepreneur living in Amesbury, MA. I have spent some of the past twenty years as a developer within marketing departments. Much of my work has been client facing, interacting directly with stakeholders and content producers. I am currently seeking opportunities in the cannabis space.

  • Skills

    • Marketing
    • Web Content Strategy
    • Video Production
    • SEO
    • Localization
    • Audio Editing / Voice Over
    • DJ
    • Technical Writing
    • Copy Editing

  • Languages / Frameworks

    • Javascript
    • Node
    • React
    • HTML
    • CSS
    • PHP
    • SQL
    • C++
    • Python

  • Tools / Software

    • Wordpress
    • Contentful
    • Contentstack
    • Sanity.io
    • 11ty
    • Git
    • ZenDesk
    • Marketo
    • Google Analytics / G4
    • Figma
    • Shopify
    • BigCommerce
    • Smartling
    • Drupal
    • Cockpit CMS
    • JIRA
    • FinalCut
    • Adobe Design Suite

Case Studies

Contentstack

Role: Developer

Tech: Gatsby, Contentstack

The assignment here was to take a junior team and improve the quality of work they were delivering while also helping to internally overhaul the web department. We used our own product as a headless CMS, and spent a good deal of the year I worked here cleaning up technoical debt and learning best practices. We were able to reduce the size of the codebase by about half, and also improved turnaround time on new work by around 200%.

visit site*

Dynamic Signal

Role: Developer / Designer

Tech: Wordpress, Pug, Gulp

I came into this site after it had been online for four years and reworked through several agencies. I rebuilt the theme using modern practices, implemented version control, and removed all front end plugins. I was able to reduce page load time from an average of 14s per page to a more reasonable 2.5s per page. I was then able to help the content team double time spent on page and significantly increase organic search traffic. Through funnel optimization and UX improvement, total site conversions doubled.

visit site*

Dynamic Signal Support

Role: Developer

Tech: Zendesk, Vue, Theming & Customization

The Dynamic Signal Support site is built on the ZenDesk platform using a custom theme. This was a cross-departmental effort which I ran and coordinated. This work also included some light work with Vue, as that is what ZenDesk's front end is built with.

visit site*

XCOM

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Telemetry, Localization

This was 2k's first experimentation with surfacing in game live stats to enrich the user experience at the site and provide some connectivity to the game. We used ajax calls to collect and store stats locally on our server, then built a dynamic infographic displaying community stats from these data.

visit site*

WWE 2K

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Localization, Oauth

This site was our department's first effort in building a localized site. In its original iteration, we supported Spanish and English, using Expression Engine's built in localization features for support.

visit site*

WWE 2K Logo Uploader

Role: Developer

Tech: PHP, Rest API, Memcache, Oauth

This site was built to interface with the in-game experience of WWE 2K '17. Players could upload and manage their in game images from the site. This was a front end application built in javascript with a php component, connecting to a REST API endpoint provided through a third party. The interior design of the application was skinned to match the in game experience.

visit site*

Borderlands

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Localization, Social Media API

Borderlands is a large, well known franchise. The challenge here was in creating a visual spectacle with the site to showcase the franchise's unique look and feel. Also, with a large amount of DLC, the relationships between various products and package deals was a taxonomical challenge. With a localized site, content spaces with so much imagery had to be carefully designed to be flexible to fit differently sized strings. Additionally, the site featured social media API interaction and a Skill Tree calculator web application.

visit site*

Hangar 13 Games

Role: Developer

Tech: Static Generated, Continuous Deployment, Rest API based CMS, Jade/Pug

This is a small site for one of 2k's Game Developers. It is fed by a centralized CMS, and statically generated under continuous deploy using TeamCity as the build agent. With smaller clients, there is often a problem of throughput. In this case, the studio's active social media activity to keep their site in the moment, along with relevant aggregated news from mafiagame.com, which showcases the studios current offering, Mafia 3. By organizing the content in chronological order from most recent, returning visitors are given content to engage with the studio on, with very little additional input from their team.

visit site*

Contentstack

Role: Developer

Tech: Gatsby, Contentstack

The assignment here was to take a junior team and improve the quality of work they were delivering while also helping to internally overhaul the web department. We used our own product as a headless CMS, and spent a good deal of the year I worked here cleaning up technoical debt and learning best practices. We were able to reduce the size of the codebase by about half, and also improved turnaround time on new work by around 200%.

visit site*

Dynamic Signal

Role: Developer / Designer

Tech: Wordpress, Pug, Gulp

I came into this site after it had been online for four years and reworked through several agencies. I rebuilt the theme using modern practices, implemented version control, and removed all front end plugins. I was able to reduce page load time from an average of 14s per page to a more reasonable 2.5s per page. I was then able to help the content team double time spent on page and significantly increase organic search traffic. Through funnel optimization and UX improvement, total site conversions doubled.

visit site*

Dynamic Signal Support

Role: Developer

Tech: Zendesk, Vue, Theming & Customization

The Dynamic Signal Support site is built on the ZenDesk platform using a custom theme. This was a cross-departmental effort which I ran and coordinated. This work also included some light work with Vue, as that is what ZenDesk's front end is built with.

visit site*

XCOM

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Telemetry, Localization

This was 2k's first experimentation with surfacing in game live stats to enrich the user experience at the site and provide some connectivity to the game. We used ajax calls to collect and store stats locally on our server, then built a dynamic infographic displaying community stats from these data.

visit site*

WWE 2K

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Localization, Oauth

This site was our department's first effort in building a localized site. In its original iteration, we supported Spanish and English, using Expression Engine's built in localization features for support.

visit site*

WWE 2K Logo Uploader

Role: Developer

Tech: PHP, Rest API, Memcache, Oauth

This site was built to interface with the in-game experience of WWE 2K '17. Players could upload and manage their in game images from the site. This was a front end application built in javascript with a php component, connecting to a REST API endpoint provided through a third party. The interior design of the application was skinned to match the in game experience.

visit site*

Borderlands

Role: Developer

Tech: Expression Engine, Localization, Social Media API

Borderlands is a large, well known franchise. The challenge here was in creating a visual spectacle with the site to showcase the franchise's unique look and feel. Also, with a large amount of DLC, the relationships between various products and package deals was a taxonomical challenge. With a localized site, content spaces with so much imagery had to be carefully designed to be flexible to fit differently sized strings. Additionally, the site featured social media API interaction and a Skill Tree calculator web application.

visit site*

Hangar 13 Games

Role: Developer

Tech: Static Generated, Continuous Deployment, Rest API based CMS, Jade/Pug

This is a small site for one of 2k's Game Developers. It is fed by a centralized CMS, and statically generated under continuous deploy using TeamCity as the build agent. With smaller clients, there is often a problem of throughput. In this case, the studio's active social media activity to keep their site in the moment, along with relevant aggregated news from mafiagame.com, which showcases the studios current offering, Mafia 3. By organizing the content in chronological order from most recent, returning visitors are given content to engage with the studio on, with very little additional input from their team.

visit site*

Work History

Contentstack

San Diego, CA

Senior Web Developer & Team Lead

2020 - 2022

Contentstack is a headless CMS provider. I worked as team lead with a group of developers in Mumbai to build and support the company's marketing and documentation sites. My time was split between managing and coaching the team, writing code, and working with stakeholders to develop a roadmap.

Dynamic Signal

San Bruno, CA

Senior Web Developer

2018 - 2020

Web Production Manager

2017 - 2018

Dynamic Signal (now FirstUp) is a B2B Saas company. I was in charge of their public facing web properties. This included a public Wordpress Site, a support site at Zendesk, a Marketo Installation, and a Content Hub at Uberflip. Along with development and maintenance, my work also involved analytics, strategy, and content creation.

2K Games

Novato, CA

Senior Web Developer

2016 - 2017

Web Developer

2013 - 2016

2K Games is a video game publisher of titles such as Borderlands, Civilization, and NBA 2K. I was the first full time web developer in 2K's marketing department. Previous to my arrival, sites were built through managed agencies. After implementing basic processes, source control, and tightening security, I was promoted and my team got a second developer. Together, we unified the sites to a single headless CMS. We were then able to consolidate our content editing and localization efforts. The system we built is still in use today and has expanded to support many other features in the 2K ecosystem.

Medley Health

Dublin, CA

Web Content Manager / Developer

2011 - 2012

Medley was a startup company in the medical industry, who provided membership model practice management services for primary care physicians. I ran their public websites, managed content, and provided other web related support and development. The company is now defunct.

WAAF and Mike FM (Entercom)

Brighton, MA

Online Content Director

2008 - 2011

WAAF and Mike FM are/were two Boston music radio stations owned by Entercom. WAAF remains a top rated station, while Mike FM has since gone off-air. I managed a team of content producers, and also worked in a variety of roles to support and create video, web, and mobile content for our listeners in conjunction with our station's on-air personalities as well as local and national celebrities. On the development side, I built several novelty apps which we hosted at the station sites, and provided ongoing support and development for online contesting, event specific microsites, and ad placement on the site. I also coached staff and online personalities on blog writing and engaging with their audience over social media.

Boston Interactive

Charlestown, MA

Web Developer

2007 - 2008

Boston Interactive is a leading design firm. My duties as a developer there ranged from markup and CSS layout to some php programming projects and a good deal of javascript work. Among the clients serviced were FAO Schwartz, New England Coffee, MedAssets, and others.

Nurse-Recruiter.com

Wellesley, MA

Lead Web Developer

2006 - 2007

Nurse-Recruiter is an online job portal for nurses, similar to Monster.com but specialized. My duties included the design and implementation of an intranet, and redevelopment of web software from PERL into PHP. I also rewrote most of the content on the site for SEO value as well as style, and increased total web visitors as well as goal conversions by over 100% in 10 months.

MCO Productions

Brighton, MA

Trivia DJ

2001 - 2011

I have run pub trivia on and off for years, and have experience in DJ'ing and MC'ing functions such as weddings, special events, and parties. I have a full PA system and contract independently.

Web Consultant / Freelancer

Allston, MA / Alameda, CA

Self Employed

1998 - present

I work on and off as a freelance developer and designer. Along with my web work, I do consulting in basic IT, application training, and print design. Clients have included film, healthcare, environmental, and other concerns. I continue to support a small number of clients.

SSDS

Newton, MA

Afterschool Instructor

2001 - 2003

Solomon Schechter Day School is a private elementary school. I taught video and web design to children ages 9 to 12 at their After School Program. For video, students learned to work with a camera, plan movies, and make short films. In web we learned to make a basic site using a text editor and graphics tools.

AMICAS, Inc.

Brighton, MA / Chicago, IL

Webmaster

1997 - 2000

AMICAS provided software for the management and viewing of medical images (x-rays) inside of a web browser on standard PC's. My responsibilities included redesign and implementation of public website as well as the design of an Intranet Site and Customer Support Center.

Education

Emerson College - BFA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing