Our team

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  Chad Pytel

  Chief Executive Officer

  Chad Pytel has twelve years of experience in tech support and software services, and is a skilled programmer and project manager. Chad is responsible for the day-to-day operations of thoughtbot and acts in an ongoing project lead role for many of our clients. He has co-authored two books: Rails AntiPatterns and Pro ActiveRecord for Ruby. Chad graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) with bachelor of science degrees in both Computer Science and Humanities & Arts (Drama/Theatre).

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  Matt Jankowski

  Chief Operating Officer

  Matt is responsible for the overall operation and success of client projects within the consulting part of thoughtbot's business. He serves as a client advisor for active projects, and handles the initial communication with most potential clients. Prior to joining thoughtbot, Matt was a co-founder and CTO of an NYC-based publishing industry startup. Matt holds a B.S. in Technical Communication from WPI.

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  Dan Croak

  Chief Marketing Officer

  Dan has been making things on the web for 15 years and now runs our San Francisco office. He has been a supermarket cashier, a scholastic basketball player, a collegiate rower, a bowler in the "HoCroBoCo", a Eucharistic minister, a newspaper editor, a high school coach, a manager of a jam band, a guest lecturer at Harvard Business School, a dog owner, and an expert witness.

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  Joe Ferris

  Chief Technology Officer

  Joe found a home at thoughtbot after spending several years on the freelance and software consulting battlefield. He has been coding since he first laid eyes on a computer, and has been a Ruby enthusiast since he discovered Rails in 2005. In his spare time, he plays guitar and frisbee. Joe is an avid 3-letter acronym hater.

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  Mike Burns

  Managing Director

  Mike Burns has been a Web developer since before the first bubble burst. He co-founded the Boston Android hackfests, brought the joy of vim to the company, is passionate about Free Software, and uses Haskell and Scala for personal projects. Email him at <mburns@thoughtbot.com>.

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  Desi McAdam

  Managing Director

  Desi has been in the business of building software in one way or another since graduating from Georgia Tech in 2000. Her favorite language is Ruby. She is one of the cofounders of DevChix, an organization of women software developers around the world. Desi is also active in the RailsBridge community and volunteers much of her time to teaching and increasing diversity in our community. She enjoys traveling, meeting new people and learning about different cultures.

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  Jon Yurek

  Developer

  Jon Yurek is an experienced programmer with proven problem solving skills and the tenacity to attack complex problems head-on. He has co-authored a book, titled Pro ActiveRecord for Ruby. Jon graduated from WPI with a B.S. degree in Computer Science.

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  Josh Clayton

  Developer

  After spending years writing ASP and C#, Josh found solace in Ruby and realized that crying while programming was OK (as long as they were tears of joy). When he's not programming, he enjoys biking and playing drums.

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  Kyle Fiedler

  Designer

  Kyle has been designing and developing, in some form, since the turn of the century. His roots reach back to fine arts and print design but once he started designing for the web he never turned back.

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  Matt Mongeau

  Developer

  Matt started programming in Qbasic and worked his way up to programming Ruby. Matt also enjoys folding origami and dabbling in other programming languages.

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  Phil LaPier

  Designer

  With an approach to UI design that entails a user-centered design philosophy at its core, Phil strives to combine theory with practice by creating a trail of well crafted pixels wherever he goes. A sharply dressed swagger of a fellow, Phil graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a B.S. in Graphic Design. Follow him.

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  Ben Orenstein

  Developer

  Ben is a vim evangelist, Apple fanboy, and an embarrassingly-frequent Boloco customer. He's spoken at RailsConf, finished 11th in the Rails Rumble, and is flirting with entering the top 50 Rails committers. When not vimming, he sings in a barbershop quartet and assistant-directs a chorus. Ben believes in TDD, A/B testing, and remapping caps lock to escape.

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  Prem Sichanugrist

  Developer

  Prem is a web developer who also loves clean code and good user interfaces. He started developing for the web in 2001 using PHP. However, after he discovered Ruby on Rails in 2007, he never looked back. He loves tackling programming related problems, and always enjoys sitting in front of his computer diving into a hard problem to solve it. He also enjoys contributing back to Ruby on Rails in order to give back to the community and improve his beloved web framework.

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  Gabe Berke-Williams

  Developer

  Gabe has been coding in one language or another for half his life. He found Ruby in 2005 and hasn't looked back since. In his free time, he likes to bake bread and watch Joss Whedon shows.

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  Galen Frechette

  Designer

  Galen loves to innovate by challenging convention with unique insights and exceptional design. Driven by a passion for user experience and entrepreneurship, he strives to build products that respond to the needs of real people and empower the success of new ventures. Galen holds a dual B.S. degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Programs in Design and Innovation.

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  Reda Lemeden

  Designer

  Reda Lemeden, a.k.a Kaishin, enjoys conceptualizing problems and solving them using technology and design. When he is not pushing pixels or sketching wireframes, he is most likely reading Japanese comics or playing action RPGs. Reda holds a master degree in business and has been designing interfaces since 2006.

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  Joel Oliveira

  Developer

  Joel's passion for learning and creativity has stuck with him for 15 years. Through stints in ASP, linux systems administration, PHP, and a lot of UI code, he found his way with Ruby and Rails and is happy to never go back. When he's not tinkering on the web he's spending time with his lovely wife, their two bulldogs, or enjoying a beer with friends and family.

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  Harlow Ward

  Developer

  Harlow began his career as a QA Engineer with marchFIRST. While testing web applications he realized he also loved building them. After getting his BS in Computer Science from UCSB his focus shifted from testing to building. At thoughtbot the paradigm has once again changed and he's embracing his new-found TDD lifestyle.

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  Adarsh Pandit

  Developer

  Adarsh trained as scientist and worked as a management consultant for McKinsey among other firms until vowing to never use PowerPoint again. A graduate of the apprentice.io program, Adarsh holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D in Biophysics from the University of Chicago. He can be found listening to 90's hiphop, cycling, playing poker, watching football, or eating at Chipotle.

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  Jason Draper

  Developer

  Jason began his programming career at Virginia Tech writing applications in Ruby on Rails. Since then he has taken every opportunity to improve his coding and TDD skills. Graduating from Radford University tucked in the mountains of Virginia, he enjoys the outdoors, wakeboarding, snowboarding, and riding curves on his motorcycle.

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  Mason Fischer

  Developer

  Mason began his web development career at a young age working for a local internet service provider in his home town on Martha's Vineyard. Before joining thoughtbot he was a Hackstar for the Techstars Boston program. Mason attended the University of Vermont where he earned a degree in both Math and Computer Science along with a love for Vermont cheddar cheese.

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  Dan Collis-Puro

  Developer

  Dan has worked for 12+ years as a developer, linux/BSD sysadmin, RDBMS and NoSQL DBA, DevOps engineer, strategic consultant and project manager. He's used numerous FOSS languages but is happiest writing Ruby. He came to thoughtbot via the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. His hobbies mostly involve making things you can eat or drink: cooking, gardening, and brewing cider and mead.

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  Greg Lazarev

  Developer

  Ruby, Rails, Vim, Git, Apple products and elegant code are among the things that Greg is passionate about. His other passions include outdoor activities, recreational sports and good books.

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  Magnus Gyllenswärd

  Designer

  Magnus has been designing user interfaces for more than seven years. Everything from medical devices and complex steering systems to experimental interaction design concepts for raising awareness around energy consumption. Magnus holds a master degree in interaction design and has a three year background in cognitive science studies. He enjoys patching up modular synthesizers and making noise.

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  Mark Adams

  Developer

  Mark began programming in 2003 by building content management systems in PHP. He transitioned to Objective-C in 2009 after the release of the iPhone SDK. A minimalist by nature, he enjoys writing clean code and crafting simple designs. In his spare time, you can find him playing guitar, eating breakfast for dinner and moderating on Stack Overflow.

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  Trevor O'Reilly

  Developer

  Trevor has been developing software professionally for 12 years, building products for both startups and established companies. Prior to joining thoughtbot, he was VP Engineering of SCVNGR. Trevor holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Colgate University. In his free time he enjoys cooking and the New York Football Giants.

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  Gordon Fontenot

  Developer

  After teaching himself Objective-C and Ruby, Gordon decided to follow his true passion for development and change careers after years of working as a professional film editor. When he's not sitting behind a computer, he can be found enjoying tastebud-destroying beers, and taking part in extreme physical challenges.

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  Caleb Thompson

  Developer

  Caleb has been a software engineer for four years, with experience in x86 Assembly, Java, C++, C#, and Ruby on Rails. He has braved the wintry tundra of Alaska and the harsh deserts of Arizona where he earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Software Engineering from the University of Advancing Technology. He has fired a Mosin–Nagant without blinking, fought the Red Menace, built Battleship Couch, killed a bear and wore its pelt, and bludgeoned a man with a motherboard. He enjoys fine wines, craft beers, Futurama, and punching comets.

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  George Brocklehurst

  Developer

  George has been building websites professionally since 2005. Before joining thoughtbot he wrote Ruby and Python for startups in London and Stockholm, and built Mac apps like Choosy. George holds a B.Sc. in Computer Science from the University of Manchester in the UK. He enjoys tea, good beer and walking in the forest near his home in Stockholm.

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  Britt Ballard

  Developer

  Britt has been developing software professionally for over a decade. Britt holds a degree in Computer Engineering from Texas A&M University in College Station, TX. When not solving problems behind the keyboard you can find Britt cycling, running, reading or enjoying craft beers with exotic foods.

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  Anna Miragliuolo

  Office Manager

  Anna brings her experience in administration, human resources, and event planning from the non-profit realm. A graduate of Tulane University, she enjoys hosting friends and family, traveling, and cooking with in-season food.

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  Scott Albertson

  Developer

  Scott has been building websites since the late 90's. Before joining thoughtbot he built Rails applications for an email service provider, co-founded a web development company, and wrote too much PHP. Scott believes in straightforward code, test-driven development, and getting real. He enjoys flying airplanes, waterskiing, and being a dad.

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  Jessie Young

  Developer

  Jessie is a Bay Area native, Dev Bootcamp graduate, Railsbridge alum, and TDD believer. Before taking the plunge into web development, Jessie was doing marketing for start-ups. She double majored in Philosophy and Government at Colby College and is a proud lefty.

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  Alex Baldwin

  Designer

  Not to be confused with Alec Baldwin, Alex has been designing for the web since he was 12. He listens to beats and drinks lattes while he furiously types away at the keyboard.

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  Arun Agrawal

  Developer

  Arun is a Ruby, Ruby on Rails programmer. He has been working with Rails since 2007. He loves to contribute to open source software, especially Rails. Follow him.

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  Theo Calmes

  Developer

  Theo started developing for iOS after working as a technical director for an animation startup in Hollywood. He has a B.S. in physics and math from the University of California, Riverside. He is an avid gamer, fan of mathematica, and lover of craft beers.

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  Josh Steiner

  Developer

  Josh is focused on crafting smart and easy to use applications. Before joining thoughtbot, he worked on Rails applications for Major League Gaming. In his spare time he enjoys playing volleyball, cooking, and good IPAs. Josh graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a B.S. in Computer Science.

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  Edwin Morris

  Designer

  Edwin has been designing for the web since at least Dreamweaver 8. He loves the process of design and working in a field where the possibilities for creation and expression are so much and so varied. Edwin is expecting a BFA in Graphic Design with a minor in Computer Science from Northeastern University in 2014.

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  Chris Toomey

  Developer

  Chris is a big fan of Vim and the general Unix philosophy of sharp, focused tools. He started his career as a mechanical engineer but has always had a passion for programming, specifically web development. He has worked in Visual Basic and Python, but since finding Ruby and Rails, there’s been no looking back. Outside of coding, Chris is a fan of dinner with friends, skiing, and an embarrassingly eclectic cross section of music.

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  Derek Prior

  Developer

  Derek got his start with Perl, VB, and ASP before settling in to C#. He picked up Ruby as a curiousity in 2009 and soon after left Visual Studio for good. Away from the keyboard, you can find Derek playing with his two boys, riding bikes, or taking recreational sports way too seriously.

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  Corey Haggard

  Designer

  Corey is a passionate designer who has been creating beautiful, easy to use interfaces for half his life. Balancing an extensive knowledge of user interface design and usability, Corey maintains a solid focus on crafting digital experiences that are not only stunning, they're incredibly user-friendly.

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  Diana Zmuda

  Developer

  Diana began her love affair with Objective-C during her time at App Academy and has never looked back. After earning a math/econ degree from UCSD, she discovered that there’s actually a career for people who like making apps all day. When she’s not tapping away at the keyboard, she enjoys rewatching Star Wars and playing video games that involve coins.

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  Elliot Winkler

  Developer

  Elliot has been working with Ruby and Rails for 5+ years, although he's been programming in some form from an early age. He thinks that good software is well designed not only on the outside out but also on the inside. Whether it's learning to snowboard or trying to get a better score in Scrabble, Elliot is always up for a good challenge. As an engineer, he's fascinated in what makes things tick, but he also finds joy in the simple act of creating stuff.

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  Laila Winner

  Developer

  Originally from the Pacific Northwest, Laila is a graduate of Dev Bootcamp and apprentice.io. Before deciding to write code for a living, she studied economics, traveled the world, and did marketing for a cleantech startup. She enjoys pair programming, good writing, and most pickled foods.

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  Melissa Xie

  Developer

  Melissa began her programming career writing Scheme and Perl. Since then, she's explored more languages through her work in web dev, performance monitoring, and NLP and developed a passion for educating younger students on the awesomeness of computer science. Besides programming, you can also find her singing, playing board games, or learning the origins of Chinese characters.

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  Joël Quenneville

  Developer

  Joël is passionate about good architecture, OO, and best practices. He started his career writing PHP before falling in love with Ruby and Coffeescript. When he is not writing code, you can find him buried in a history book or exploring the city of Boston.

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  Sean Griffin

  Developer

  Sean is a fanatic about Vim, Rails, and TDD. After spending far too long with PHP and ASP.NET, he's never looked back since joining the Ruby community. When he's not writing code, he enjoys fedoras, fine cigars, and blogging about the games industry.

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  Patrick Brisbin

  Developer

  Pat got his start programming by teaching himself Haskell as a hobby. At the same time, he began getting his hands dirty in an OOP language called X++ at work. This combination of functional and OO programming provides a unique and useful approach to creating software. Pat cut his Rails-teeth on a large legacy application and saw the kind of mess an untested codebase can become. He loves building clean code and simple designs that scale well.

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  Joanne Cheng

  Developer

  Joanne has been tinkering with code and web development for several years, even while she was studying classical Trumpet Performance at Rutgers University. When she's not happily writing Ruby and JavaScript, she can be found running, biking, or rock climbing around Boulder, CO. She also helps organize Colorado Code for Communities.

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  Devon St.Clair

  Designer

  Devon enjoys exploring the 'why' factor behind design, which often means she's studying how people interact with the world. She strives to create engaging and thoughtful experiences with the overarching goal of helping others. When she's not tinkering on a project, Devon loves roadtrips, painting, and hiking with her fiance and their adorable corgi.

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  Ralph

  Chief Evangelist

  Ralph has been with thoughtbot since late 2003. He does not hold any formal educational degrees, but he’s a very courteous host and is well respected in the Boston robot community (we think). In his spare time, Ralph is an avid drummer and technical manual enthusiast.

Advisors

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  Charlie Popkin

  Charlie is a seasoned financial professional with experience growing companies in fast paced environments. Charlie was the Chief Financial Officer of The Merallis Company, a technology services firm. Prior to Merallis, Charlie was a founding management member of PQC, Inc., a management services company which he helped grow to $80M in revenue. Charlie also founded Medical Claims Management (MCM), a practice reimbursement management and consulting firm.

  Earlier in his career Charlie worked as a Senior Consultant for Price Waterhouse and as Senior Accountant for Deloitte & Touche. He is a CPA and has a B.S. in Accountancy, an A.S. in Management from Bentley College, and an M.M. in Finance and Business Policy from the J.L. Kellogg School at Northwestern University.

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  David Beisel

  A partner at NextView Ventures, David has been focused on early stage Internet startups his entire career, both as an entrepreneur and an investor. He also founded and leads the Web Innovators Group, an organization which holds quarterly entrepreneur events drawing 1000 attendees.

  Before NextView, David was a Vice President at Venrock and previously a Principal at Masthead Venture Partners. Prior to becoming a venture capitalist, David co-founded Sombasa Media, an e-mail marketing company best known for its flagship product BargainDog. Sombasa was successfully acquired by About Inc., which was soon after acquired by Primedia (NYSE: PRM), where David served as Vice President of Marketing.