Hello there.
I'm Alex Bates. I'm a software developer with over 11 years of industry experience.
I'm currently working at Pocketworks as a Senior Full Stack Developer, where I build web and mobile applications for clients across various industries.
Take a look at my blog to see what I've been working on. I try and remember to write about things I learn or find interesting. You can also follow me on Github (or LinkedIn, if that's your thing).
I'm working full-time at Pocketworks at the moment, but I'm always glad to hear about an interesting idea or project. Drop me a line at hello@alexbates.dev.
Experience
A timeline of my professional experience in software development
2023
Senior Fullstack Developer, Pocketworks
Delivering full-stack solutions from power-sector engineering to consumer apps in a flat, employee-owned studio, owning technical decisions, timelines and client relationships. Broadened the company's stack with production work in TypeScript, Python, Go, Vue/Nuxt, Astro and Elixir/Phoenix.
Key achievements:
- Designed and shipped natural-language semantic search for the company website, rebuilt on every deploy and running at pennies per month
- Architected an Elixir/Phoenix backend for a Flutter networking app, with end-to-end encryption so the server never sees contact data
- Built an LLM-powered feedback analysis feature (Anthropic API), engineered for predictable cost and validated output
- Led an offline-capable web app for power-industry engineers, with real-time SciCharts visualisations and a custom C licensing integration via Python
- Acted as Product Owner on a client mobile engagement, owning scope and trade-offs against a fixed budget
- Migrated the company website to Astro/GraphQL/DatoCMS, improving Lighthouse scores and search rankings
- Led adoption of AI tooling (Claude Code, agentic workflows, MCP) and mentor colleagues as a professional development buddy
2022
Senior Software Developer, HCI York
Led projects involving custom .NET CMS development and migrated the company's front-end approach to modern Vue.js stacks.
Key achievements:
- Led custom in-house .NET CMS projects
- Migrated front-end development to Vue.js
- Mentored junior developers
- Improved company documentation and workflows
2015
Software Developer, HCI York
Progressed from Software Apprentice to Senior Developer over 7+ years, developing expertise in C#, ASP.NET, and modern web technologies.
Key achievements:
- Progressed from Apprentice to Senior Developer
- Developed expertise in C#, ASP.NET, and web technologies
- Built custom CMS solutions for various industries
- Built successful e-commerce solution for local business
Got an idea?
I'm not taking on new work right now, but I'm always happy to talk through an interesting project, a collaboration, or just swap notes on something you're building.
Drop me a line at hello@alexbates.dev.