Michael Ocana

Technical lead responsible for architecting and delivering high-fidelity digital experiences for global brands. This role focuses on building scalable, component-based architectures using modern Drupal versions and Acquia’s enterprise suite within a fast-paced production environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Enterprise Drupal Engineering: Lead the development and maintenance of sophisticated web platforms using Drupal 9, 10, and 11, focusing on custom module development and seamless API integrations.
• Low-Code/Component Architecture: Architect and implement design systems using Acquia Site Studio (formerly Cohesion), enabling rapid, flexible page building while maintaining strict brand governance.
• Full-Stack Implementation: Develop dynamic, high-interactivity features using PHP, JavaScript, jQuery, and Ajax, ensuring a seamless blend of backend logic and frontend performance.
• Acquia Cloud Operations: Manage the full application lifecycle on the Acquia platform, including environment configuration, deployment workflows, and performance tuning for global traffic.
• Frontend Excellence: Build responsive, pixel-perfect, and accessible interfaces using HTML and CSS, ensuring cross-browser compatibility and adherence to modern UI/UX standards.
• Database & Optimization: Optimize MySQL database schemas and queries to ensure high availability and rapid content delivery for content-heavy brand sites.
• Technical Leadership: Drive production efficiency through code reviews, technical documentation, and the implementation of best practices in component-based development and CI/CD pipelines.

Serve as a technical lead focused on delivering high-impact, accessible, and secure open-source solutions. Responsible for architecting complex Drupal ecosystems and managing professional-grade DevOps workflows across diverse hosting and local development environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Enterprise Drupal Engineering: Lead the development and migration of enterprise sites across Drupal 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, specializing in custom module development and complex API integrations.
• DevOps & Containerization: Architect and maintain local development workflows using Docker, DDEV, Lando, and Vagrant to ensure environment parity and team efficiency.
• Platform Mastery: Manage high-scale deployments and server configurations on industry-leading platforms including Acquia, Pantheon, and Platform.sh.
• Full-Stack Development: Build responsive and accessible user interfaces using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery, ensuring compliance with WCAG standards and modern design patterns.
• Database Architecture: Optimize MySQL databases for high-traffic applications, focusing on query performance, schema design, and data integrity during large-scale migrations.
• Technical Consulting: Provide strategic guidance on site architecture and security best practices, while mentoring junior developers through rigorous code reviews and collaborative problem-solving.

Lead technical architect and developer responsible for the delivery and maintenance of global, high-scale web platforms. This role focuses on implementing enterprise-grade solutions across the full Drupal lifecycle, from legacy support to cutting-edge versions, while optimizing performance within the Pantheon ecosystem.

Key Responsibilities

• Full-Spectrum Drupal Development: Lead the architecture, development, and migration of multi-site ecosystems across Drupal 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, ensuring modern coding standards and security compliance.
• Custom Module Engineering: Develop complex, high-performance backend features and third-party API integrations using PHP and MySQL to meet global business requirements.
• Platform Operations: Orchestrate deployment workflows and environment management on Pantheon, leveraging multidev, automated testing, and advanced caching (Varnish/Redis) to ensure 99.9% uptime.
• Advanced Frontend Implementation: Create seamless, responsive, and accessible user experiences using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Ajax for high-interactivity components.
• Database & Performance Optimization: Architect and tune MySQL schemas and sophisticated queries to handle large-scale content distribution and high-concurrency traffic.
• Technical Governance: Drive technical excellence through rigorous code reviews, documentation, and the implementation of best practices in Headless Drupal and CI/CD pipelines.

Acted as the lead technical architect for the digital presence of a major regional news organization, managing high-traffic web portals and overseeing the transition between different CMS architectures to ensure maximum uptime and performance.

Key Responsibilities

• CMS Architecture & Migration: Managed and optimized large-scale news platforms built on Drupal 6 and Drupal 7, overseeing site migrations, security patches, and complex version upgrades.
• Full-Stack Engineering: Developed robust backend features using PHP and MySQL, ensuring the system could handle rapid content publishing and massive concurrent user traffic.
• Performance Optimization: Tuned MySQL databases and implemented caching strategies to minimize page load times during breaking news events and peak traffic periods.
• Frontend Enhancement: Engineered responsive and interactive news layouts using HTML, JavaScript, and jQuery to improve mobile readability and user engagement.
• Custom Module Development: Designed and implemented custom Drupal modules to facilitate specialized newsroom workflows, including multimedia integration and digital archives.
• Technical Strategy: Provided expert consulting on infrastructure scalability, server-side security, and the integration of third-party advertising and social media APIs.

Led the development and optimization of high-traffic web applications and e-commerce platforms, utilizing a multi-framework stack to deliver scalable, cross-platform business solutions for the Australian market.

Key Responsibilities

• Framework Engineering: Developed and maintained robust web applications using CakePHP and native PHP, implementing MVC architecture to ensure modular and maintainable code.
• Legacy System Maintenance: Managed and optimized complex Perl/CGI environments, ensuring high availability and seamless feature integration for established business systems.
• Database Optimization: Designed and refined MySQL database schemas, focusing on performance tuning, indexing, and data security for enterprise-level applications.
• Frontend Development: Engineered responsive and interactive user interfaces using HTML, JavaScript, and jQuery to improve client-side performance and user engagement.
• System Architecture: Collaborated on the design of scalable backend infrastructures, integrating third-party APIs and managing cross-platform data synchronization.
• Technical Leadership: Provided expert-level troubleshooting and code reviews, maintaining high development standards and security protocols across all digital assets.

Technical lead focused on developing and scaling healthcare-oriented web applications, leveraging the Ruby on Rails framework to build secure, high-availability systems within a Linux environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Application Engineering: Design and develop robust, scalable backend services using Ruby on Rails, ensuring high performance and responsiveness to frontend requests.
• Legacy System Support: Maintain and optimize existing Perl/CGI scripts, facilitating the integration or migration of legacy data into modern Rails architectures.
• Full-Stack Implementation: Create dynamic and interactive user interfaces using HTML, JavaScript, and jQuery, focused on improving the clinician and patient user experience.
• Database Management: Architect and manage MySQL databases, optimizing complex queries and ensuring data integrity for sensitive healthcare information.
• System Administration: Manage application deployment and server configuration within a Linux environment, ensuring system security and 99.9% uptime.
• Technical Leadership: Lead code reviews, mentor junior developers, and contribute to architectural decisions to maintain a high-quality, test-driven codebase.

Technical lead and consultant responsible for the digital infrastructure of the institution, specializing in the development and maintenance of custom educational platforms and student management systems.

Key Responsibilities

• System Architecture: Managed the development and scaling of the school’s web ecosystem, utilizing Drupal 6 to build custom modules and specialized content types for academic tracking.
• Full-Stack Development: Engineered backend functionality with PHP and MySQL, ensuring a secure and efficient environment for sensitive student and faculty data.
• Frontend Optimization: Enhanced the user interface and institutional portals using HTML, JavaScript, and jQuery to ensure a responsive and intuitive experience for educators and parents.
• Database Administration: Optimized MySQL database performance and integrity, facilitating rapid access to large-scale academic records and reporting tools.
• Strategic Consulting: Provided expert guidance on technical roadmaps, site security, and the integration of third-party educational APIs into the existing Drupal framework.
• Workflow Automation: Designed and implemented custom scripts to automate administrative tasks, such as enrollment processing and automated grade reporting.

Lead developer and technical architect responsible for building, maintaining, and scaling complex enterprise web applications within a diverse technical stack, specializing in high-performance Drupal and Zend Framework implementations.

Key Responsibilities

• Application Architecture: Designed and engineered scalable web solutions using PHP and the PHP Zend Framework, ensuring robust backend logic and efficient system performance.
• Drupal Development: Led the customization and deployment of Drupal 6 platforms, including the creation of custom modules and advanced theme integration.
• Legacy System Integration: Maintained and optimized existing Perl/CGI scripts, facilitating seamless transitions and data flow between legacy systems and modern PHP environments.
• Frontend Engineering: Developed interactive, responsive user interfaces using HTML, JavaScript, and jQuery to enhance client-side functionality and user experience.
• Database Management: Architected and optimized MySQL schemas, focusing on query performance, data integrity, and complex relational mapping for large-scale datasets.
• Technical Leadership: Provided high-level troubleshooting and code optimization strategies to improve application security, stability, and development velocity.

Responsible for the stability, security, and optimization of the institution's server infrastructure and web-based systems, managing a Linux-centric environment to support international academic operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Server Management: Administer and maintain Linux-based servers, ensuring high availability, routine backups, and robust security protocols for educational databases and applications.
• System Development: Develop and refine internal tools and automation scripts using Perl/CGI and PHP to streamline administrative workflows and student data management.
• Web Administration: Oversee the frontend and backend health of institutional web portals, utilizing HTML and JavaScript to enhance user interface functionality and client-side performance.
• Network Security: Monitor system logs and implement firewall configurations to protect sensitive academic records and ensure compliance with data privacy standards.
• Technical Support & Integration: Troubleshoot complex system-level issues and integrate open-source software solutions to meet the evolving digital needs of the faculty and staff.
• Process Automation: Write and maintain server-side scripts to automate repetitive tasks, improving overall operational efficiency and reducing system downtime.

Technical lead responsible for the architecture, development, and maintenance of high-performance web applications, utilizing a diverse full-stack environment to deliver scalable business solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Full-Stack Engineering: Lead the development of robust applications using PHP and Perl/CGI for backend logic, integrated with dynamic HTML and JavaScript frontends.
• Architectural Leadership: Design and optimize system architectures, ensuring seamless integration between legacy Perl environments and modern PHP frameworks.
• Technical Mentorship: Oversee code reviews and provide technical guidance to junior developers to ensure high-quality, maintainable code across the stack.
• Performance Optimization: Debug and refine complex scripts and database queries to improve server-side response times and client-side interactivity.
• System Integration: Manage the lifecycle of web-based tools, from initial requirements gathering and UI/UX implementation to deployment and server-side configuration.
• Agile Delivery: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate business requirements into technical specifications within an Agile environment.