Aaron McKinney

Intro

I'm a husband and dad in an amazing family of six. My home is always full of noise, laughter, and the occasional sibling negotiation, and I honestly would not trade it for anything. My faith is a big part of who I am because it keeps me steady, reminds me what matters, and helps me show up the way I want to for the people I love. Family time is my anchor and the place where everything makes the most sense.

Work

HANDLES

Blockchain-based identity and naming system on Cardano.

handle.me

Archery Guru

Comprehensive archery training and tracking web application.

archery.guru

Visual Clock

A visual clock that let's you set a timer

visualclock.com

BossCheatSheets

A World of Warcraft addon and website with user-submitted strategies

https://www.curseforge.com/wow/addons/bosscheatsheets

Resume

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Senior Software Engineer and Technical Leader with over 18 years of experience building scalable, reliable cloud and web applications. Skilled across the full stack with expertise in AWS serverless architecture, blockchain development on Cardano, and modern JavaScript frameworks. Adept at leading small engineering teams, mentoring developers, and delivering high-impact solutions from concept to deployment.

EXPERIENCE

CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, Bend, OR

KoraLabs LLC, March 2021-Present

Lead engineering and architecture for blockchain-powered products in the Cardano ecosystem. Launched ADA Handles, a naming protocol with over 250,000 NFTs issued, and built personalization tools for user customization.
Designed and deployed scalable serverless systems using AWS Lambda, Firestore, Node.js, and React.
Integrated on-chain smart contracts with off-chain logic to enable complex personalization workflows.
Manage and mentor a team of 3 developers, overseeing architecture, reviews, and product releases.

SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER & MANAGER, Bend, OR

CBT Nuggets, June 2018-March 2021

Built and maintained microservices supporting leaderboards and reporting using Node.js, PostgreSQL, Redis, and AWS.
Introduced containerized CI/CD pipelines through Jenkins and AWS ECS to improve deployment reliability.
Promoted to team manager, leading 4 members across engineering, frontend, and QA roles.
Improved report performance and user experience through refactoring and testing practices.

SOFTWARE DEVELOPER, Bend, OR

5Talent, January 2015-January 2018

Delivered dozens of projects ranging from WordPress plugins to full-featured web applications built in C#/.NET.
Developed applications using Angular and Node.js with the AWS Serverless Framework.
Built infrastructure using AWS S3, Lambda, RDS, DynamoDB, API Gateway, and CloudFormation templates.
Collaborated with clients to design, build, and deliver custom software solutions.

WEB DEVELOPER, Bend, OR

Smartz, March 2010-September 2015

Migrated hundreds of client websites into a unified CMS platform while maintaining SEO integrity.
Built custom front-end components with HTML5, CSS3, jQuery, AJAX, and Flash.
Developed backend systems using C#, PHP, MySQL, and MSSQL to enhance customer functionality.
Worked with Magento, BV Commerce, WordPress, CMSMS, and Pixelsilk to deliver optimized, high-performing sites.
Focused heavily on SEO best practices, improving client site performance and discoverability.

CERTIFICATIONS

AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate
AWS Certified Developer - Associate