A senior product engineer who's been the founder too.
A product engineer's job isn't closing tickets. It's working out what the user actually needs, building the smallest version that proves it, and shipping it without breaking what's already there. I've done that across eight products of my own: a voice AI platform, a till for takeaways, a visa sponsor directory, a health coach app. I bring the same judgement to your product, and I write the code myself.
Senior product engineer
Sounds like you if
- Your product has users and a backlog that's growing faster than your team
- You need someone who can own a feature from the first sketch to the deploy
- Your engineers are good, but nobody's asking whether a feature should exist at all
- You're a founder without a technical co-founder and need senior hands for a while
Tools on the bench
- Next.js
- React
- TypeScript
- Python
- FastAPI
- PostgreSQL
- Vercel
- AWS
- Azure
How I’d handle it
The job, step by step.
- 01
Understand the problem
Time with you and, where we can, your users. Then a short written proposal: the smallest thing worth shipping, and what it will tell us.
- 02
Ship in small pieces
Working software every week or two, behind feature flags where it helps, with tests on the parts that matter. No big reveal at the end.
- 03
Measure and tidy up
Analytics on what we shipped, an honest look at whether it worked, and the cleanup that keeps the codebase pleasant for the next feature.
What you walk away with.
- 01Features built end to end: database, backend, frontend and deploy
- 02Fast, accessible, search-friendly web apps in Next.js and React
- 03APIs and backends in Python and FastAPI
- 04Product analytics, so you can see whether a feature earned its place
- 05Straight answers on scope, including what not to build
Shipped, not just pitched.
Products of mine where the same work is running for real users.
Questions people ask first.
What's the difference between a product engineer and a software engineer?
A software engineer is usually handed a spec. A product engineer helps write it. I care about why a feature exists and whether it worked, not only whether it compiles.
Can you join our team for a few months?
Yes. Most product work is a few days a week over a few months, which is enough to own real features without a full-time hire. We agree the shape on the first call.
Do you work with early-stage startups?
Often. I've started companies myself, so short runways, small budgets and changing plans are normal to me. I'll also tell you when something can wait.
Where are you based?
Northampton, UK. I work remotely with teams anywhere in the world.
Other jobs I take on