# Avram Billig > Engineering Manager at Pearson Location: Brooklyn, New York, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/avram ## Work Experience ### Engineering Manager @ Pearson Jan 2023 – Present Manage globally distributed teams of 5 to 8 engineers, coaching and mentoring up to 13 direct reports and creating a culture of mutual support and empowerment. Collaborate closely with cross-functional partners in product, design, QA, and data science teams to assess technical feasibility, manage scope, identify and address blockers, and synchronize delivery. Transformed multiple engineering teams into cohesive, structured squads that reliably deliver. Introduced and led agile processes, established PR review guidelines, led technical whiteboarding and break-it sessions, and established testing strategies and shared use of demo environments. Oversaw the development and delivery of software solutions in the HR and learning space, including tools to recommend learning to teams and track their progress and dashboards of exploratory visualizations of skills across organizations. Spearheaded a multi-month collaboration with globally distributed teams 12 hours removed by establishing ways of working on shared repositories and infrastructure, and touchpoints and channels for information sharing. This resulted in shared delivery of a robust MVP product. Lead learning and adoption of new technologies, including automated deployments, microservices architectures, adoption and contribution to a shared component library, and TypeScript adoption. ### Engineering Manager @ GeneDx Jan 2021 – Jan 2022 At Sema4 (since acquired by GeneDx) I managed a talented and diverse team of engineers to develop production-grade applications in the healthcare space using React.js, D3.js, CircleCI, Docker and Kubernetes tooling, MySQL, Ruby on Rails, and Ruby ETL scripts. In this role, I led hiring, onboarding, cross-functional interactions, and professional development for the team's engineers. That included creating processes for code reviews and release management, leading multiple years of performance reviews, and overseeing scrum sessions. I also provided technical mentorship, using years of experience as an individual contributor to architect complex systems, lead design sessions, and review code. Even through the shift to remote work, salary cuts, rapid growth and loss cycles, and very high attrition for the overall company, our team experienced low attrition and continued personal growth while consistently delivering high-impact features. ### Lead Software Engineer @ GeneDx Jan 2019 – Jan 2021 | New York As the frontend team lead, I architected React applications while providing technical guidance to a growing team of engineers. The role evolved into that of an Engineering Manager, as I conducted performance reviews, regular one-on-ones, facilitated team discussions, and provided technical mentorship. I also managed cross-team interactions and created interview questions in JavaScript, SQL, and Ruby. ### Software Engineer @ GeneDx Jan 2017 – Jan 2019 | New York, New York • Architected and built a D3.js-based application to chart cancer patients’ treatment histories, with interactive features like zooming, panning, and toggling data points. • Productionized two nascent React applications by establishing robust error handling, reliable tooling, thorough testing, and by adding state management tools Redux and React Context. • Maintained CI/CD pipelines, managed releases, and resolved production bugs. • Built Ruby on Rails features, handling database interactions and object modeling. • Contributed to a custom metrics dashboard, adding the ability to interact with partner APIs. ### Software Developer @ Gannett | USA TODAY NETWORK Jan 2016 – Jan 2017 • Built data driven features and interactives for Gannett’s six New York newspapers, using vanilla JavaScript, D3.js, React/Redux, Ruby on Rails, Express + Node.js, and Photoshop. • Built a scalable Ruby on Rails application to track the impact of local reporting, with password encryption, a RESTful architecture, and permissioning for multiple user roles and publications. • Managed a collection of Linux servers to host projects and configured new servers to accommodate the use of new languages and frameworks, as well as unusually high traffic. ### Web Development Student @ The Flatiron School Jan 2016 – Jan 2016 ### Founder @ Pastport Jan 2015 – Jan 2016 | New York Managed the creation of a web and mobile app that allows users to explore New York City history, leading the project from proof of concept to acceptance in the App Store. ### Research Associate @ Brennan Center for Justice Jan 2013 – Jan 2015 | New York City Conducted data-driven legal research about the impact of money in politics, while serving as the operational point person for an interdisciplinary team of academics and attorneys. Published works: • How Obama Can Shed Light on Dark Money Without Congress, The Atlantic • How Congress Auctions Off Power, The Huffington Post • Citizens United, Kentucky, and the Future of American Elections, The Huffington Post • The Pro-Money Court, The Brennan Center for Justice ### Governance Studies Intern @ The Brookings Institution Jan 2013 – Jan 2013 Gathered and analyzed Congressional data for the Brookings publication Vital Statistics on Congress, preparing it for a transition to a publicly accessible online format. Acknowledgments: • It's Even Worse Than It Looks, by Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein • The Professor and the President, by Stephen Hess ### Production Intern @ Firelight Media Jan 2012 – Jan 2012 | New York Assisted in compiling and managing a relational database of archival imagery for use in a documentary film. Acknowledgements: • The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, by Firelight Media ### Teaching Assistant @ American University Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 ### Research and Program Intern @ Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 ## Education ### Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Political Science; History American University ### Hastings High School ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/avrambillig --- Source: https://flows.cv/avram JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/avram/resume.json Last updated: 2026-03-29