# Joshua Ford

> Senior Software Engineer | Backend Systems & Data Pipelines | Python · TypeScript · PostgreSQL · Kubernetes

Location: Kansas City Metropolitan Area, United States
Profile: https://flows.cv/joshuaford

I'm a senior software engineer with 7+ years building backend systems, data pipelines, and cloud infrastructure for production applications. Most of my recent work has been in the agricultural tech space — designing the kind of systems that handle serious data at scale: geospatial raster pipelines processing terabytes of elevation data, Kubernetes-based job orchestration, and APIs supporting multi-tenant SaaS platforms with enterprise clients.
 
I tend to gravitate toward the harder backend problems — the ones where the challenge isn't just writing the feature but figuring out the right architecture, diagnosing why something breaks under load, or deciding whether to build or reach for an existing tool. I've found I do my best work when I have real ownership over a problem end-to-end, from data model through deployment.
 
Outside of pure backend work I'm comfortable across the full stack and have collaborated closely with product and design on decisions that go beyond the technical layer.
 
Open to senior backend or full-stack engineering roles. Particularly interested in teams building data-heavy or infrastructure-adjacent products.
 
Tech I work with: Python, Node.js, TypeScript, PostgreSQL/PostGIS, Kubernetes, Docker, AWS, React, GDAL.

## Work Experience
### Senior Software Engineer @ INTENT
Jan 2024 – Present
At INTENT I worked on the backend platform powering an agricultural analytics SaaS product serving 63 enterprise clients across 1.7 million acres.
Some of the work I'm most proud of:
Geospatial data pipelines — Designed and operated large-scale raster processing pipelines handling several TB of elevation data across the continental US using GDAL, Cloud-Optimized GeoTIFFs, and VRTs on AWS and GCS. This work fed terrain feature computation that supported ML-based crop prediction models.
Job orchestration system — We were initially using Celery for compute-heavy jobs but hit memory exhaustion issues specific to how GDAL parses GeoTIFFs under load. I diagnosed the problem and built a lightweight DAG-based job orchestrator in Python and PostgreSQL that gave us better control over job lifecycle and resource behavior. It was later picked up by teammates for unrelated workloads across the platform.
AI pipeline — Built a production system that batched prompt execution across 100+ agronomic trials against the Gemini API, storing structured model outputs for downstream analytics and application use.
I also owned backend architecture across Python services, PostgreSQL/PostGIS data models, and AWS/Kubernetes infrastructure, and contributed across the full stack including React-based frontend mapping applications.

### Software Engineer @ INTENT
Jan 2023 – Jan 2024

### Technology Specialist @ VMLY&R
Jan 2022 – Jan 2023
Built reusable AEM components and TypeScript micro-frontend services for Fortune 500 client web platforms, integrating external APIs into enterprise content management systems. Worked cross-functionally with design, backend, and accessibility teams to enforce WCAG 2 compliance and automated code quality standards.

### Software Engineer @ Uhlig LLC
Jan 2020 – Jan 2022
Developed customer-facing web applications and transactional systems for external clients in a full-stack delivery environment, working across React, Node.js, and SQL Server.

### Web Developer @ UPS
Jan 2018 – Jan 2020
Built internal web applications and data reporting tools using Vue.js, D3.js, and ColdFusion. First engineering role — where I moved from operations into software development.

### Industrial Engineering Supervisor @ UPS
Jan 2017 – Jan 2018

### Operations Supervisor @ UPS
Jan 2017 – Jan 2017

### Lab Instructor @ University of Missouri-Kansas City
Jan 2016 – Jan 2017


## Education
### Computer Software Engineering
Kansas State University
Jan 2018 – Jan 2019

### Computer Science
University of Missouri-Kansas City
Jan 2015 – Jan 2017

### Bachelor of Science - BS
University of Central Missouri


## Contact & Social
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/joshua-ford232

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Source: https://flows.cv/joshuaford
JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/joshuaford/resume.json
Last updated: 2026-03-22