Chad Norwood

Berkeley, CA
linkedin.com/in/chadnorwood
chadnorwood.com
Phone: 773-234-7757
Email: chad@chadnorwood.com

Summary

A senior full-stack engineer who thinks like a systems architect and leads like a director.

Engineering leader with 20+ years of experience across cloud infrastructure, distributed systems, and full-stack web applications. Skilled in Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Node.js, React, and AWS. Proven track record building scalable systems, designing APIs, integrating AI/LLMs, and mentoring engineers — currently focused on AI-assisted tools and evaluation frameworks. Experienced navigating ambiguity and sustaining critical platforms in lean team environments. Passionate about building thoughtful, resilient software with measurable impact.

Technical Skills

Languages: JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, PHP, Perl, Ruby, HTML/CSS, Bash, C/C++, Java

Frontend: React, AngularJS, Twitter Bootstrap, Streamlit

Backend: Node.js, Next.js, Express, Django, Rails, Symfony

Cloud & DevOps: AWS (EC2, Lambda, EKS, S3, SWF, Redshift), GCP, Heroku, CI/CD

Databases: PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redshift, Redis, MySQL, GraphQL, Cassandra, OpenSearch

AI/LLM Tools: OpenAI API, Langchain, Together.ai, LLMOps, Evaluation frameworks

Other Tools: Git, Docker, Auth0 (OIDC, SAML), RabbitMQ, Nginx, Jira, Confluence, Cursor

Experience

Independent Consultant

1999 – Present

• 2025: Python-based web scraper (Langchain, Playwright, Pandas) for college sports news — scaled pipeline 10x.
• 2025: React + TypeScript events map aggregating Google Calendar, Facebook Events — Redis + Google Maps UI. GitHub – cmf
• 2025: LLM calendar assistant (Langchain + Cal.com API) — AI-driven meeting scheduling. GitHub – ai-chatbot-meetings
• 2024: Google Photos album browser with OAuth — React app used by heavy media users. GitHub – gphotos-albums
• Contributed to Rails, CPAN, NPM, SourceForge; built internal tools and editorial platforms.
• Bureau of Trade: Node.js + MongoDB JSON API + Bootstrap admin UI for curated inventory search.

Senior Software Engineer – Arboreal AI

Berkeley, CA — Dec 2024 – Apr 2025

• Built Python + Streamlit chatbot with backend LLM orchestration and eval tooling (Parea.ai).
• Explored prompt strategies, model summarization, and AI workflow integration in production context.

Director of Engineering – EMX (Engine Media Group)

Chicago, IL — Sep 2020 – Jul 2022

• Modernized ad tech platform handling 1M+ QPS; implemented canary deploy clusters across AWS.
• Reduced data latency from 2hrs to <5min; fixed DB bottlenecks and scaled data updates globally.
• Mentored leads, clarified team ownership, and introduced agile feedback loops org-wide.

Director of Engineering – Balihoo Platform

Chicago, IL — Nov 2017 – Sep 2020

• Led engineering for $2M+/yr SaaS for local marketing; scaled platform across 30+ AWS services.
• Managed 5-person team and $6M Google Ads spend; streamlined campaign automation and analytics.
• Guided transition to offshore team while maintaining uptime, SLAs, and team velocity.

Software Engineering Manager – OpticsPlanet (Ecentria)

Chicago, IL — May 2013 – Apr 2017

• Managed 11–14 engineers across 2 teams; hired, mentored, and led cross-functional delivery.
• Introduced agile health metrics; built Jira tools and career ladders to scale growth + autonomy.
• Built productivity tools and drove QA/testing process improvements across org.

Senior Developer – Critical Mass

Chicago, IL — Mar 2010 – May 2012

• Developed responsive apps for major brands (United, Nissan, AutoTrader).
• Led Adobe Test & Target integration to boost experimentation velocity.

Internet Engineer – Yahoo

Sunnyvale, CA — Aug 2003 – Apr 2006

• Frontend lead for MyWeb 2.0 (social bookmarking, tagging); scaled across orgs.
• Created internal QA automation tool adopted company-wide.

Education

B.S. in Computer Engineering, Minor in Computer Science — Virginia Tech

AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (2019) • GMAT 750 (98th percentile)

Additional Projects & Activities

• Event Organizer: Produced 20+ nonprofit events (1,000+ attendees, $20k+ raised)
• Interests: Biking, music, nature, education, Burning Man