MK McKenzie
Summary
I am a self-taught, climate-focused, full-stack software engineer who takes a human-driven approach to development. I am quick to learn, methodical, and a stickler for the house style guide.
👩🏼💻 🌱
Currently working for Stitch Fix in San Francisco & Remote.
Skills
Ruby
- Introduced to Ruby via Skillcrush in 2015
- Co-hosted an international remote book club for Sandi Metz's Practical Object Oriented Design in Ruby
- Attended RubyConf 2015 as an Opportunity Scholar
- Attended Ruby for Good
- 2016: Scimitar Oryx project
- 2017: Operation Code project
- 2019: Terristories project
- Co-organized Ruby by the Bay 2020 (remote!)
React
- Written frequently at Stitch Fix for various front-end projects (Consolidated Payment Form NPM package, Fix Inspiration Board's UI, logged-out Product Details Page, internal design system components)
- Used to build out vendor direct payment system at WeddingWire
- First introduced to React at Ruby for Good 2017 while helping to rebuild Operation Code
- This site is built with Gatsby, a static site generator for React 😻
Assorted Technical Skills
GraphQL, Typescript, HTML5/CSS3, PostgreSQL, Sass, Elasticsearch, MySQL, Adobe Illustrator, Generally Being a Good Person
Work History
Lead Engineer 1, Stitch Fix, May 2021 - Present
- Stack: Rails, React, PostgreSQL, GraphQL, Apollo, TypeScript
- Projects: Product Model Integration on the Logged-Out Product Detail Page.
- Daily: Lead multi-quarter projects across Shop (Freestyle) teams. Build new product data model and GraphQL schema for Shop engineers. Gather metrics and monitor feature launches. Identify & recommend latency improvements.
Software Engineer 3, Stitch Fix, October 2019 - May 2021
- Stack: Rails, React, PostgreSQL, GraphQL, TypeScript
- Projects: Shopping Bag features such as - Similar Items & Quantity Editing. Identified, architected, and added reusable components to the component library that were immediately leveraged by several teams.
- Daily: Lead clearly defined projects related to Stitch Fix Shop features (including features within Shopping Bag, Product Detail Pages, and Shop index pages). Given product statement & design mocks - researched projects & broke up work into discrete milestones and clearly-defined JIRA tickets. Pair with & mentor other engineers on my team to move roadmap work along. Continue to hone technical skills in React, TypeScript, and GraphQL.
Software Engineer 2, Stitch Fix, June 2018 - October 2019
- Stack: Rails, React, PostgreSQL
- Projects: Consolidated Payment Form Experience, Structured Fix Request Redesign, Fix Inspiration Board, Direct Buy (Shop) features
- Daily: Work cross-functionally to develop features for the user ("Client") facing website, specifically regarding building client-stylist relationships for returning clients
Graphics & Web Coordinator, SWANA, July 2013 - July 2016
- Designed branding & marketing graphics for two major annual conferences
- Created and updated content for the association website
- Launched, marketed, and managed the online community for 8,000 members
Software Engineer (Specialist), WeddingWire, July 2016 - June 2018
- Stack: Rails, React, Redux, MySQL, Elasticsearch
- Projects: Interactive Venue Pricing, WeddingWire Pay integration with the Stripe API, Responsive Storefront & Write A Review Redesign
- Daily: Implement a team-designed Agile workflow to work with product managers, designers, developers and quality assurance to see a feature from inception to completion, and beyond.
Community Leadership
Organizer, Ruby by the Bay / Ruby for Good, January 2020 - April 2020
- Assist with project selection
- Coordinate efforts to pivot event from on-site to remote due to COVID-19
- Act as team shepherd for the Free Forest School project
- Meet weekly in the months leading up to event
DC Community Developer, CodeNewbie DC, March 2016 - July 2018
- Plan and schedule meet ups including a 5-month speaker series, monthly community coding sessions, and various social events for up to 50 attendees
- Hold monthly meetings with Saron Yitbarek, the founder of CodeNewbie
- Volunteered at Codeland 2017 and 2018, the 2-day annual CodeNewbie conference, in NYC
Rails Community Lead, Women Who Code DC, December 2015 - July 2018
- Create tutorials, give tech talks, and organize weekly meetups for attendees
Member, Global Shapers, D.C. Hub I, December 2016 - July 2018
- Work with the DC Global Shapers (an initiative of the World Economic Forum) on community outreach projects.
Education
UNC-Chapel Hill, B.S. Environmental Science, Class of 2013
- Dean's List - Spring 2011; Fall 2011; Fall 2012
- Study Abroad Merit Scholarship - Fall 2012
- Capstone Research Project: Life Cycle Assessment of Biofuels from Wastewater Algae for Transportation in Thailand; published in the Journal of Sustainable Energy and Environment 🌱
Media Mentions
Guest Blog on GoDaddy
Code with Veni
Meet Mary-Katherine. A Self-Taught Rails Developer. - Code With Veni
Skillcrush
Featured in the "Meet a Developer" section as part of their Free 10-Day Bootcamp
Projects & Presentations
Women Who Code DC Presentations
- Intro to Git
- Write First, Abstract Later: POODR in Real Life
- RailsConf Recap
- Tutorial: Build a Rails app using the NASA Astronomy Photo of the Day API
- Written for & presented at Women Who Code DC meetups
POODR Weekly Bookclub
- Fall 2015
- Co-hosted a weekly bookclub with a handful of other folks all over the world
- Assembled a few slide decks focusing on one chapter of Sandi Metz's Practical Object Oriented Design in Ruby
- YouTube Playlist