Ryan Sandridge

Arlington, VA • ryan@ryansandridge.com • linkedin.com/in/ryansandridge

Summary

Software engineer with 20+ years of experience building backend and product-facing systems in startup and established-company environments. Strong in Python services, distributed systems, APIs, and data-intensive workflows, with practical full-stack experience and a track record of shipping software in ambiguous, early-stage settings. Deep background in reliable system design and cross-functional collaboration across product, frontend, and data teams.

Core Skills

• Languages/Frameworks: Python (FastAPI, Flask), Ruby on Rails, JavaScript/HTML/CSS
• APIs & Services: REST, AWS (Lambda, SQS, S3), Docker, Kubernetes
• Data Stores: PostgreSQL, DynamoDB, Redis
• Practices: Systems design, async task processing, performance tuning, test automation, code reviews, mentorship, rapid prototyping

Experience

Arcadia – Staff Backend Engineer
Mar 2018 – Apr 2023

• Served as a senior individual contributor building and operating backend systems supporting large-scale utility data acquisition and customer-facing energy products
• Primary owner of a custom-built priority queuing service, responsible for managing workload prioritization and operational constraints across distributed systems
• Designed and implemented high-concurrency Python services using FastAPI and AWS (Lambda, SQS, DynamoDB), with an emphasis on reliability, observability, and predictable behavior over long runtimes
• Collaborated closely with product, frontend, and data teams to translate evolving business requirements into durable backend architectures
• Mentored junior engineers, led internal lunch-and-learn sessions, and contributed to interviewing and hiring efforts

BumbleBee Childcare Software – CTO & Co-Founder
Aug 2013 – Aug 2014

• Refactored MVP into a scalable SaaS platform, reducing timeouts by 90%.
• Delivered customer-facing features and improved app security.

Sand Ridge Labs, LLC – Owner / Developer
Jul 2006 – Aug 2014

• Rebuilt Rails backend for Social Tables 2.0; scaled for rapid growth with Node.js integration.
• Partnered with Earth Aid (acquired by Nest) to ship features, harden security, and improve performance.
• Designed and built internal SaaS tools; supervised part-time contributors.

America Online (AOL) – Senior Software Engineer
Jul 1995 – Jan 2000

• Built and maintained AOL Macintosh Client (C++).
• Led development for AOLTV Client (vxWorks/Tornado), scaling to millions of users.

Education

Drexel University – B.S. Physics