Thomas Misera

Lothringerstr. 97, 52070 Aachen
+49 178 3316064
thomas@misera.org

Full-stack engineer turned engineering leader with 13+ years building and scaling web platforms. Led teams of up to 7 engineers while staying deeply hands-on — from architecting microservices and designing Helm charts to writing GraphQL resolvers. Track record of inheriting complex, fragmented systems and shipping them as unified, observable, GitOps-deployed platforms. TypeScript, Kubernetes, and AWS are home turf.

Skills

Backend & Frontend
TypeScript, Node.js, React, GraphQL, Python, SQL, HTML, CSS
Infrastructure
Kubernetes, Helm, ArgoCD, Docker, Terraform, AWS (EKS, S3)
CI/CD & Tooling
GitLab CI, pnpm workspaces, CalVer, SealedSecrets, Jenkins, Git
Observability & Auth
OpenTelemetry, Datadog, SigNoz, Keycloak SSO, oauth2-proxy
Testing
Jest, Mocha, Karma, E2E
Languages
Fluent in English and German

Professional Experience

Platform Engineer — Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ)
09.2025 – present
Kubernetes, Helm, ArgoCD, GitLab CI, OpenTelemetry, SigNoz, pnpm, Docker, SealedSecrets

Modernized the BioMe biodiversity monitoring platform (4+ full-stack apps, mobile app, shared libraries) from a scattered multi-repo setup with manual deployments into a unified, production-ready platform. 1,131 commits in 6 months.

  • Consolidated all frontends and backends into a single monorepo with pnpm workspaces, unified Docker Compose profiles, and shared GraphQL codegen.
  • Built the entire CI/CD pipeline from scratch: automated releases with CalVer, Helm chart validation, pnpm lock checks, and ephemeral per-MR review environments with auto-cleanup.
  • Designed a Helm umbrella chart with reusable sub-charts (api, frontend) and deployed 8 services to production via ArgoCD GitOps across dev, stage, and prod environments.
  • Deployed centralized observability from zero using SigNoz with OpenTelemetry, including slow query tracing, Keycloak SSO via oauth2-proxy, and scoped cluster metrics.
  • Hardened all containers to run as non-root with nginx-unprivileged and enforced security contexts across all Helm deployments.
  • Built automated DB migration system using Kubernetes initContainers compatible with ArgoCD.
Head of Backend and Web — Walby App
10.2022 – 08.2025
AWS EKS, Terraform, Kubernetes, Helm, GraphQL, TypeScript, Python, Docker, TypeORM, PostGIS, GitLab CI, OpenTelemetry, Datadog, Firebase

Led backend and frontend teams (7 engineers) for a location-based mobile platform. #2 contributor by commits (733 of 10+ developers), spanning the entire stack from Angular frontend through GraphQL/REST APIs to Kubernetes infrastructure.

  • Designed the entire GraphQL schema, resolver, and data-source architecture from scratch; built the test suite with a custom sequencer for deterministic ordering.
  • Single-handedly executed the AWS EKS migration — Helm charts for 9 services, full CI/CD rewrite, OIDC auth, SSL, and deploy-verification scripts (120 commits in one month).
  • Built observability from zero: structured JSON logging across TypeScript and Python services, OpenTelemetry tracing, Datadog APM, slow-query detection with variable masking.
  • Designed and shipped the complete Firebase/APNS push notification system with custom payloads and iOS-specific headers.
  • Overhauled database infrastructure: migration Helm charts, TypeORM SSL, database sync with cron scheduling, and PostgreSQL/PostGIS setup.
Full-stack TypeScript Engineer — Metro Deutschland
06.2020 – 10.2022
React, GraphQL, TypeORM, Docker Compose, Styled Components

Internal tools to manage B2B customer contracts and incentives.

  • Built full-stack features with Apollo GraphQL, integrating with a dozen external APIs.
  • Implemented PDF and email rendering flows for contract communication.
TypeScript Engineer — Audi
01.2018 – 12.2019
Node, React, MobX, Lerna, Yarn, Webpack, Bluebird, Styled Components

Isomorphic B2C web frontend to finance and purchase cars.

  • Monorepo with individually versioned packages to facilitate re-using the same codebase for different sites with deviating requirements (multi-national).
  • Main contributions: pattern library, gallery with linear algebra zoom, tracking, logging, i18n, l10n, a11y, email templates, Jenkins pipeline.
JavaScript Engineer — interdiscount.ch / microspot.ch
08.2016 – 12.2017
Node, React, Redux, Flow, Webpack, Karma, Mocha, Sass
  • Isomorphic, skinnable B2C shops for the two largest Swiss electronics retailers. Won “Best of Swiss Web” 2018.
  • Registration, guest checkout, address handling, pattern library, CI/CD, tracking.
Frontend Developer — coop.ch
01.2016 – 07.2016

80+ responsive, accessible pattern library modules for Switzerland’s 2nd largest supermarket chain.

UX Prototype — Rewe
07.2015

UX prototype and Agile coaching for B2B interface redesign.

Full-stack Developer — Lekkerland
09.2015 – 12.2015

PHP/Laravel e-learning platform with video, quizzes, and manager dashboards.

Backend Developer — Deutsche Telekom
08.2012 – 12.2012

Python REST backend for an iOS app, aggregating 3rd party APIs and crawled feeds.

Education

Maastricht University
2008 – 2011
Knowledge Engineering
Cambridge Tutors College, London
1999 – 2000
A-Levels: Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology