With a national product launch at risk due to deep-rooted technical debt, I assumed full-stack ownership across backend, database, and infrastructure layers. Through rapid assessment, re-architecture, and tactical rebuilds, I delivered a robust, modular platform — ahead of deadline and without compromising continuity.
The inherited system was structurally unsound: undocumented APIs, misconfigured databases, brittle deployment logic, and infrastructure lacking resilience or security. A critical go-live window was fixed, and failure to deliver would have resulted in significant business and reputational loss.
This wasn’t a matter of optimisation — the platform needed full reengineering under live pressure. Time was limited. Dependencies were unclear. There was no room for experimentation. The only viable strategy was precision triage followed by focused rebuild, delivered without service regression.
- Audited the full system within 48 hours to map critical failure paths.
- Rebuilt backend APIs with modular boundaries and role-isolated logic.
- Redesigned database schemas for transactional integrity and performance.
- Implemented infrastructure as code (IaC) for reproducible, auditable environments.
- Introduced CI/CD pipelines with gated validation and rollback contingencies.
- Hardened all access layers — including API authentication, network exposure, and datastore permissions.
- Delivered phased cutovers to prevent disruption and maintain delivery milestones.
The rebuilt platform passed all QA and third-party security assessments two weeks ahead of launch. Maintained 99.99% uptime in the first 90 days. Reduced deployment errors to near-zero. Post-launch development velocity increased significantly, with weekly updates made possible by modular structure and stable infrastructure.
Delivering under pressure means knowing when to triage, when to rebuild, and when to lead from the front. This project reinforced the value of total system ownership — not just technical, but architectural, strategic, and operational. It shaped the standards I now bring to every engineering recovery and rebuild effort I lead.