James Kenneth Guidaven Based in Cebu, Philippines
About Me

Hey, I'm James Kenneth

I'm currently at Automattic Inc. — the company behind WordPress.com, WooCommerce, Jetpack, and Tumblr. My day-to-day is React and PHP, building products used by millions of people across the web.

Over 15 years, I've worked across the full spectrum — from self-checkout terminals in C++ at NCR, to microservice architectures on AWS at Newlogic, to the WordPress ecosystem today. What stays constant is my focus: making things work well for the people who use them.

Outside of work, I'm either gaming or somewhere outdoors chasing good light for landscape photography.

7 teams. 15+ years. The full timeline.
Career

Work Experience & Education

2022 Now

Automattic Inc.

Software Engineer
  • Building and maintaining WordPress-powered products using React and PHP
  • Contributing to the WordPress ecosystem at scale
2019

Newlogic Pte Ltd, Singapore

Software Engineer
  • Built mobile solutions with Vue.js, Angular, React, Ionic, and React Native
  • Designed microservice architectures on AWS (DynamoDB, Lambda, API Gateway, SQS, SNS)
  • Developed proof-of-concept applications for the IDPASS ecosystem
2018

Codev, Cebu Philippines

Full Stack Software Engineer
  • Built features for Zenventory and Sqbx using React, PHP Slim, and Prototype.js
  • Integrated with BigCommerce, WooCommerce, eBay, Amazon, and ShipStation via OAuth2/OIDC APIs
2015

Lexmark R&D Corp, Cebu Philippines

Software Engineer
  • Led the rebuild of the Admin Portal UI using Angular with responsive design and async processing
  • Built the User Service in Spring Boot as part of a monolith-to-microservices migration using JWT with asymmetric encryption
  • Mitigated direct object reference vulnerabilities by incorporating Hashids
2014

Serious Dev Technology, Cebu Philippines

Lead Software Engineer & Co-Founder
  • Introduced Agile methodology, improving delivery speed and code quality
  • Led development of an ERP system using Laravel and Bootstrap
  • Built an SMS broadcasting platform with Laravel/Lumen and Angular
2011

NCR Corporation, Cebu Philippines

Software Engineer
  • Developed core Self-Checkout application customizations in C/C++ for ASPAC clients
  • Built a log visualization tool in Java for faster debugging of SCO application logs
2008

University of Cebu

BS Information Technology
  • Built a network-based activity monitoring system for administrators
  • 1st runner-up in thesis competition at Battle of IT Schools (BITS)