Backend Engineer & System Architect
Designing databases, engineering APIs, and building the invisible infrastructure that powers applications.
Selected Work
Deep dives into systems I've designed and built.
Architecture Showcase
Interactive visualizations of real database schemas and system architectures I've designed.
HTTP request originates from the frontend application or external API consumer.
Request enters through the gateway which handles routing, rate limiting, and initial validation.
Authentication and authorization checks. Validates JWT tokens or API keys before proceeding.
Business logic execution. Orchestrates use cases and coordinates between components.
Checks cache for frequently accessed data to reduce database load and improve response times.
Data access layer — translates between domain models and database queries.
Persistent storage. Executes queries and returns results through the stack.
Decoupled services communicate through events, enabling async processing, fault isolation, and independent scaling of components.
Normalized to 3NF with strategic denormalization for read-heavy queries. Time-series optimized with proper indexing.
Non-blocking I/O handles thousands of concurrent connections. Background task processing keeps API responses fast.
ACID compliance with serializable isolation for financial operations. Idempotency keys prevent duplicate processing.
Expertise
Click any category to explore specific technologies and concepts.
Designing scalable, maintainable backend systems
Database design, optimization, and management
Building robust server-side applications
Infrastructure and deployment practices
Transferable engineering principles
About
I believe the best backend code reads like documentation: explicit, predictable, and self-describing.
I'm Michael — a backend engineer who architects systems where correctness under concurrency isn't optional. I design databases that scale, APIs that stay consistent, and infrastructure that doesn't wake you up at 3am.
My focus is on the invisible foundation: the schemas, pipelines, and architectures that power applications. Whether it's designing a multi-tenant data model, engineering an async event processor, or planning a zero-downtime migration — I build systems that work reliably at scale.
Map the problem space before writing code
Architecture decisions documented and justified
Clean, tested, maintainable implementation
Performance testing, security audit, monitoring
Testimonials
Michael's approach to system architecture is meticulous. He doesn't just write code — he designs solutions that account for edge cases, scalability, and maintainability from day one.
Alex Chen
Senior Backend Engineer
Previous Team Lead
Working with Michael on the payment system architecture was a masterclass in thoughtful design. His understanding of ACID compliance and transaction safety gave us confidence in production.
Sarah Okonkwo
Full-Stack Developer
Group Project Collaborator
The database schemas Michael designs are a work of art. Everything is normalized properly, indexed strategically, and documented thoroughly. He thinks about queries before they're written.
James Adewale
DevOps Engineer
Former Colleague
Contact
Have a system that needs architecting? A database that needs designing? Or a backend that needs scaling? Send me an email — let's make it happen.
I typically respond within 24 hours. For urgent inquiries, reach out via email directly.
