I am Tony Mowers, an experienced: software engineer, team lead, and engineering mentor. Through my company, Alika Analytics AG, I’ve been providing software engineering services to businesses in Europe, and North America, for over 20 years.
What I Do
I build custom software for my clients. I work either independently or embedded in a client’s team. Due to my years of experience, I am a capable of working in one of many roles, depending upon a client’s needs:
- software developer
- team lead and engineering mentor
- project manager
I help my clients build the software they want while keeping their projects within budget and avoiding the common pitfalls. I’m able to do this consistently by employing methods that are easily repeatable, teachable, and that enable early success.
My Background
I’ve been working in software engineering for a few decades now. The work has included a wide range of both technical and business challenges. The technical challenges have ranged from developing operating system software used on the first Mars Rover mission to simple web applications that help automate small business processes. The business challenges have ranged from helping lead engineering teams at small startups to helping lead large process change initiatives at large software development companies.
I graduated from the University of Waterloo, one of Canada’s leading engineering and science schools, with a degree in Applied Mathematics. After leaving university I worked for several years as a Member of Scientific Staff at Northern Telecom’s research labs, which was one of Canada’s premier research and development labs. This experience gave me the opportunity to work with some brilliant people and to gain a solid foundation in software engineering practices.
The next phase of my career was working as a Silicon Valley Based Software Engineer. I lived and worked near San Francisco for about 12 years. I worked for many startups and held many different roles such as project manager, software architect, team lead, and technical trainer. I learned about several aspects of business such as corporate finance, product design, and product usability. I gained valuable experience in applying lean business methods.
The current phase of my career, that of an Independent Contractor for more than 15 years, has been all about helping my clients with a wide variety of business challenges, sometimes under very challenging conditions. I work with them closely analyzing their business needs and developing a software solution to satisfy their needs. I help identify obstacles and work with them to remove obstacles. When needed I mentor and train their employees.
Working together with my clients, I help build solutions that work.