Johanna Smith-Palliser

Hey there!

I'm Johanna, a Latina software engineer interested in tackling hard problems and making the tech industry look more like the diverse world we live in. This Fall, I will be continuing my studies at Cornell University pursuing a Master of Engineering degree in Computer Science. My interests in technology include Software Engineering, Full-Stack Development, and Mobile Development (iOS). In my free time, I like to run, cook, and find new donut shops to try.

Adobe

Summer 2019

Working on the Lightroom Cloud Services team as a Software Engineer Intern, I led efforts to transform critical image processing microservices testing into a more streamlined deployment pipeline. More specifically, I developed a comprehensive test suite of unit, component, and end-to-end tests in Ruby to effectively test these microservices and provide modularization of code. In doing this, I was able to reduce test runtime by up to 20 seconds per test for thousands of tests cases.

Twitter

Summer 2018

As a Software Engineering Intern at Twitter, I worked on the MoPub SDK team recreating the fullscreen video ad experience on iOS devices to empower developers and create a seamless user experience. I wrote a technical design document to plan my implementation and continued updating it throughout the development process to ensure the project's success when pushed to production after the conclusion of my internship. My work is currently in production, improving load time by up to 5 seconds per ad unit.

Cornell Engineering

Fall/Spring 2018, Spring 2019

In the Department of Computer Science, my role as a Teaching Assistant for the introductory and intermediate web development courses (CS 1300, CS 2300) allows me to help convey technical knowledge to fellow students in a concise and welcoming manner to enable them to continue in the field with confidence and a sense of belonging. Technical concepts for this course include: frontend and backend development, database construction, user interactivity, design principles.

GE Aviation

Summer 2017

As a Digital Technology Leadership Program Intern, I leveraged my technical knowledge in software development and database management to lead a project for a tool to be used on shop floors. By communicating technical features of projects to non-technical stakeholders, I was able to gain insight into defining the problem statement that would later inform my decisions in building a product roadmap with best implementation methods.

CodeKids Camp

Summer 2016

At CodeKids, I worked an Instructor to teach local students ages 7 through 13 the fundamental concepts of programming and robotics. While external resources like Codecademy and Lego Mindstorms were used to allow students to deliver actual quantifiable projects, I presented concepts through face-to-face interactions with students each morning, making sure to include hands-on activites that would solidify the concepts independently from any specific syntax.