Acme Blog

Sebastian
Staffa

Portrait of Sebastian

Welcome!

I am Sebastian, a freelance software engineer, project lead and developer. I specialize in (IoT) cloud software and all internet-based applications in general.

At home in many places

For me, full-stack does not end at the backend. I have shipped projects from C/C++ firmware for microcontrollers (like the ESP32) to Rust applications for edge processing tasks that run on single-board computers and TypeScript backends all the way up to SPA browser applications. This broad experience allows me to pick the best tool for any given job and allows me to excel especially in those places where many technologies meet.

Engineer (/ˌɛn(d)ʒɪˈnɪə/)

As an engineer, my role not only includes technical implementations. In the past I have usually been responsible for the success of all parts of a project lifecycle: from the first idea, requirements engineering, implementation, all the way to the first production deployment - oftentimes as the only team member and in direct contact with stakeholders.

Leadership

In the past, I have not only taken responsibility for my work, but also for teams of up to four software developers with varying experience levels. In this role, I see myself as a mentor and a shield for my team members, making sure that the requirements are clear and that the team can work without interruptions.

My Journey

CLK GmbH

August 2014

I started my career at a local robotics and computer vision company in Altenberge. At CLK I was tasked with implementing quality assurance software for industrial applications as well as autonomous robot solutions. Despite my young age, I was oftentimes the only developer on a project and in direct contact with clients, which greatly influenced my work style.

Bachelor's Thesis

August 2018

In my bachelor's thesis I developed the computer vision algorithms that were used in an autonomous robotic welding application to calculate the trajectories required to process a workpiece from 3D point clouds.

shopware AG

September 2018

After a career start at a small company, I wanted to know what working in an international company was like. I joined shopware AG where I worked as a core developer on the newest version of its e-commerce platform "Shopware 6". In parallel, I started my master's degree.

tapdo technologies GmbH

December 2019

Wanting to return to project-based work, I accepted the invitation of a former colleague and joined tapdo, where I worked on every component of an IoT application, from device firmware to data ingestion, cloud-native processing, and the web application, as a senior and lead developer.

Master's Thesis

January 2021

My master's thesis explored solutions to track the fill level of Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBC) in the field by using low-cost sensors and machine learning.

Fulltime Freelancer

October 2024

After I had been working as a freelancer on the side for a year already, I decided to go full-time. Today I help companies plan and build their cloud(-native) applications as a consultant, project lead or senior developer.

Latest Blog Posts

MQTT For Web Developers

MQTT is a protocol that is typically used in an IoT context. In this article, we'll explore how we could use its capabilities in a traditional web application to stream messages in real-time.

By Sebastian Staffa

As a freelancer, I put my trust in NixOS. Here's why.

In today's blog I want to talk about why I have chosen NixOS as my main operating system.

By Sebastian Staffa

On How To Lead Devs

After I have been entrusted with leadership responsibilities, it's time to reflect on how not to mess it up.

By Sebastian Staffa