DANIEL MADDERN
Sydney,Australia
Summary
Hands-on Platform Engineering Manager (≈90% coding/building) with deep Azure + IaC expertise and a full-stack background (TypeScript/React/Express, .NET, Python). I design paved paths (templates, modules, CI/CD) that make secure delivery the default, and I still build the core services myself—recently shipping one-click environment provisioning (AAS 2.0), secure AVD workflows (ASAL), and a document-review AI app for procurement compliance. Strong in reliability, security, and developer experience; comfortable switching between Staff-level technical leadership and people leadership.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
Work History
Platform Engineering Manager (Software & IaC)
NSW Department of Customer Service (DAC)
Sydney
02.2024 - Current
- AAS 2.0 (Deploy-as-a-Service web app): Designed and built a React/TypeScript + Express application on Azure App Service that provisions complex analytics environments via standardized Terraform/Bicep modules and gated pipelines; eliminated significant manual steps and reduced operational load by ~30%.
- ASAL (Secure AVD environments): Implemented a controlled workflow for isolated AVD deployments with ingress/egress approvals, DLP guardrails, and audit trails, improving time-to-productivity and reducing support friction.
- IPART (ingestion portal & APIs): Architecting and building a secure React/Express portal behind Azure API Management with validation pipelines and hardened storage patterns; authoring data contracts, error envelopes, and versioning.
- AI Solutions (Procurement Compliance Tool): Built a secure, auditable review app using Copilot Studio, Power Automate, Azure AI Foundry, and a custom Node service to check ~400 rules against procurement documents; outputs persist to Dataverse/SharePoint with PII redaction and prompt-safety controls.
- Cost Reporting (ETL to Power BI): Developed Azure Functions to extract and transform Azure Cost Management data for Power BI; enabled self-serve dashboards across AAS/ASAL and reduced manual spreadsheet effort.
- Standards & reliability: Authored coding and branching policies; embedded CI checks (lint, tests, SCA) and release approvals; delivered an ISO 27001 treatment plan and remediated vulnerabilities across team repos.
- People & enablement: Lead a 3-engineer platform team; set goals and growth plans, run training for wider staff, present platform/AI capabilities to departments, and perform cross-team code reviews and Azure troubleshooting.
Associate Teaching Fellow
Deakin University
03.2025 - 06.2025
- Designed and delivered lectures/labs for .NET Web API; assessed submissions for security, REST design, testing, and ORM quality.
- Mentored 50+ students on authentication/authorization and full-stack API delivery.
- Remote, Part-time
Sessional Academic
Deakin University
10.2023 - 07.2024
- Ran tutorials/labs on .NET Web APIs, identity, and ORM integration; supervised capstone projects (Angular/Rails).
- Produced training materials for GitHub workflows and Agile collaboration.
- Remote, Part-time
Software Engineer
Learning Innovators / Formatif LMS
06.2021 - 07.2024
- Built features across Angular 17 and Ruby on Rails; migrated AngularJS components with test coverage.
- Refactored REST endpoints/models to improve performance and maintainability.
- Introduced Docker dev containers and CI/CD via GitHub Actions; mentored junior engineers.
- Remote, Part-time
IT Manager
Waverley College
Waverley
03.2021 - 10.2023
- Led IT operations and infra strategy for 1,800+ users across multiple campuses; shifted to a hybrid cloud model (AWS/Azure) and reduced on-prem dependencies by ~40%.
- Managed ~$2M annual budget, improved cost efficiency through contract consolidation and vendor negotiation.
- Drove DevOps practices (automation/observability with Splunk & LogicMonitor) and established DEI and mentoring programs.
Network Manager
Waverley College
Waverley
03.2019 - 03.2021
- Integrated student systems with .NET APIs and SQL Server; automated infra tasks with Python/PowerShell.
- Delivered a 1:1 laptop program for 1,800+ students; implemented DR and backup plans and improved incident response via dashboards/alerts.
Network & Infrastructure Administrator
Waverley College
Waverley
03.2014 - 03.2019
- Migrated key workloads to Azure/AWS; designed a Wi-Fi 6 upgrade across all buildings.
- Built Linux/Windows servers for core services (DHCP, DNS, LDAP, files) and automated provisioning/compliance reporting.
Senior System Administrator
Raine & Horne Pty Ltd
Sydney
03.2011 - 02.2014
- Led a full P2V migration; re-architected server infrastructure for national operations and standardized backup/monitoring/patching to uplift uptime and security.
Education
Bachelor of Information Technology (Honours, AI) -
Deakin University
10.2024
Bachelor of Science - Computer Science
Deakin University
10.2023
Certificate IV - Computer Programming
Open Colleges
10.2020
Skills
- Skilled in React, Angular, Vue, and Ruby on Rails
- Infrastructure as code expertise
- DevOps and CI/CD expertise
- Relational and NoSQL databases
- Network protocols: TCP/IP, BGP, VPN
- Skilled in software development design
- Project execution
- Goal-oriented planning
- Guiding professional development
- Product engineering design
- Project management
- Strategic planning
- Coaching and mentoring
- Engineering design
Hobbies and Interests
AI research and applied ML, mentoring developers, platform reliability practices, sci-fi literature
Timeline
Associate Teaching Fellow
Deakin University
03.2025 - 06.2025
Platform Engineering Manager (Software & IaC)
NSW Department of Customer Service (DAC)
02.2024 - Current
Sessional Academic
Deakin University
10.2023 - 07.2024
Software Engineer
Learning Innovators / Formatif LMS
06.2021 - 07.2024
IT Manager
Waverley College
03.2021 - 10.2023
Network Manager
Waverley College
03.2019 - 03.2021
Network & Infrastructure Administrator
Waverley College
03.2014 - 03.2019
Senior System Administrator
Raine & Horne Pty Ltd
03.2011 - 02.2014
Bachelor of Science - Computer Science
Deakin University
Certificate IV - Computer Programming
Open Colleges
Bachelor of Information Technology (Honours, AI) -
Deakin University