Kenneth
Ekandem.

Founding Engineer

• Building trust infrastructure for Nigeria's service economy — a marketplace connecting verified service providers with customers across Nigeria
• Designed and own the full stack: Elixir/OTP backend (order lifecycle, push notifications), NextJS API, React Native mobile app
• Integrated Paystack for SP wallet top-ups and commission splits, NIN verification, etc.
• Self-hosted production infrastructure on Hetzner with Coolify; CI/CD via GitHub App integration across a Turborepo monorepo
• Six launch service categories: cleaning, electrical, plumbing, dispatch, maintenance, waste disposal

Software Engineer

• Joined as a senior engineer and owned the entire backend and community infrastructure
• Built and launched v1 of the mobile app — the primary interface for 40,000+ users and 5,000+ DAU
• Designed and shipped a real-time chat service powering community communications, built on Phoenix Channels and OTP
• Built an internal payroll system for the team
• Architected the distributed backend: Auth, API, Socket, and Indexer microservices on Docker with auto-scaling
• The platform raised $35M in funds on the strength of the infrastructure and product

Backend Engineer

• First experience in a structured corporate engineering environment — production finance systems, real compliance constraints, team workflows
• Contributed features across live financial products serving real customers, building fluency in code review culture and production discipline

Intern → Lead Engineer

• Started with no formal background — self-taught PHP and web fundamentals on the job as an intern at a digital agency in southern Nigeria
• Kept building until proficiency earned real production responsibility — eventually owning delivery across web, mobile, and enterprise client projects
• Built ManageAm — a medical platform for diabetic patients covering meal intake tracking, health tips, and care guidance — live on iOS and Android
• Took on lead engineer responsibilities in year two, shipping products across multiple industries before leaving to go independent