Aaron Hedges, API Product Manager and Web Developer
| (608) 318-3274 | Grand Rapids, MI
SUMMARY
I am a product manager and web developer with over a decade of experience working with web APIs and improving developer experience.
SKILLS
Public and internal API strategy
API product lifecycle
Developer experience
REST and GraphQL API design
Fullstack engineering
EXPERIENCE
ReadMe | API Engineer Oct 2020 — Present

Engineer with a focus on API and reference documentation

  • Designed core framework functionality and endpoints for new ReadMe API
  • Led migration effort from Angular to React for ReadMe's documentation editor page
  • Created service for securely executing arbitrary user-provided JavaScript
  • Applied my OpenAPI specification and JSON Schema experience to a series of React-based user-facing features
USA Today | Senior Product Manager, API Oct 2018 — Oct 2020

Managed the quarterly roadmap and high level processes of the API Services team and most projects that touched the internal GraphQL API

  • Managed two other product managers
  • Planned and executed a year-long, cross-team initiative to migrate from a legacy API to a new API
  • Planned and executed the engineering portion of a year-long migration of assets for hundreds of local markets, supporting the larger merger of Gannett and GateHouse
  • Built and evangelized an improved developer experience for our consumers, including documentation, design guidelines, and more
  • Assisted other product managers in defining and achieving their API requirements
Vimeo | API Product Manager Oct 2015 — Oct 2018

Developed strategy and tactics for the API and developer portal, along with managing priorities and sprints of the API engineering team

  • Transitioned Vimeo to a distributed, design-first API development process
  • Evangelized benefits of API-first development to all of Vimeo's engineering teams, and helped their projects move smoothly and successfully
  • Selected API team's core KPIs and grew them over time
  • Led redesign of developer portal including strategy, buy-in, requirements gathering, specification, user experience and more
  • Built surveys and testing plans for gathering developer feedback on developer portal
Vimeo | Lead API Engineer Sept 2011 — Oct 2015

Owned engineering and strategy for Vimeo's developer portal and API

  • Solo developer on new API, expanded team over time
  • Designed new API following REST best practices
  • Built Xbox Live authentication and iOS push notification integrations
  • Authored new public Node.js library, and co-authored new public PHP library
  • Responded to escalated support cases from partners and external developers
  • Managed all technical writing projects
INTERESTS
Web APIs, developer experience, framework design and development, tabletop and video games, movies, comics