Walid R. Rashed, a.k.a kurdi-dev
Kurdish Software Engineer
with a background in Cyber-Security, UX/UI Design, and Digital Marketing who spends a little too much time in the mountains.
What I Do
I specialize in creating digital solutions that drive business growth and enhance user experiences through cutting-edge technology.
Full-Stack Product Development
End-to-end development of custom web applications, from UI/UX design to scalable back-end architecture, using modern frameworks like Next.js and Node.js.
Data & AI Engineering
Building end-to-end data pipelines and developing custom AI/ML models to transform raw data into actionable business intelligence using tools like BigQuery and Power BI.
Strategic Technology Consulting
Providing expert guidance on technology roadmaps, technical leadership for complex projects, and strategic planning to align engineering with business objectives.
Cloud Engineering & DevOps
Architecting and managing scalable infrastructure on GCP & AWS. Specializing in Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and automation to accelerate development cycles.
System Architecture & Design
Designing robust, scalable, and secure system architectures, including microservices and distributed systems, to meet complex business requirements and future growth.
Infrastructure & Cybersecurity
Implementing multi-layered security for cloud and on-premise infrastructure. Providing comprehensive security audits, network hardening, and threat mitigation.
Skills & Expertise
Technical proficiencies and tools I use to deliver exceptional results.
Programming Languages
Frontend Development
Design Tools
Backend Development
DevOps & Cloud
BigData & AI
About Me
As a Senior Software Engineer and Technology Consultant with over eight years of experience, I architect and build the complex, scalable systems that solve critical business challenges.
After graduating top of my class in software engineering, I built a broad technical foundation across diverse fields. I gained hands-on experience in full-stack development, UX/UI design, and cybersecurity while delivering solutions for industries ranging from e-commerce and telecom to academic research and FinTech. This broad exposure solidified my passion for tackling the most daunting challenges, leading me to specialize in architecting the mission-critical systems that others avoid.
I believe the most powerful solutions emerge from a deep understanding of both the business problem and the technical possibilities. As a consultant, I bridge that gap—translating strategic goals into robust technical roadmaps. My approach is hands-on and results-driven, focused on creating systems that are not only powerful but also secure, scalable, and maintainable.
When I'm not coding or consulting, you'll likely find me in the mountains - climbing, hiking, and drawing inspiration from nature's complexity and beauty, which often influences my approach to solving technical challenges.
Experience
Here is some information about my professional experience.
Software Engineer & Technology Consultant
Freelancer @ kurdi-dev
January 2021 - Present
Remote
Current- Architect and deliver bespoke enterprise solutions, ranging from AI-driven systems and data pipelines to comprehensive management platforms for a diverse client portfolio.
- Provide strategic technology consulting to startups and established businesses, advising on system architecture, scalability, and digital transformation roadmaps.
- Engineer and manage secure, scalable cloud infrastructure and CI/CD pipelines; conduct security audits to ensure system integrity.
- Designed and implemented end-to-end IoT systems for real-time data acquisition, processing, and visualization.
- Developed sophisticated data-extraction and automation tools to address unique client challenges and enhance operational capabilities.
Lead Software Engineer, Payment Infrastructure
International Smart Card (Qi Card)
June 2024 - December 2025
Baghdad, Iraq - Remote
- Spearheaded the end-to-end technical execution of a new high-volume payment switch and card management system.
- Architected and deployed a scalable ecosystem of 30+ microservices on Kubernetes, enabling robust Visa and Mastercard payment processing.
- Designed mission-critical, high-availability Kubernetes clusters ensuring fault tolerance for real-time financial transactions.
- Reduced manual deployment overhead by developing bespoke automation scripts and CLI tools for the engineering team.
- Provided technical mentorship and guidance to engineering team members, establishing and maintaining best practices in development and deployment.
- Lead troubleshooting efforts for complex technical issues and coordinate incident response activities when required.
- Created and maintained technical documentation for complex systems, ensuring clear guidance and knowledge sharing across teams.
Technical Project Manager
International Smart Card (Qi Card)
June 2023 - June 2024
Baghdad, Iraq - Remote
- Orchestrated the complete project lifecycle for key technical initiatives, translating complex business needs into actionable engineering roadmaps.
- Provided technical leadership to engineering teams, ensuring alignment between daily operations and strategic objectives.
- Led technical evaluation and procurement processes for enterprise hardware and software.
- Championed proactive risk management to identify and resolve critical technical impediments, ensuring on-time delivery.
- Established and trained teams, when necessary, on technical processes and strategies.
IT Specialist
Rosneft, AntonOil & Different Look Ltd.
November 2022 - December 2022
Dohuk, Iraq - Fixed-term Contract
- Supervised the installation and configuration of all IT&T equipment of a new Oil Rig and Man Camp.
- Identified technology needs and provided technical consultations to business decision-makers.
- Offered technical support to the engineering staff and troubleshooted hardware and software problems.
Information Systems Security Engineer
Cyber Code Technologies FZE
May 2021 - December 2021
Dubai, UAE - Remote
- Implemented and fortified secure network and server infrastructure for enterprise clients.
- Implemented a Data Loss Prevention and monitoring solutions to safeguard critical digital assets.
- Acted as a senior escalation point for complex cybersecurity incidents and provided expert technical guidance on security projects.
Software Engineer & Digital Marketing Specialist
Moonline Travel & Trade Ltd.
June 2019 - December 2020
As Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
- Led the ground-up development of a proprietary e-commerce platform and a logistics management system.
- Led the UI/UX redesign of the Babylon Booking B2B portal, significantly improving user experience for travel agents.
- Increased operational efficiency by conceptualizing and building internal automation tools for marketing and operations.
- Leveraged data analytics to derive actionable insights, informing both software feature development and marketing strategy.
Junior Software Engineer
DotNet For IT Solutions
July 2018 - November 2018
As Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan Region, Iraq
- Delivered custom web solutions for local clients by developing and extending functionalities within PHP-based frameworks.
- Engineered and launched a full-featured e-commerce platform, handling both front-end and back-end components.
- Developed dynamic, map-based web applications by integrating third-party services like the Google Maps API.
Featured Projects
SNAPR Analytics Engine
2025Developed and engineered a complete end-to-end data pipeline on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) for scoring global research papers. This system processed terabytes of data, including over 50GB annually from the OpenAlex open-source dataset, utilizing BigQuery, custom data processing scripts, and internally developed AI models for classification.
Barw Research Publisher
2024Designed and developed a comprehensive website for Barw, a scientific research publisher. The platform serves as a digital hub for their publications, providing an intuitive interface for academics and researchers to access and submit scholarly articles for their journals.
KSCIEN Application System
2022Developed and implemented an AI-powered, polyglot platform to automate scientific research processing and scoring, utilizing the SNAPR metric. This system features a web application integrated with several microservices that handle ML-based data extraction, web scraping, and bibliography parsing
Nozhdar Clinic Management System
2021Developed a comprehensive clinic management system to streamline operations for cardiology clinics. The platform enhances efficiency in patient management, billing, and reduces manual workload for medical staff.
B-Donor UX Case Study
2021Conducted an in-depth UX case study for a mobile application designed to connect blood donors with recipients. The project focused on user research, empathy mapping, and prototyping to create a platform that raises awareness and simplifies the donation process.
