Ryan Lelek

Web Developer & Lean Startup Enthusiast

I build things people want, and would love to help you or your company do the same.
If you're looking for some advice about startups or web technology, we should meet up.
I'd love to learn more about what you are up to, and provide some free, no obligation advice.

Phone: 415.689.4096

Email: hello@ryanlelek.com

Technical Skills

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• (X)HTML & CSS

  EXPERT, 6 years

  I've been working with XHTML and CSS for a while now (including HTML5 and CSS3), and they were responsible for getting me into the web industry in the first place. From chopping a Photoshop file into code, designing in the browser and building a website design from scratch, or ensuring cross-browser compatibility XHTML/CSS are the bread and butter of the web.

• PHP & MySQL

  EXPERT, 4 years

  I started (and am still very comfortable) with writing PHP code from the ground up. In these later years, I've been using the Kohana, CodeIgniter, and CakePHP frameworks to accelerate development and provide better security and maintainability for clients. For the most part, the concepts in PHP and its frameworks apply to any other web language, so if you have Ruby on Rails, Python, or some other technology running your website, I can still help out.

• Javascript & jQuery

  ADVANCED, 4 years

  Javascript improves the interaction of websites, and jQuery makes it even easier to do so. I've worked with jQuery for a while now, to do AJAX POST requests when a user clicks a button, or simply making photo albums come to life. Javascript is a great tool, but also should not be used in excess. I make sure websites I work on don't break if Javascript is turned off or not supported (like in a mobile phone).

Work Experience

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• LaunchRock

  2011 - PRESENT

  API Rockstar

  At LaunchRock, I provide other developers with an easy-to-use platform for using external APIs, like Facebook, Twitter, and a whole bunch of other awesome services.

• Curly Cloud Corporation

  2009 - PRESENT

  Founder/Chief Executive Officer

  I manage the overall operation of this high-tech startup company, including finances, investor relations, team assembly, and more. I contributed greatly to the initial product line and intellectual property base, and continue to guide creative talents, innovate software features, and continually assist with software product development and server updates, when necessary.

• FullyFollow.me

  2011 - 2012

  Founder/Chief Technology Officer

  Created the first version of the FullyFollow.me website service in three short days as the sole developer on the team aboard the Chicago StartupBus, which advanced to the semi-finals. The website has since seen a successful, mass-market launch in over fifteen countries and six continents. Thousands of people love what we made. FullyFollow.me was profiled by technology-oriented news websites ReadWriteWeb, Chris Pirillo, and TheNextWeb.

• FoxDisc, Inc. (Closed)

  2007 - 2010

  Lead Web Designer/Developer

  During my time at FoxDisc, an online video game rental service (like Netflix), I started to see the big picture of web development and how everything fits together.

  Responsibilities

  • User Interface Design (UI/UX)
  • Front-End Design (XHTML/CSS)
  • Back-End Logic (PHP/MySQL)

Events and Conferences

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• Lean Startup Machine - Chicago, Illinois

  January 2012

  Mentor/Judge

• Lean Startup Machine - Palo Alto, California

  January 2012

  Mentor

• Startup School at Stanford University - Stanford, California

  October 2011

  Hosted by Y-Combinator and Stanford BASES, Startup School 2011 had some well-respected icons in startups speak about experiences, tricks of the trade, and how to create a successful startup. Speakers included Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, actor Ashton Kutcher, Max Levchin of PayPal, Matt Mullenweg of WordPress, and Mark Pincus of Zynga.

• Lean Startup Machine - New York, New York

  July 2011

  My second Lean Startup Machine event was in New York and allowed me to further refine how to figure out what users like, and even more importantly, what they will pay for.

• Lean Startup Machine - Chicago, Illinois

  November 2010

  In a “Startup Weekend” style workshop, our goal was developing a customer around a minimum viable product. Our group of three, the smallest in the competition, obtained several letters of intent and a few orders of a mockup report that consisted of renter tenant background history. Eric Ries, Brant Cooper, and Patrick Vlaskovits were speakers.

• An Event Apart - Chicago

  October 2009

  Attended the two-day conference that focused on web development topics. We learned what was up and coming in the web world from some of the most recognized experts. Speakers included: Jeffrey Zeldman, Eric Meyer, Jason Santa Maria, Whitney Hess, Luke Wroblewski, and Andy Clarke.