Jared Faris

The longer version

About Jared

I’m Jared Faris, a software leader based in Denver, Colorado. I’ve spent my career building software, building teams, and helping companies figure out what they should be building in the first place.

Today I run Faris Consulting. I help businesses build the internal software platforms they wish existed, and take products from “we have an idea” to “people actually pay us for this!” I act as their fractional CTO along the way until and unless they’re ready to hire one full-time.

Most good software ideas don’t fail because the idea was bad. They fail because nobody asked what to build, what it should cost, who should do the work, and what happens after launch. That’s where I come in.

How I got here

I started out as a developer who liked shipping things people could actually touch. I once called that being a stuff geek. Along the way I moved into leading teams, then leading engineering organizations, and then helping other companies do the same.

For about a decade I was a regular speaker at Midwestern tech events, with a bit of national and international events thrown in. I was a Microsoft MVP for years too. You can find more stuff from that time period here.

  • 2023 – NowFounder & Principal Consultant, Faris Consulting
  • 2023 – NowCofounder, AIVantage
  • 2021 – 2023Director of Engineering, Beam Benefits
  • 2021Chief Technology Officer, Topica Edtech Group
  • 2013 – 2021CGI (formerly HMB)VP, Sales & Marketing
    VP, Technology & Solutions
    Microsoft Practice Director
  • 2011 – 2013Lead Engineer, Facio
  • 2011Consultant, Quick Solutions
  • 2009 – 2011Software Developer, RelayHealth
  • 2008 – 2009Software Developer, Thread Marketing Group
  • 2003 – 2008University of ToledoWeb Developer
    Learning Center Supervisor
    Desktop Support Specialist

Along the way

  • Organizing events. I’ve helped run the Stir Trek Developer Conference for years and serve on its board. I also help with Denver Dev Day and various other community events.
  • Tinkering on products. Personal Nexus (a personal CRM that builds itself from your email), Invoices Done Right (AI invoice entry), and things that belong to other people.
  • Speaking. CodeMash, Stir Trek, KCDC, Code PaLOUsa, Momentum, Self.conference, Midwest PHP, CodeStock, Indy.Code() and lots of user groups. See the talks →

Things I care about

  • Building the right thing. Most expensive software mistakes happen before anyone writes code.
  • Teams that say “we.” I’ve been writing about this for a decade and still believe it.
  • AI that does actual work. It isn’t magic, but it isn’t nothing either. My take for engineering teams.
  • Packing light. Literally. I have opinions.

Elsewhere

jaredfaris — zsh