LinkedIn by @Pragmatics, Inc.

How did you get started in your field? What was your journey to Pragmatics like?

I am grateful that the company includes employees from various backgrounds. More importantly, Pragmatics offers tremendous training resources to encourage us to improve our skillsets continuously.

I was working as an independent consultant in New York when Apple originally announced their developer program for third-party iPhone apps in 2007. Intrigued, I sat down and taught myself Objective C programming.

In 2012, I returned to the south and started teaching art and technology as an art professor at the University of Mary Washington and Virginia Commonwealth University. I then dipped my toe in government contracting through instructional design projects. Mobile development is a particular niche in this region, so I was excited to take Pragmatics up on the opportunity to do it full time.

I am grateful that the company includes employees from various backgrounds. More importantly, Pragmatics offers tremendous training resources to encourage us to improve our skillsets continuously.

What is your current role at Pragmatics? Tell us more about an exciting project that you've worked on.

I am currently a Mobile Application Developer for the Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) Enterprise Interment Services Solution (EISS)  project. My team and I have modernized a legacy mobile application used by the ANC staff to photograph headstones and successfully migrated it to a Cloud-native environment. Our team has endured many challenges along the way and has become stronger through adapting to them. In my role, I've enjoyed working directly with end-users and tailoring the app's user experience to meet their specific needs.

Why is the Arlington National Cemetery (ANC)  Enterprise Interment Services Solution (EISS) project important to you?

It encapsulates a vital part of American history, and it is a living tribute to our heroes. Finding humanity in work and forming a connection to the ANC's history has made the project rewarding.

Empathy is an essential element at Arlington National Cemetery due to the nature of the agency's mission: "Laying our Nation's veterans and their eligible family members to rest with dignity and honor while treating their loved ones with respect and compassion." It encapsulates a vital part of American history, and it is a living tribute to our heroes. Finding humanity in work and forming a connection to the ANC's history has made the project rewarding.

ANC performs conducts around 30 funeral services each weekday and several services on Saturday, so Enterprise Interment Services Solution (EISS) provides critical ANC mission support enabling the scheduling of funerals and maintenance of the cemetery. The mobile application is part of a workflow to make the information more accessible to the public.

Outside of work, how do you describe yourself?

Outside of work, I am a conceptual artist. I have a creative background and have shown artwork internationally.

Clint Bagwell at his 2014 exhibition “Ghosts” at the University of Mary Washington, where his work ponders the ephemeral and anxiety-producing aspects of life in the digital world, especially focused on our culture’s relationship to digital technology.  Photo by Rosemary Jesionowski.