01
Full-Stack Web Development
End-to-end web application development across the full stack — from database and server logic to polished, responsive front-end interfaces.
BUILD// 01 — THINKWEB
ENGINEERING
THAT
SHIPS.
Owned end to end. Architecture, delivery governance, and engineering leadership — across teams, programmes, and the stakeholders that matter. Rotterdam, NL.
8+ years · 12 engineers led · 21 services
// 02 — SERVICES
WHAT I BUILD
02
E-Commerce Engineering
Design and build of high-converting online storefronts, including custom checkout flows, product management, and payment integration.
BUILD03
Mobile Application Development
Native and cross-platform mobile apps for iOS and Android, built for performance, usability, and long-term maintainability.
BUILD04
Systems & API Design
Architecture and implementation of robust, well-documented APIs and distributed systems that scale reliably under real-world conditions.
BUILD05
Design Systems & UI Engineering
Creation of scalable component libraries and design systems that bring consistency, speed, and quality to every product surface.
BUILD06
Performance Engineering
Systematic profiling, optimisation, and tuning of web applications to achieve measurable improvements in speed, responsiveness, and user experience.
BUILD07
Database Design & Optimisation
Schema design, query optimisation, and data modelling for relational and non-relational databases, built for integrity, scale, and performance.
INFRASTRUCTURE08
Cloud Infrastructure & Architecture
Design and deployment of cloud environments across AWS, GCP, and beyond — including multi-region setups, cost optimisation, and infrastructure as code.
INFRASTRUCTURE09
CDN Strategy & Configuration
Setup and optimisation of content delivery networks to reduce latency, improve global availability, and protect origin infrastructure under load.
INFRASTRUCTURE10
Containerisation & DevOps
Docker-based containerisation, orchestration, and CI/CD pipeline design for consistent, reproducible deployments across environments.
INFRASTRUCTURE11
Monitoring & Observability
Implementation of logging, tracing, alerting, and dashboards that give engineering teams full visibility into system health and production behaviour.
INFRASTRUCTURE12
Local LLM Integration
Integration of locally-hosted language models (via Ollama and similar runtimes) into existing products, enabling AI capabilities without cloud dependency or data exposure.
AI & TECH13
AI-Powered Feature Development
Scoping, building, and shipping AI-driven product features — from intelligent search and recommendation to generative content and automation workflows.
AI & TECH14
Security & Compliance Engineering
Technical security reviews, secure coding practices, and compliance implementation across GDPR, SOC 2, and other applicable regulatory frameworks.
AI & TECH15
Fractional CTO
Executive-level technical leadership on a part-time or interim basis — setting technology strategy, owning the roadmap, and representing engineering at the leadership table.
LEAD & ADVISE16
Engineering Management
Hands-on support for engineering managers and heads of engineering — covering team health, delivery practices, performance conversations, and organisational design.
LEAD & ADVISE17
Technical Programme Management
Coordination of complex, cross-functional technical programmes — from planning through delivery — with clear milestones, risk management, and stakeholder communication.
LEAD & ADVISE18
Architecture Review & Planning
Structured review of existing or proposed system architecture, with actionable recommendations that balance technical rigour, delivery pace, and long-term maintainability.
LEAD & ADVISE19
Code Review & Quality Programmes
Establishing and embedding code review culture, standards, and tooling that improve quality over time without slowing teams down.
LEAD & ADVISE20
Technical Hiring & Team Building
Support across the full hiring lifecycle — from role definition and interview design to candidate assessment and onboarding frameworks for engineering teams.
LEAD & ADVISE21
Startup Technical Advisory
Ongoing technical guidance for early-stage founders — covering architecture decisions, build vs. buy tradeoffs, hiring sequencing, and avoiding costly missteps.
LEAD & ADVISE// 03 — WORK
CASE STUDIES
01
HEALTHTECHNEXT.JSREACT NATIVEGDPRPOSTGRESQLCI/CD
MyClusters B.V.
Technical Co-Founder & Lead Engineer
Built a Next.js patient survey platform from 0 to production — full-stack ownership, security-first design, CI/CD, TypeScript. Co-founded the startup in the Netherlands with end-to-end responsibility across architecture, delivery, and compliance.
— OUTCOMES ——————
- 95% TypeScript coverage
- GDPR-compliant from day one
- 0 → production, solo
02
PERFORMANCEREACTREDISCDNTELCO
Optus — Performance Engineering
Senior Engineer & Performance Lead
Page load optimisation programme at Australia's #2 telco. Identified and resolved bottlenecks across the frontend, CDN layer, and database queries to deliver measurable customer experience improvements at scale.
— OUTCOMES ——————
- LCP reduced from 13s → 4s
- Measurable NPS uplift
- 25 TPS peak load handled
03
NODE.JSAWS SESPOSTGRESQLEMAIL
Optus — Email Automation Platform
Sole Engineer — Ground-up Rebuild
Ground-up rebuild of the email platform as sole engineer. Designed and delivered a high-throughput personalised email system supporting 50+ templates with full tracking and compliance logging.
— OUTCOMES ——————
- 200,000+ personalised emails
- 50+ templates supported
- Under 2 minutes end-to-end
04
AKAMAI CDNREACTDOMAIN PROVISIONINGENTERPRISE
Optus — Salesforce Migration
Technical Lead — Enterprise Migration
Legacy platform migration at enterprise scale. Led technical execution across domain provisioning, CDN configuration, and frontend migration — zero disruption to live customer journeys.
— OUTCOMES ——————
- 5,500+ pages reviewed
- 200+ pages migrated
- Zero disruption to live journeys
// 04 — ABOUT
WHO IS
THINKWEB?
ThinkWeb is Shayan Abdullah — a technical leader who takes end-to-end ownership of the programmes he works on. Not just the engineering, but the architecture decisions, the delivery governance, the cross-functional alignment, and the accountability that sits above it all.
At Optus — one of Australia's largest telecoms, serving over 10 million customers — he managed a chapter of 12 engineers, owned complex platform programmes as Technical Product Owner, and engaged directly with Directors on strategy, OKRs, risk, and delivery confidence. At MyClusters, he co-founded and built a production healthtech platform from scratch with full-stack ownership and zero hand-holding.
ThinkWeb exists for startups and scale-ups who need someone to take that level of accountability — not a contractor who writes code and disappears, but a technical partner who owns the outcome.
BACKGROUND
Master of IT · UNSW, Australia
Bachelor of Engineering · UNSW
Based in Rotterdam, Netherlands
EXPERIENCE
8+ years engineering & leadership
Engineering Manager · 12 engineers
Technical Product Owner · Optus
Co-founder · MyClusters B.V.
Stakeholder engagement to Director level
DELIVERY AT SCALE
5,500+ page platform migration
200,000+ emails dispatched in 2 min
LCP reduced from 13s → 4s
$10M+ revenue events delivered
AVAILABLE FOR
Fractional CTO
Technical programme ownership
Cross-functional delivery lead
Long-term build partnerships
// 05 — STACK
THE STACK
FRONTEND
ReactNext.jsReact NativeTypeScriptTailwind CSSStorybook
BACKEND
Node.jsExpressGraphQLPostgreSQLMongoDBRedis
CLOUD & CDN
AWSGCPDockerGitHub ActionsAkamai CDNFly.ioSentry
DESIGN & CMS
FigmaDesign SystemsWordPressHeadless CMSAdobe Experience ManagerSalesforce Commerce CloudShopifySquarespace
AI & LOCAL LLM
OllamaGemmaWhisperClaudeCursor
SECURITY
JWT / OAuth 2.0OWASPGDPRWCAG AA
INFRA & OPS
Network SetupCDN ConfigBackup & RecoveryCI/CD
// 06 — TESTIMONIALS
WHAT THEY SAY
“In two years at Optus, Shayan consistently set the bar for what good engineering looks like. Architecture-first, delivery-focused, and genuinely invested in the people around him.”
SENIOR ENGINEER
Senior Engineer · Optus
“Shayan's ability to hold both the technical detail and the business outcome in his head at the same time is rare. He made complex programmes feel manageable.”
PRODUCT MANAGER
Product Manager · Optus
“Working with Shayan on MyClusters gave us a level of technical rigour you'd expect from a much larger team. Security, scalability, and quality from day one.”
CO-FOUNDER
Co-founder · MyClusters B.V.
// 07 — PROCESS
HOW I WORK
01
DISCOVER
We align on the problem, tech stack, and success criteria.
02
DESIGN & ARCHITECT
Architecture docs, API contracts, and design system before a line of code.
03
BUILD & TEST
Clean code, TDD where it counts, automated pipelines.
04
DEPLOY & SUPPORT
CI/CD, monitoring, backups, and handover docs that last.
// 08 — BLOG
INSIGHTS
PERFORMANCE
How I took LCP from 13s to under 4s
The exact strategy used at Optus: code splitting, Redis, CDN, and indexed queries.
MAR 2026 · 8 MIN READ
LEADERSHIP
Why every startup needs a Fractional CTO before their first hire
A practical view on leverage, systems, and how to de-risk your first engineering team.
MAR 2026 · 7 MIN READ
SECURITY
GDPR-compliant architecture for healthtech products
Data flows, consent, auditability, and the engineering decisions that matter early.
FEB 2026 · 9 MIN READ
AI
Running LLMs locally with Ollama: a production setup guide
Private AI workflows with stable runtimes, monitoring, and a pragmatic deployment model.
FEB 2026 · 10 MIN READ
ARCHITECTURE
API-first design: the discipline that saved us from spaghetti
Contracts, schemas, and the small habits that keep systems clean as teams grow.
JAN 2026 · 6 MIN READ
LEADERSHIP
From engineering manager to founder: what changes, what doesn't
The mindset shift, the trade-offs, and the principles that stayed constant.
JAN 2026 · 5 MIN READ
// 09 — CONTACT
LET'S BUILD
READY TO
START?
A 30-minute conversation is enough to know if we're a good fit. No commitment.