About

Hi, I'm Hope.

Senior software engineer and design technologist. I build design systems and the products they power.

Hope Tambala

From candlelight to design systems.

Hey, I'm Hope! I'm a senior software engineer with seven years of experience building for mobile and web.

Motivated by my Peace Corps volunteer work, I'm passionate about building tech that makes people happier, and enjoy working with others who strive to do the same.

I've worked at companies like Etsy, Cityblock Health, The Washington Post, and In-Q-Tel, building design systems, crafting frontends, and shipping full-stack products. Whether it's a cross-platform component library, a mobile data collection app for nonprofit field workers, or cybersecurity visualization tools, I bring the same energy and attention to craft.

I'm also a fractional engineering executive at Puente, a tech nonprofit that creates and uses data collection and analysis software to identify and respond to health needs in international development.

When I'm not writing code, you'll find me behind a camera, exploring new places, or tinkering with the next big idea.

Experience

Where I've built.

2023 - Present

Etsy

Senior Software Engineer, Design Systems

Working on Etsy's Design System, "Collage", which is a cross-platform system of UI components, utility CSS classes, and codemods to support a two-sided marketplace.

React/TSDesign TokensStorybook
2017 - Present

Puente

Principal Software Engineer

As an engineering leader at Puente, a tech non-profit, I developed and currently manage our client-facing applications, API services, and cloud infrastructure resources to identify and respond to health needs in international development from the ground up. During the pandemic, I led a product engineering team of 3, continuously improving the reliability of product aesthetics, usability, and data delivery.

As of right now, I work on the product and engineering of this solo. While I worked on this full-time for 3 years and part-time for another 3, it's now more of a passion project!

React.jsReact-NativeNode.jsAWS
2022 - 2023

Cityblock Health

Senior UX Engineer

Leading the efforts for design and engineering of our design system Commonplace. Previously worked as a full-stack engineer on our care delivery team.

React/TSGraphQLStorybookFigma
2020 - 2022

The Washington Post

Full-Stack Javascript Engineer

As a member of The Washington Post's Research, Experimentation, and Design team (RED), I worked on developing advertising products and applications for the Post, advertisers, and other publishers. Did a lot of work on cloud-native micro-services using AWS Resources and support the orchestration of existing product infrastructure using tools like AWS Codepipeline and AWS Codebuild.

React.jsNode.jsAWS
2019 - 2020

In-Q-Tel

Software Engineer

As an engineer at IQT, a non-profit that invests in tech to accelerate development for the CIA and other U.S. government agencies to enhance national security, I created comparative design evaluations, mockups, and engineering prototypes for Cyber Reboot, IQT's open-source cybersecurity and network visualization software team.

D3.jsReact.jsReduxPython
What I do

A few things I'm good at.

Design Systems

Tokens, components, and the tooling that keeps them adopted at scale.

  • Design tokens (DTCG)
  • Component libraries
  • Codemods & migrations
  • Storybook
  • Accessibility

Product Engineering

Full-stack delivery across cross-platform mobile and web.

  • React / TypeScript
  • React Native
  • Node · GraphQL · Express
  • Next.js
  • Cloud (AWS)

Craft & Creative

The details that make products feel considered, and a camera on the side.

  • Motion & interaction
  • CSS architecture
  • Prototyping
  • Photography
  • Figma
Let's talk