Portfolio

Working plan / 3 August 2026

Portfolio & job-search action plan

The goal is a full-time web development role in Christchurch or with a New Zealand-remote team. Work through this page in order.

Complete

Action needed

No boxes are interactive.

01

Tomorrow

Start here

Do these in order. Do not start another decorative project.

  1. 1

    Review CV #2

    Open the separate two-page A4 CV draft. Check every statement, date and technology before it replaces the existing download anywhere else.

  2. 2

    Tailor the CV to the closest live vacancy

    Start with the Jade Digital Experience Engineer listing if it is still open. Match every claim to evidence and apply before polishing lower-priority items.

  3. 3

    Send one focused outreach message

    Contact one Christchurch technology recruiter using the message template below and link directly to the portfolio.

02

Current state

Portfolio status

Completed work is separated from the remaining backlog.

Complete

  • Complete:
    Clear positioning

    Christchurch-based web developer with commercial WordPress, CMS, UI and front-end experience.

  • Complete:
    Commercial delivery is visible

    The copy now covers integrations, QA, migrations, DNS, launch and support.

  • Complete:
    AI is no longer the lead identity

    The site uses AI-assisted workflows as a supporting capability.

  • Complete:
    BeWriteBack is featured

    A first-party React and TypeScript PWA case study is live.

  • Complete:
    Recruiter contact journey

    Email, phone, LinkedIn, GitHub and the CV are easy to reach.

  • Complete:
    Accessibility defects fixed

    Landmarks, heading order, labels and serious axe regressions are covered.

  • Complete:
    SEO foundations added

    Canonical URL, social metadata, Person/ProfilePage data, sitemap, robots file and descriptive metadata are present.

  • Complete:
    Code split by responsibility

    Navigation, theme, data, motion and WebGL now live in focused modules and stylesheets.

  • Complete:
    Tests and CI added

    Unit, browser, accessibility, responsive and architecture checks run automatically.

  • Complete:
    README brought up to date

    It documents the ten live projects, structure, verification and deployment.

  • Complete:
    Career progression condensed

    The long placeholder timeline is now a concise path from Ara to intern, technical support and website development.

  • Complete:
    Animated laptop progressively loaded

    The hero stays empty while the real 3D laptop loads during browser idle, then fades in only when it is ready. Interaction starts it sooner.

Action needed

  • Action needed:
    Review CV #2

    The focused two-page A4 draft is linked in the portfolio footer but has not replaced the existing download.

  • Action needed:
    Strengthen BeWriteBack as engineering proof

    Add tests, CI, accessibility and performance results, architecture notes, a decision log and real usage or feedback evidence in its own repository.

  • Action needed:
    Align GitHub and LinkedIn

    Use the same positioning, pin BeWriteBack first and make substantial work easier to find than student or generated repositories.

  • Action needed:
    Add privacy-conscious conversion analytics

    Measure CV downloads, email clicks and case-study views without invasive tracking.

  • Action needed:
    Remove unused large assets

    Archive assets that are not loaded, then verify the build and visual result are unchanged.

  • Action needed:
    Consider a name-based domain and email

    Useful for trust and memorability, but do not delay applications for it.

03

Positioning

Market fit

Optimise around the work already supported by commercial and portfolio evidence.

Primary target

Web Developer / Digital Experience Engineer

Front-end implementation, CMS delivery, responsive UI, accessibility, SEO, QA and stakeholder work.

Secondary targets

Front-end & CMS Developer

Also consider UI-focused Front-end Developer and Digital Designer–Developer roles.

Do not lead with

AI Engineer

Describe AI-assisted development and automation accurately until there is deployed AI-system, evaluation and reliability evidence.

Skills to foreground

HTML
CSS
JavaScript
TypeScript
React
PHP
WordPress
Figma
Python
Flask
Playwright
GitHub / CI

Use naturally: responsive design, accessibility and WCAG, CMS integrations, UI components, design systems, stakeholder requirements, web performance, SEO, QA, launch support, troubleshooting, Git, deployment workflows and AI-assisted development.

Build more evidence for: production React/TypeScript, APIs, databases, automated testing, CI/CD, back-end collaboration, independent product ownership and remote written communication.

04

Watchlist

People & places

These are organisations to investigate and contact, not a claim that each one is hiring this role today.

Christchurch and New Zealand employers

Jade Software Ryman Healthcare Datacom Smartly Trade Me Trimble hairyLemon Batch Make Imagic Kiss Digital Xava Digital

Recruiters to contact

Communities and job sources

Remote rule: prioritise roles that explicitly say “remote anywhere in New Zealand” or “NZ remote”. An Auckland role labelled remote may still mean Auckland-based hybrid.

05

Conversion

Every application

The portfolio supports the application; it does not replace tailoring.

  1. 1

    Extract the five most important requirements from the vacancy.

  2. 2

    Match each requirement to one piece of verifiable evidence.

  3. 3

    Reorder CV skills and bullets to foreground the relevant evidence.

  4. 4

    Link directly to the most relevant portfolio project or live example.

  5. 5

    Mention one genuine reason for wanting that employer and role.

  6. 6

    Remove unrelated buzzwords instead of trying to match everything.

Jade vocabulary to foreground

Commercial website development · WordPress/CMS · responsive and accessible UI · HTML/CSS/JavaScript · stakeholder requirements · performance · SEO · QA · AI-assisted workflows · willingness to deepen TypeScript and React.

Outreach messages

Recruiter

Kia ora [Name], I’m a Christchurch-based web developer currently delivering WordPress and CMS websites for education clients across New Zealand and Australia. My work covers front-end implementation, UI, integrations, QA, launches and live-site troubleshooting. I’m exploring full-time Christchurch or NZ-remote opportunities, particularly web developer and digital experience roles. Would you be open to a brief conversation? Portfolio: [URL]

Hiring manager

Kia ora [Name], I saw that [Company] is working on [specific product/team]. I’m a Christchurch web developer with commercial experience turning design and stakeholder requirements into accessible, responsive CMS experiences. I was particularly interested in [specific reason]. My most relevant work is here: [case-study URL]. If my background could suit your team now or later, I’d appreciate the chance to introduce myself.

Follow-up

Kia ora [Name], just following up on my note about [role]. My background in front-end delivery, WordPress/CMS, accessibility and stakeholder-facing website work appears closely aligned with the position. I’ve included the most relevant portfolio example here: [URL]. Happy to provide any further detail—thanks for your time.

06

Evidence

Interview stories to prepare

Use a clear situation, task, action and result. Never invent a metric.

01

Scale and context

02

Your exact role

03

Team composition

04

Main constraint

05

Decision you made

06

Result and evidence

07

What you learned

07

Order of work

Seven days, then thirty

Applications continue while the portfolio improves.

Seven-day plan

  1. Day 1

    Review CV #2, correct anything inaccurate and tailor one application.

  2. Day 2

    Update LinkedIn and GitHub to match the portfolio positioning.

  3. Day 3

    Contact one recruiter and one relevant Christchurch employer.

  4. Day 4

    Add stronger tests, documentation and decisions to BeWriteBack.

  5. Day 5

    Send a second high-quality application and follow up on the first.

  6. Day 6

    Prepare the seven interview stories listed above.

  7. Day 7

    Recruiter review, final QA and first application/outreach batch.

Thirty-day plan

  1. Week 1

    Complete critical portfolio work and apply to time-sensitive roles.

  2. Week 2

    Send five high-quality applications and contact three Christchurch recruiters.

  3. Week 3

    Attend Canterbury Tech, CHCH.JS or UX CHCH and follow up personally.

  4. Week 4

    Review responses, improve weak evidence and publish one useful technical note.

Track weekly

Applications sent · recruiter replies · portfolio visits · CV downloads · case-study views · interviews · recurring objections or skill gaps.

Ready to apply means

  • Complete:
    Role, location and target work are clear in five seconds
  • Action needed:
    The downloadable CV is a focused two-page A4 document
  • Action needed:
    Mobile performance is no longer a rejection risk
  • Complete:
    Serious accessibility audit failures are fixed
  • Action needed:
    GitHub foregrounds BeWriteBack and substantial work
  • Action needed:
    Every claim is defensible in an interview
  • Action needed:
    Each application is tailored to a real vacancy