Alexandre Cisneiros is an engineer based in Dublin, Ireland with 11+ years of experience.

Before Resend, he was an Engineering Manager at Stripe.

He knows a ton about building high scalable systems, and loves functional programming, DevOps and automation.

Here's our favorite talk from him: How Nubank supports millions of daily customers.

More about Alexandre

How did you get into software?

I've always loved the fact that the computers and the web let us be not only consumers, but creators of content. When I was a kid, my aunt taught me how to use HTML and Microsoft FrontPage, which I used to create websites to show my friends at school. As a teenager, I stumbled onto PHP and found out I could make the computer do things, and not only show them.

Fast-forward a few years, I studied Computer Science at the Federal University of Pernambuco, where I had some of the best years of my life, and confirmed this is what I wanted to do professionally. Never looked back ever since!

What does your desktop/home screen look like?

Usually, empty and minimalistic — but always with some color. I change wallpapers often.

Why are you at Resend?

As a developer, I've experienced first hand the issues Resend is set to solve. Communicating with users is key to the success of any product, and I could see the craft, effort and user focus the team at Resend put into designing and engineering the best possible experience.

I started my professional career as an intern at a startup, and progressed through companies of increasing size. Working at these different environments brought me a breadth of experience that helped me grow as a software engineer. I'm thrilled to now bring that to Resend's team and contribute to their mission.

Where do you find #inspiration?

Music is a big source for me. It has an amazing power of setting the mood and getting me in the zone I want to be, whatever that may be at each moment.

Other than that, being around other people is a great source of inspiration for me. I love seeing my friends achieve something and tell me all about it, or having long conversations about the most random topics over a coffee or a beer.

If you weren't programming, what would you be doing?

I've always liked performance arts. On my free time, I practice different forms of acrobatics, my favorite being the flying trapeze. The feeling of flying through the air, mastering different tricks, and working with partners you need to trust to catch you is one of the best things I've experienced. I also practice other aerials such as silks and hoop and, as a teen, I was very into magic and illusionism (to the point my friends couldn't stand it anymore, sometimes). I'm very much not a professional at any of these, and I enjoy them as my hobbies, but if software wasn't my career I wonder if performing would have been.

Favorite tool?

Spreadsheets! I use Google Sheets on a daily basis. They are often the fastest way to prototype an idea, answer a question, or automate a part of my life.

Favorite hotkey?

The very first thing I do when I pick up a new computer is to remap Caps Lock to Control. I rely a lot on Emacs-style navigation hotkeys, like Control-A/E for jumping around text, and Control-D/K for deleting.

Favorite place to visit?

Recife, my hometown, during the Carnival period. The city's atmosphere almost feels like you're in another planet for a while. The music, the decorations, the people, they all come together to bring the best possible vibe.

Advice for ambitious software engineers?

Learn how to unblock yourself. This means, in many occasions, asking questions sooner. Don't fall into the trap of being 99% finished, then 99.9%, then 99.99%, but actually done because you want to do it alone. Strike a good balance between self-servicing and asking for help.