Lester Rusike
Full-Stack Engineer · AI / LLM & RAG Engineer · Mobile & Web Developer · Cloud Architect (GCP · AWS)
- Harare, Zimbabwe
- +263 775 658 123
- lesterrusike@gmail.com
- lester.co.zw · github.com/Lesruez93
- linkedin.com/in/lester-rusike
Profile
Full-stack and AI engineer with 9+ years of experience designing, building and operating production systems across web, mobile and cloud. Builds LLM-powered features (retrieval-augmented generation, tool-calling agents, MCP integrations) on top of serverless backends on Google Cloud / Firebase and AWS, with Next.js, React and Angular on the web and Flutter, React Native and native Swift/Kotlin on mobile. Has shipped 40+ products for fintech, cybersecurity, property and e-commerce clients in Africa, the UK and the US, and leads delivery end to end from architecture and data modelling to CI/CD and app-store release.
Core skills
- AI & LLM
- LLM APIs (Claude, OpenAI, Gemini) · RAG pipelines · Natural-language search · Embeddings & vector search (pgvector, Pinecone) · Agents & tool calling · Model Context Protocol (MCP) · Prompt engineering & evals
- Cloud & DevOps
- Google Cloud / Firebase (Cloud Functions, Firestore, Cloud Run, FCM) · AWS (Lambda, S3, API Gateway, EC2) · Serverless architecture · Docker · CI/CD (GitHub Actions, Fastlane) · Vercel · Supabase
- Backend
- Node.js / Express · TypeScript · Python / Flask · PHP / Laravel · REST & WebSockets · PostgreSQL · Firestore / MongoDB / MySQL · Algolia · Payments (Paystack, Payfast, Paynow)
- Web
- Next.js · React · Angular (NgRx, Material) · Vue · Tailwind CSS · WordPress / WooCommerce
- Mobile
- Flutter (Bloc, Riverpod, Provider, GetX) · React Native / Expo · Swift · Kotlin / Java · Ionic · Flame game engine · App Store & Play Store release
- Practices
- System design · Role-based access control · Testing (Jest, flutter_test) · Agile / Scrum · Code review & mentoring
Experience
Full-Stack Engineer · Southland Regional
Aug 2024 – PresentHarare · Hybrid · Internal ERP and security platforms across property development and professional-services business units.
- Architected and delivered a property-security application for the company's gated residential estates, with access control, visitor management and real-time alerts through Firebase Cloud Functions, Firestore and push notifications.
- Delivered the web (Angular) and mobile clients for residents, security staff and estate administrators.
- Designed and built a multi-SBU ERP covering the infrastructure project lifecycle, from investor-readiness tracking through engineering, construction progress and co-funding management.
- Implemented role-based access control and per-business-unit data segmentation so each department sees only its own operations.
Front-End Engineer · AI Products · Cyber Alliance
Jan 2025 – Sep 2025North Carolina, US · Remote · AI-powered cybersecurity products for enterprise and government customers.
- Built product surfaces for Sally AI, an AI cybersecurity analyst that aggregates SIEM, endpoint, identity, cloud and vendor signals into one view for threat detection, vulnerability assessment and risk insight.
- Built features for Sally AI's integration layer, normalising multi-source security signals for the AI analysis pipeline.
- Delivered assessment flows, scoring interfaces and reporting for CyberTrustIQ, a validated diagnostic that benchmarks cybersecurity decision-making across five cognitive dimensions.
- Shipped iteratively in an agile product team, keeping AI-driven features aligned with security compliance and governance requirements.
Senior Developer (Flutter & Node.js) · TBGA Consulting Group
Aug 2024 – Jan 2025Harare
- Designed and built fintech mobile apps in Flutter with Bloc, using Firebase Auth, Firestore and Cloud Functions for real-time data.
- Built REST and serverless APIs with Node.js/Express and Cloud Functions, with WebSockets for real-time updates and tuned database access patterns.
Flutter & Front-End Developer · Intelli Africa Solutions
Jan 2024 – Dec 2024Harare
- Built fintech mobile apps in Flutter (Bloc) with Firebase authentication, real-time database and Cloud Functions.
- Built scalable fintech dashboards in Angular (NgRx) and React (Redux), integrating REST APIs for real-time transaction data.
Full-Stack Developer · ShopSavvy Zim
Jan 2021 – Dec 2023Harare · Online shopping platform.
- Built the customer web app in Angular/TypeScript with Angular Material for the ShopSavvy online shopping platform.
- Defined API contracts with the backend team and owned client-side validation, error handling and performance.
Full-Stack Developer · Contract · Alliance Management Resources LLC
2022Indianapolis, US · Remote
- Built internal web applications with Angular, Next.js, TypeScript and Node.js, including API design and form-heavy workflows.
Flutter Developer · Part-time · Xash Solutions
Feb 2022 – 2023Harare
- Built Flutter apps for Android POS devices, integrating third-party APIs for airtime, DSTV subscriptions and prepaid electricity.
- Set up Fastlane CI/CD pipelines to automate build, test and release.
Mobile & Web Developer · Dripdata
Jan 2020 – Dec 2020Johannesburg, SA
- Delivered client mobile apps in Flutter, Ionic and React Native, with push notifications, geolocation and social sharing.
Lead Mobile Developer · Disciplesoft
Jan 2017 – Sep 2019Johannesburg, SA
- Led Flutter and Ionic app development; flagship app rated 4.8★ on the app stores.
- Built authentication, push notifications and real-time sync with Firestore, and integrated Laravel REST APIs; ran code reviews and performance work.