Howard Song
Hello There!

I'm Howard Song

Web Developer / Data Scientist

Who Is This Guy?

Data scientist by day. Web developer by night. Wannabe entrepreneur. Semi-competent swimmer. Active basketball player. Terrible Spanish speaker. Collector of cool ideas. Avid life-long learner. Awkward dance expert. Self-professed nice guy. Proud dog dad of a little doggie princess.

In summary, these are some things I do:

  • data/statistical analysis & visualization
  • machine learning & predictive modeling
  • process automation (e.g. report automation, scheduled data processing, etc.)
  • building web applications & APIs
  • building ETL pipelines

I use technology and my analytical abilities to solve real-world problems. Maybe it's determining the optimal pricing of merchandise to maximize sales. Maybe it's creating an interal software/application for business managers to monitor the sales performance of their products. Maybe it's automating compilations of tedious and time-consuming reports on a timed schedule. Or maybe it's building an anomaly detection system that periodically scans the database to check for anomalies. Whatever it is, I will own it and deliver.

My analytic acumen, combined with my technical ability to develop software applications, allows me to not just simply analyze, but also create data-driven products that others can easily consume and operate. Depending on what I'm tasked with, I can jump from being a data scientist, data engineer, or web developer.

And the best part? I love doing it. I think each problem is a puzzle to solve, and I love challenges that forces me to think critically and come up with creative solutions.

Now, I believe the world is in danger. Let's go save the world!

Professional Skills

* Percentage represented in self-assessed relative confidence level

Data Science & Analytics

R (ggplot, tidyverse, caret, etc.) 90%
SQL (i.e. Snowflake, MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc.) 90%
NoSQL (i.e. MongoDB) 70%
Excel / Tableau / other BI tools 40%

Web & Software Development

Python (Flask, SQLAlchemy ORM, etc.) 90%
PHP (vanilla) 85%
JavaScript (vanilla) 40%
HTML, CSS, Bootstrap 80%
SQL (i.e. MySQL, PostgreSQL, Sqlite) 90%
NoSQL (i.e. MongoDB) 85%

Other Technology

Git 60%
Docker & Docker-Compose 50%
Linux (Ubuntu) 50%

Language Fluency

English 95%
Korean 85%
Spanish 50%

Work Experience

January 2022 - September 2023

PLAYSTUDIOS

Senior Data Scientist

  • Created and managed automated ETL processes using Python scripts, Apache Airflow, and Snowflake
  • Performed data analyses to answer reward-related business questions, using SQL and R
  • Designed, developed, and maintained virtual loyalty economies within PLAYSTUDIOS mobile games
  • Created a simulation model assess the impact of different loyalty points configurations
  • Created a pricing model to optimize the merchandise sales of Reward Store
Tech Stack: SQL (Snowflake), R, Python, Docker, Linux, Git, Apache Airflow
December 2019 - January 2022

PLAYSTUDIOS

Data Scientist

  • Performed data/statistical analyses to answer business questions using R and SQL
  • Built ETL pipelines to persist data into a data warehouse using Python scripts, Apache Airflow, and Snowflake
  • Built automated programs, such as data anomaly detection program and scheduled report compiler, using Python, R, and SQL
  • Created prediction models to detect churn and forecast metrics
  • Built a data-driven web application for internal admins, using Python Flask
  • Performed A/B tests to provide optimization solutions
Tech Stack: SQL (Snowflake), R, Python, Flask, Docker, Linux, Git, Tableau, Apache Airflow, Talend Open Studio
December 2017 - December 2019

Design Box

Web Developer

  • Created various websites
  • Developed marketing automation scripts in Python
  • Developed a software-as-a-service web application in Python Flask




Tech Stack: PHP, MySQL, Python, Flask, Selenium, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, Git
June 2014 - February 2016

Independent Consulting & Contract

R Programmer, Data Scientist

  • Provided data analytic services to various clients (clinical researchers, sporting betting platforms, energy provider, bovine farm, IP patent company, startups, consulting firms, etc.)
  • Built interactive data visualization dashboards, one of which used by a Fortune 300 company
  • Implemented machine-learning solutions
  • Developed an open-source R package
Tech Stack: R, Git
June 2014 - May 2015

FileRight

Data Scientist

  • Performed data analyses to answer business questions
  • Produced automated reports and implemented analytic dashboards
  • Used data modeling to identify potentially unsatisfied/unhappy customers who are at risk for refunding or issuing chargebacks to deliver preemptive support
  • Built an alert system that monitors the number of sales requests and payment errors
Tech Stack: R, SQL (Amazon Redshift), NoSQL (MongoDB), Linux, Git
February 2013 - May 2014

Horizon Web Marketing

Web Designer & Project Manager

As a web designer:
  • Built and maintained websites
  • Performed SEO tasks for search engine ranking improvements
As a project manager:
  • Managed web design projects
Tech Stack: HTML/CSS, WordPress, Google Analytics

Education

2009 - 2011

Harvard University

Pursued Human Developmental and Regenerative Biology.

2007 - 2009

Rancho High School

Salutatorian; Honors Diploma; Academic Excellence Medal; Senior Award in Science.

References

  • Howard is an extremely gifted data scientist, constantly perfecting his craft. Although I was only able to work directly with him for a few weeks, while assisting him with a career change, it was apparent to me that he would be achieving great things in the data science realm for years to come.

    Luke Leonard Talent @ Coupa
  • I had the pleasure of working with Howard at Horizon Web Marketing. He was a quick study and learned a number of new techniques while working there. His commitment to learning new technologies and to providing quality service to customers is a benefit to anyone working with him.

    Robert Gillmer Founder @ Shiny 9 Web
  • I had the privilege of working with Howard for about 9 months. Howard is smart, honest, and diligent. Howard is always looking to exceed expectations and prides himself in his work. I believe Howard has the intellect, and strong-will to do anything he wants in life. Howard was more than a co-worker, but an awesome friend and mentor. Good luck out there, buddy.

    Julio Lopez Lead Mobile Developer @ Hmlet

Current Personal Projects

Gem Stock Finder

There are many ways beginner investors search for stocks to invest. Some invest in stocks of companies that they know or heard of. Some invest based on stocks' historical performances. Some follow advices of their friends, family, or advisers (on Youtube). Et cetera.

For me, I like to look at stocks' historical performance. But using the trading platform I was on, I could only search for stocks by supplying symbols or company names. I couldn't get a list of new, undiscovered stocks based on their historical performance criteria that I defined and supplied.

So I made this app so anyone can easily search and find stocks based on their own criteria that they can specify. It's a very basic app and it's missing a lot of functionalities, but I had a lot of fun making it.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, Git, yFinance API

View Project

Imposter Game

This is a weekend project that I did for a social ice-breaker game that I used to play.

The game is called 'Liar Game' and the goal is to identify the imposter. To play the game, everyone is given an identical word except the imposter. No one knows who the imposter is, except for the moderator, who is whispering the chosen word to each participant. Each participant takes turn to provide a vague description about the given word to prove that he/she knows the word. The description must be clear enough to signal to others that he/she knows the word, but vague enough as to not give it away to the imposter who is actively trying to figure out the word. At the end of a round or two, if the participants cannot correctly identify the imposter, the imposter wins.

Unforutnately, this game requires a moderator who is not able to participate. So I built this app that randomly pick a word from a chosen category and randomly assign the imposter, so everyone can participate without the need for a moderator.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, Git

View Project

TruVoice

I struggle to express my thoughts and opinions in a large group settings. I remember sitting in a company meeting with more than 50 people, and the meeting organizer asked if anyone had any feedback on their new initiatives.

I had a few questions, along with some feedback that I wanted to share. But being timid, I held my tongue and just sat there quietly. I didn't want to appear stupid for asking stuff that everybody else knew.

That's when I thought it would be great if there was a way I could deliver my feedback to the management without the pressure of being judged or being put on a spotlight. This inspired me to create TruVoice, a tool that companies can utilize to receive anonymous feedback from their employees.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, Stripe API, Sendgrid API, PostgreSQL (Amazon RDS), Git

View Project

My Fun Las Vegas

I made a community website for Koreans living in, or visiting, Las Vegas. These sort of 'community websites' are pretty common in the U.S. Korean communities. Discontent with the existing community site, I wanted to make my own.

My goal with the site was to digitally capture all information related to Las Vegas, for Korean locals and visitors alike. Information, such as things to do, things to see, where to go eat, list of sought-out businesses are all captured through the website.

The site is generating monthly revenue from sponsors who advertise through the website.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, PostgreSQL (Amazon RDS), Git

View Project

Tour Booking App

This is my first software project that actually made me money. Not a lot, but enough to get me into application development.

I got connected with a tour company that needed a custom content management system to manage their bookings and tours. They were using good-ole pen & paper, aided by Excel, and had trouble automating some of their processes. So I made a custom web application for them.

Little did I know then that when I would go on to start a web development agency later (Design Box), other tour businesses would approach me and ask for the same thing. And that's when Tour Booking App was born.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, JavaScript, Stripe API, Sendgrid API, PostgreSQL (Amazon RDS), Git

View Project

Previous Personal Projects

My Easy Green Card

Many immigrants come to the U.S. to achieve their American Dream. However, filling out immigration forms is hard. While the forms are freely available from the USCIS website, the filing process is very confusing and difficult. So they often dole out thousands of dollars to lawyers to prepare their green card applications.

Having professional laywers is absolutely necessary when their cases require a legal advice. But often times, they just need assistance with form preparation and they are just looking for specific filing information that is customized to their immigration case.

So I created a software that help people file green card applications easily. Through a series of questions and pre-built decision trees, they are able to answer: "What forms and supporting documents do I need to submit for my immigration case?"

The idea is very similar to TurboTax, but it's for immigration filing.


Tech Stack: Python, Flask, MongoDB, Git

My Kode School

I noticed that many people in my community were looking for a career change into the world of programming. There are many free courses available on Youtube, but they all lack personal guidance from an expert. Bootcamps, on the other hand, cost $8K or more to go through. I wanted to create an affordable code school for people to pursue their learning for programming without breaking bank. Through a series of survey, I determined that they would be enough demand for an affordable programming school.

This was one of the projects that I was able to fail quickly. Ultimately, I decided to pull the plug because I realized that I'd be offering a service (not a product) and it wasn't ever going to scale. While I made no money, I learned many valuable lessons.


Tech Stack: Python, Stripe API, Git

Basketball 4 Nerds

I started this project while trying to marry three of my biggest passions: code, data, and basketball. I wanted to create a prediction algorithm that can reliably predict game outcomes and possibly even the betting spreads.

While in search for that “magical” algorithm, I performed various preliminary/explanatory analyses. In doing so, I found some interesting things, as shown by the data. I wanted to publish these findings and share them via a blog. And hence, Basketball 4 Nerds was born.


Tech Stack: R, PostgreSQL (Amazon RDS), Git

View Project

Personal Interests

General Interests
Basketball, piano, swimming, ethnic dining, traveling, entrepreneurship, small businesses, computer programming, data science & analytics, software/web/application development, automation, data engineering, self-development, and more.

Favorite Books
  • "Rich Dad, Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki
  • "The 7 habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey
  • "Atomic Habits" by James Clear
  • "The Innovator's Dilemma" by Clayton Christensen
  • "Freakonomics" by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven Levitt
  • "Show Your Work" by Austin Kleon
Favorite Movies
  • The Pianist
  • Hotel Rwanda
  • The Departed
  • Django Unchained
  • Inglorious Basterds
  • I am Legend
  • Bourne series
  • Sherlock series

Collaboration

I'm super interested in connecting with like-minded others for potential collaboration! Please reach out if you are an entrepreneur, developer, designer, growth hacker, marketer, ideator, etc. Or even if you just feel like chatting, do reach out!

Here's a list of ideas I would love to collaborate on.

Currently, I am looking for:

  • a front-end developer to collaborate on a SaaS project
  • a growth hacker to help attain users for a SaaS product
  • a Korean-speaking SEO specialist or blogger to grow traffic into a travel website

Contact Me

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