Speaker

Colin Lord

Colin Lord

Software Engineering Manager

Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Colin Lord is a Software Engineering Manager. He’s been writing front-end code since the days of IE6...and has a few gray hairs to prove it! In addition to the traditional front-end stack, he has worked in the healthcare industry since 2015. As a result, he has a strong background in accessibility. Before getting into healthcare, he worked in the entertainment and music industries for several years.

What To Expect When You’re Expecting A Design System

Design systems have grown in popularity in recent years. It’s easy to see the benefits. A design system serves as the one source of truth for both designers and front-end developers. If done correctly, they’ll result in a uniform design and clean code. But deciding to embark on a design system is like choosing to complete an Ironman. The decision is only the beginning of the journey.

In this talk, we’ll go through the next steps after deciding to embark on the design system journey. I’ve been through the process three different times on long-term projects for three different clients. From underestimating technical debt to miscommunication of our goals politically, I’ve stumbled into many of the pitfalls and learned hard lessons from them. Whether you’re a designer, front-end developer, or project manager, we’ll go through how to avoid these pitfalls and get your design system to the finish line. We’ll also go through a live design system to show why all that hard work is worth it!

A Pandemic, A Tornado, and a Bombing: Lessons Learned From Managing A Team Through 2020

2020 was a long year for everyone. It was even longer in Nashville, Tennessee. The week before the COVID-19 shutdown, an EF-3 tornado moved through downtown. Nine months later, a bomb went off in the same area.

Until March 2020, my team worked in person in the heart of downtown Nashville. The day before the tornado hit, we kicked off a challenging multi-year project. None of us knew our kickoff dinner would be the last time we were all together.

There isn’t a book or a guide about managing a team through a pandemic, a tornado, and a bombing. I don’t claim to have all the answers. Some things worked, others not so much. We’ll discuss lessons learned from a truly strange and unsettling year in this talk.

I Know I Should Use SVGs But Don't Know How

Using SVG images are a lot like going to the gym. We all know we *should* be using them, but we end up putting it off for another project down the road. And when SVGs are used, they are often implemented in a way that doesn’t unlock their full potential.

During this presentation, we’ll discuss the best practices for SVG implementation and how they vary depending on the size and audience of your site. We will also go through what an SVG sprite is, how to create one, and why they’re awesome. According to Advanced Web Ranking.com, only 3% of sites on the internet use this technique...but 97% of browsers support it!

After this talk, you’ll be ready to work on your SVGs like you’ll be ready to work on your summer body!

THAT Conference 2023

Over four days, folks of diverse technology backgrounds and expertise levels gather to take advantage of multiple learning mediums to maximize one’s community and career advancements.

January 2023 Austin, Texas, United States

THAT Conference 2022

Over four days, folks of diverse technology backgrounds and expertise levels gather to take advantage of multiple learning mediums to maximize one’s community and career advancements.

July 2022 Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, United States

THAT Conference 2021

Over four days, folks of diverse technology backgrounds and expertise levels gather to take advantage of multiple learning mediums to maximize one’s community and career advancements.

July 2021 Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, United States

Scenic City Summit

The largest local IT professional development program in Chattanooga! The event brings together coders, designers, database administrators, web developers, project managers, and IT professionals to share real-world business problems, best practices and emerging technologies.

August 2018 Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States

THAT Conference 2018

Over four days, folks of diverse technology backgrounds and expertise levels gather to take advantage of multiple learning mediums to maximize one’s community and career advancements.

August 2018 Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, United States

RevolutionConf 2018 Sessionize Event

May 2018 Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States

UX Dev Summit

UX+DEV SUMMIT is South Florida’s largest User Experience and Developers conference! Join us for 4 days of workshops and a full day filled with immersive talks in the areas of User Experience, Product Management, and Development.

May 2018 Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States

WordCamp Raleigh

WordCamp Raleigh is the longest-running WordCamp in the state of North Carolina.

April 2018 Raleigh, North Carolina, United States

Connect.Tech 2017

CONNECT.TECH is the Southeast’s premier annual conference dedicated to JavaScript, Web and Mobile related technologies, tools, and frameworks. CONNECT.TECH will feature presentations and workshops from global technology and thought leaders as well as local community speakers. The 2017 event had 100 people attend.

September 2017 Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Colin Lord

Software Engineering Manager

Nashville, Tennessee, United States