ABOUT ME
BEN ABT
Software Engineer · Microsoft MVP
Hi, I'm Ben and I use code to solve your problems.
I'm a Principal Software Engineer at Medialesson GmbH, specialized in cloud and hybrid platforms on Azure and .NET, with a strong focus on performance, scalability and sustainability.
I have been a Microsoft MVP for .NET and Azure since 2015 and support the developer community through publications, talks, articles and open source projects, as well as through myCSharp.de - the largest and most active C# forum in the German-speaking world.
Do you need expert consulting for your project?
The Medialesson specialist team and I are at your disposal, providing comprehensive consulting, tailored coaching, and bespoke development in .NET, TypeScript, Azure, and modern API architectures.
Microsoft MVP since 2015
Recognized for exceptional technical expertise and community engagement in the area of Developer Technologies (.NET, C# and ASP.NET Core) and Microsoft Azure.
Professional experience
Medialesson GmbH
Principal Software Engineer
2022 - Present
- Cross-project accountability for technology and architecture decisions
- Strategic guidance and hands-on support to implementation teams
- Design and implementation of highly scalable, end-to-end cloud solutions based on Azure, .NET and container technologies
- Define and drive key technical strategies
- Trusted advisor to C-level executives and technical stakeholders on cloud and AI initiatives
- Develop and deliver professional training sessions and workshops covering cloud computing, Azure, .NET, security, and AI scalability
CGI Deutschland
Director Expert for IoT and Industry 4.0
2021 - 2022
- Leadership in Microsoft Azure IoT, delivering internal and external consulting
- Conception and implementation of highly available IIoT and IoT platforms (cloud-based and on-premises)
- Solutions for manufacturing, agriculture, and facility management sectors
- Presales activities across Southern Germany focusing on development, Microsoft Cloud, IIoT, and IoT solutions
- Development advisory centered on .NET, ASP.NET, containers, Azure, and IoT
- Cloud advisory emphasizing Azure technologies
- Planning and delivery of comprehensive trainings and workshops on .NET, ASP.NET, Azure Functions, Azure Web Apps, Azure DevOps, GitHub, CI/CD, Docker, Azure IoT, modern API development and scalable cloud architectures
Devoteam GmbH
Principal Consultant - Cloud / IoT / Connected Factory / Industry 4.0
2018 - 2020
- Internal and external consulting for highly available IIoT and IoT-focused cloud and on-premises platforms
- Conceptualized and delivered trainings, technical talks, and deep-dive workshops on .NET, ASP.NET, Docker, and Azure
- .NET Guild Leader and Offer Owner for IIoT and IoT
- Strategic initiatives and presales activities throughout the DACH region
- Focus on development, Microsoft Cloud, and industrial IoT solutions
- Active speaker at user groups, conferences, and meetups
Alegri GmbH (acquired by Devoteam)
Lead Consultant - Cloud / IoT / Connected Factory/ Industry 4.0
2015 - 2018
- Internal and external consulting for highly available IIoT and IoT-focused platforms
- Design and implementation for manufacturing, farming, and facility management industries
- Solutions built with .NET, Azure, Azure IoT, Azure IoT Edge, AWS, AWS IoT, and Rancher
- Azure DevOps-based workflows implementation
- Trainings and workshops on .NET, ASP.NET, Docker, Azure, Azure IoT, Azure IoT Edge, DevOps, modern API development, cloud architecture, and IoT architecture
- .NET Guild Leader and Offer Owner for IIoT and IoT
- Strategic initiatives and presales activities across DACH region
- Active tech community contributor as speaker at user groups, conferences, and meetups
TRUMPF GmbH + Co. KG
Architect + Engineer - C# / ASP.NET / Angular / Cloud + IoT
2008 - 2015
- Planning, development, and support of distributed web applications based on ASP.NET MVC, WebAPI, WebSockets, and MongoDB
- Automated generation of operating systems and components for machine controls
- Design and maintenance of custom backup systems for Windows XPe and Windows Embedded-based machine controls
- Development of software modules for machine controls running on Windows 7 Embedded
- Performance-optimized low-level libraries based on .NET and Win32 API
- Software installation, distribution, and production processes
- Supervision and technical support to system developers worldwide
- Planning and development of distributed, cloud-based web applications in Industry 4.0 and IoT context
- Silo-Leader Web Stack: architecture and implementation of web stack and single-page application
- Technologies: ASP.NET, OData, HTML5, AngularJS, and TypeScript
- Transfer to newly founded subsidiary Axoom GmbH in Karlsruhe
Professional projects
Platform-Architect / -Engineer / -Coach
Designed and architected a cloud and hybrid customer platform for the gold and jewelry retail sector, providing strategic coaching to development teams.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and development of a highly scalable self-service platform
- Migration of existing standalone applications into a unified, modular platform architecture
- Provided consulting support for the technological implementation of on-premises and hybrid platforms using .NET, ASP.NET, Azure, Windows Server, and Linux containers
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a B2B cloud platform to plan and manage table bookings for hotels and restaurants.
Key Responsibilities:
- Architected and developed the backend services for tenant and user management, reservations, notifications and reporting, ensuring high availability and fault tolerance
- Migrated to Microsoft Entra External Identities
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a multi-region B2B self-service platform for a leading global IT system and consulting company of Microsoft. Multi-tenant setup, license self-service automation, connection of third-party IT systems for the security evaluation of IT systems and Azure tenant environments.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and development of a highly scalable self-service platform
- Migration of existing standalone applications into a unified, modular platform architecture
- Modular monolith design with full container readiness
- Cloud-native deployment leveraging Azure services
- CI/CD with Azure, Azure DevOps, SonarQube, and GitHub Advanced Security
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a multi-region B2B self-service platform for a worldwide (incl. China) leading system for the planning of kitchen and kitchen systems.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and development of a highly scalable platform for kitchen planning tailored to studios across Europe, North America, and China
- Development and migration of a microservices platform using Azure Web Apps, Azure Container Apps, and integration with legacy systems
- Refactoring and migration of legacy code to C# 10 and C# 11 (.NET 6+)
- Migration of monolithic applications to ASP.NET-based microservices
- Consolidation of local identity systems into a unified SSO platform using Azure B2B (employees) and Azure B2C (customers)
- CI/CD pipelines using Azure and Azure DevOps
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a multi-region rental platform for cargo bikes, including Partner connectivity and integration of connected cargo bikes for B2C and B2B rental.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and implementation of a Java-Spring-based IoT platform on Azure
- Integration of connected cargo bikes for B2C and B2B rental
- Setting up the CI/CD workflow with containers and Azure DevOps
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a quarters platform for the management of properties and real estate, including contract management, resident management, complaint management, IoT connection of devices for building monitoring.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and implementation of a district platform to manage real estate, rental contracts, facility services, and property administration
- Development of a modular monolith with microservice readiness using ASP.NET Core, .NET, and existing container-based services
- Implementation of an enterprise-grade identity system using Auth0
- Cloud-native development leveraging Azure services
- CI/CD using Azure and Azure DevOps
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a smart live analytics platform for agricultural seed breeding
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and implementation of a cloud platform to live-analyse seeds via various sensors
- Development of a modular monolith with microservice readiness using ASP.NET Core, .NET, and existing container-based services
- Cloud-native development leveraging Azure services
- CI/CD using Azure and Azure DevOps
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a hybrid and shop-floor-only platform for the world's leading gear-technology manufacturer.
Key Responsibilities:
- Designed and implemented a hybrid shop-floor platform to integrate production machinery and precision measurement systems for gears and bevel gears
- Architected and deployed a K3s-based microservices ecosystem
- Built a scalable, customer-facing platform on Microsoft Azure
- Established an Azure DevOps–driven container deployment pipeline for on-premises maintenance and service applications
- Engineered robust ASP.NET Core API services to support platform operations
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a cloud-based customer platform for clients of large-scale industrial systems, enabling planning and production of rubber compound products such as tires.
Key Responsibilities:
- Design and development of a cloud-based customer platform
- Development of various microservices (contracts, master data, machine integration, and legacy systems)
- IoT architecture for isolated production machines in the tire manufacturing industry
- Design and implementation of ASP.NET Core-based backend systems
IoT-Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a global, hybrid B2B platform for managing connected tools (drills, milling machines, saws, etc.)
Key Responsibilities:
- Architected and developed a multi-region, Azure-based cloud solution
- Designed and implemented an event-driven .NET solution
- Built and deployed various backend systems and established CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a global B2B platform for managing customers and partners.
Key Responsibilities:
- Designed and developed a .NET based cloud-platform incl. connectivity to existing on-premises systems
- Design and implementation of the event-based messaging system
IoT-Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a global, hybrid B2B/B2C platform for smart refrigerators for a leading German appliance manufacturer
Key Responsibilities:
- Designed and developed a hybrid/on-premises B2B/B2C platform for smart refrigerators
- Design and implementation of the event-based messaging system
- Development of the end-customer platform using ASP.NET Core and Azure Service Fabric
Platform-Architect / -Engineer
Designed and architected a highly available platform for tracking cleaning equipment for a leading German industrial cleaning group to monitor legal hygiene regulations in hospitals.
Key Responsibilities:
- Architected and developed an on-premises platform for tracking cleaning equipment in hospitals
- Designed and implemented a highly available ASP.NET-based solution
- Evaluation and implementation of hardware (RFID) for tracking cleaning utensils
Platform-Architect / Backend- and Frontend-Engineer
Designed and architected a cloud-based IoT platform enabling vendor-agnostic machine connectivity and real-time data analytics for smart factory solutions.
Key Responsibilities:
- Designed modular microservices for device connectivity, data ingestion, and analytics
- Integrated OPC UA, MQTT, and RESTful APIs to enable seamless communication between machines, sensors, and applications
- Developed rich, responsive frontend components and dashboards using AngularJS
- Implemented CI/CD pipelines for automated build, test, and deployment workflows
- Ensured secure, role-based access control industrial data security standards
Platform-Architect / Backend- and Frontend-Engineer
Designed and architected an internal platform to support the development, deployment and production of machine operating systems and components.
Key Responsibilities:
- Designed and implemented the .NET-based platform
- Integrated Kerberos-based authentication and authorization for secure access control
- Migrated legacy AccessDB applications to a modern, scalable platform
- Designed and developed custom build processes for automated creation of operating systems and components for machine controllers
- Implemented CI/CD pipelines to automate build, test, and deployment workflows