Herramientas Pedagógicas de la JEP
Juan Diego Mesa O.
Creator and manager of digital products
Fullstack developer Digital journalist
Who am I
My profile
Hi! I'm Juan, and I've been designing, creating, developing, managing, and optimizing digital web products for over 10 years.
I'm addicted to learning new things. I studied Journalism out of a passion for knowing a little bit about everything, being well-informed, and prioritizing the truth over prejudice. Then, self-learning and a passion for technology led me to web development, on a path that has taken me from my first "Hello World" to building web products available to everyone. More recently, an unexpected scholarship opened the doors to training in management, entrepreneurship, leadership, and business; an exciting world where I can apply much of what I've learned and continue learning every day.
I have participated in both private sector projects and public entities in Colombia, in roles related primarily to mass dissemination of information, user experience, and the creation, design, and development of new high-quality digital products. I have even had the opportunity to train others in technology, seeking to bridge the mental gap that many create around digital technology.
I live in Bogotá, play soccer and volleyball every week, love music and play drums occasionally. Fortunately, I still maintain my passion for taking photographs, I love traveling, and I never miss an opportunity to read or listen to podcasts about history.
Developer
I began my web development journey in the front-end, so I think it will always be the area where I feel most comfortable. However, I've overcome a fair number of challenges that have led me to work without restrictions in the back-end, database management, and general aspects of cloud deployment.
After various experiences, I can say that there are minimal (if not zero) steps involved in developing a web asset that I haven't participated in in some way: from purchasing a domain to deploying it in the cloud.
I firmly believe that I'm not just a professional who codes, but someone who is obsessed with solving a problem, whether with cutting-edge technology or not.
Jornalist
I've dedicated my career to the digital world and, as a journalist, I've worked in newsrooms and communications teams where my much deeper understanding of web technology, which we use every day to reach thousands of people, has allowed me to explore a wide range of possibilities to achieve our goals: from social media outreach to tailored interactive experiences, for example.
Furthermore, this experience has allowed me to recognize the value that metrics, audience analysis, strategic message planning, and the cohesion that must exist with the work of other professionals in design, audiovisual, marketing, and data analysis, among others, have for digital communication.
Professional experiences
Contractor
Feb 2022 - Dec 2024
Unidad de Búsqueda de Personas Dadas por Desaparecidas (UBPD)
I was responsible for managing the websites for the Communications Office, where I received a set of assets with a high level of technical debt, with obsolete products and processes. During my tenure, we managed to modernize existing assets by moving them to an in-house infrastructure and implementing modern integration processes with containers and repositories, redesigning the user experience for both external and internal audiences, restructuring the institutional Web Portal to align with the needs of the entity, and creating new assets that allowed for greater digital ownership of the mission.
Contractor
Mar - Oct 2024
Jurisdicción Especial para la Paz (JEP)
The Subdirectorate of Institutional Strengthening sought to create the digital environment for the JEP's "Pedagogical Tools." With my participation, we were able to translate the functional needs of the pedagogy team into clear functional requirements for the products to be developed. We designed the UI, implemented the web infrastructure required for testing and deployment in synergy with the technology team, and finally, we published the tool environment, training its user administrators on how to properly manage it.
Contractor
Mar - Jun 2024
Alcaldía de Bogotá
As part of the Bogotá's Portal development team, I was able to contribute to the visual restructuring of some front-end components of the homepage to improve the experience and refresh the appearance, primarily on mobile devices. I also contributed to the construction of a new UI design proposal for the entire site, the integration of a dynamic component updated through external APIs, and the development of two microsite templates for the dissemination of special information.
Contractor
Feb 2021 - Jun 2022
Departamento Nacional de Planeación (DNP)
I was responsible for leading the redesign project for the institutional Web Portal, with which the Communications Office sought to modernize its appearance and administration. During my tenure, I was able to conceptualize a new UI proposal for the site that improved the user experience and met the National Government's design guidelines. I translated this design to the front end and, in synergy with the technology team, implemented it on the SharePoint platform for administration.
Contractor
Sep 2018 - Dec 2020
Colombiacheck
Although I was the technical manager of the website, I had a multifaceted role as part of the Colombiacheck.com team. With my participation, we were able to deploy a new version of the site on a self-managed infrastructure in the AWS cloud, reducing projected costs by 40%, triple the site's traffic, especially during the COVID pandemic, create our own APIs for external partners such as Indra and Google, develop special microsites for data dissemination, create a new video format for disseminating content on social media, and develop a technological innovation project in fact-checking that received over US$60,000 in funding from the IFCN and Facebook.
Contractor
Jun - Dec 2019
Unidad Administrativa Especial de Servicios Públicos (UAESP)
As part of the Communications Office and in charge of the digital strategy, I managed to increase the reach of the entity's social media by 10%, primarily focusing on proper waste management and recycling. We also managed to create synergies between digital communications and other media channels, achieving unity in the entity's messages across all media.
Digital Journalist
Feb - Sep 2018
Nuestra Tele Internacional
I was in charge of the websites and social media for the international channels Nuestra Tele and RCN Novelas. With my participation, we conceptualized a redesign proposal for the portals, seeking significant improvements in the user experience and attracting greater traffic from the target audience.
Digital Journalist
Feb 2014 - Feb 2018
NoticiasRCN.com
After completing my internship, I joined the digital team at Noticias RCN, where I held roles in social media outreach, where we established ourselves as the media outlet with the most followers in the country for two years. I worked in the international newsroom, where I innovated by producing multimedia specials on current issues such as the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and the rise of the Islamic State. I was in charge of the social media team, with whom I created new formats for live video broadcasting. Finally, I was in charge of special content.
Training
Online learning
2017 - Present
Platzi
Platzi has been my primary self-learning space, guiding me in technology-related skills. In addition to passing the Frontend Architecture course in 2020, I've taken courses related to backend, databases, UI design, DevOps, cloud computing, and digital marketing, among others. You can see my student profile here.
Master in Business of IT
Feb 2022 - Apr 2024
Universidad de los Andes
I was awarded the 'Un ticket para el futuro' scholarship to pursue my second Master's degree, where I focused primarily on leadership and entrepreneurship. My senior project was "Mentali," an initiative to apply technology to detect burnout early in employees and collaborators.
Master in Journalism
Feb 2016 - Mar 2017
Universidad del Rosario
In my first Master's degree, I was able to delve deeper into some current challenges in journalism and applied my professional skills as an intern in the digital editorial team of Semana Magazine and on the special content team at La FM. My senior project was the journalistic special "The Faces of Silent Peace," a multimedia report featuring stories from Bajo Cauca (Antioquia and Córdoba) later published in Semana.
Bachelor's degree in Journalism and Public Opinion
Jan 2009 - Mar 2014
Universidad del Rosario
As part of the School of Human Sciences, during my studies I trained in social sciences and research. I majored in History, and in the final years of my studies, I focused on online journalism and interactive formats.
Academic High School
Dec 2008
Colegio Colsubsidio Ciudadela
I completed the last two years of high school with an emphasis on Humanities, and in 10th grade I was promoted early because I earned a half-scholarship to enter the University.
What I do
Portfolio
Throughout my professional career, I've had the opportunity to work on several projects in different roles. Here you can learn about some of them, primarily technical projects:
Búsqueda Inversa
Especial multimedia búsqueda de Samaná
Portal de Datos UBPD
Tu fecha, nuestra fecha
Ajustes diseño Bogota.gov.co
