Our community is the Super Power of Umbraco, and it’s a huge pleasure to now present the Orchestration Advisory Board, who’ll help us shape the future of Content Delivery and Orchestration within Umbraco. The Orchestration Super Power, if you will.
Today, we find many agencies building bespoke integrations and “platforms” - e.g. through BFFs (Backend For Frontend) or similar patterns. That’s time-consuming, and can be both difficult and costly to build and maintain. Back in June 2024, CTO Filip Bech-Larsen first presented his 4 Lighthouses, one of them being Orchestration. Since then, we have been considering how Umbraco might provide first-party support to make composing content from varied sources easier for our community.
And to help us navigate this journey, we’ve found this amazing group of people presented below. Please welcome the Orchestration Advisory Group:
Andrew McKaskill
I've been using Umbraco since v7, but really became an avid community member after attending Codegarden in 2022. Since then I've given talks at Codegarden and meetups, attended hackathons, contributed code and ideas, and been named an MVP.
I was privileged enough to be part of the old Headless community team and was able to see first-hand the tremendous impact that we had as a group by sharing our industry experience and expertise with the Umbraco development teams.
I believe that my background in enterprise business systems and applications gives me a valuable perspective, and I love being able to share that and help shape the future of Umbraco's orchestration features.
I've been making and building enterprise business applications for 20 years, with most implementations involving complex links to other IT systems managing finance, e-commerce, payment processing, physical access control, hospitality, or inventory.
As a Technical Architect, I design these interfaces and interactions for our clients, helping them create new digital experiences that draw upon and exploit data from many different internal applications.
Carole Logan
I have worked with Umbraco for over 10 years, working with clients to build enterprise systems integrating with many data sources, APIs and businesses processes. My goal is always to make things "just work" like they should, with good customer, editor and developer experience.
I'd like to contribute this experience and knowledge into the next iteration of Umbraco features and I am keen to see where the orchestration project goes!
I am a 8x Umbraco MVP and 3x Microsoft MVP. In my day job I am a principal engineer working in .NET stack and Azure platform mainly. I have worked with Umbraco for over 10 years now, going back as far as v4 as well as other CMS/DXPs. Much of my time has been spent integrating Umbraco projects with other systems, making them integrate smoothly to support users and business processes.
Chris King
Working at Tangent, we’ve used Umbraco extensively with its Heartcore offering across a wide range of applications, covering many different implementations and architectures. We’ve been consistently impressed by both the quality of the CMS and the strength of the Umbraco community. When I learned about the opportunity to serve on the orchestration advisory board, I saw it as an ideal way to collaborate more closely with Umbraco and share insights from Tangent that could help make Umbraco an even more stable and flexible platform moving forward into this new and exciting iteration.
I have more than 15 years of professional experience in the technical field, spanning various aspects of technical delivery and leadership, from Developer to Technical Architect and now Associate Director. I remain hands-on, often contributing to and providing oversight for DevOps and Technical Architecture. I’m also a keen supporter of open-source technologies and stay active in that community
Chris Osterhout
I’m the Senior Vice President of Strategy at Diagram, where I guide organizations through complex digital transformations. My role is to design and implement solutions that help clients see measurable results, sooner. We work closely with large, enterprise-level clients who could benefit from a strong orchestration platform. Because I engage with a wide range of CMS tools, including Optimizely, I’m in a unique position to spot where organizations could use more coordinated solutions. I’d welcome the opportunity to share these insights and contribute to this initiative.
Grey Muir
I decided to join the Umbraco Orchestration board out of a desire to be more integrated into the Umbraco community (it's never enough!), and also to have my voice heard when it comes to orchestration. I've been interested in the direction Umbraco is taking in the headless space for a long time and wanted to offer insight from my experience integrating various bits and bobs to help make the orchestration experience the best it can be!
I've been an Umbraco developer from day one of my professional career, I've been involved in award winning websites and, as of more recently, taken on the role of Technical Lead in projects using Umbraco. I've done work integrating a myriad of external systems into Umbraco (from CRMs, to event providers, to an RSS feed one time) and have a specific interest in search and how external integrations can interact with it. I'm also a keen member of the Umbraco community, regularly attending Umbraco Manchester meetups, and on one occasion (so far) doing a talk.
Ishraq Al Fataftah
I've started working with Umbraco 10 years ago and it has been one of the best Content Management Systems that I've worked with. Over the years, it has evolved and we have selected it to be our Headless CMS for our own website and the recommended solution for any customer looking for a headless CMS. I have learned a lot working with Umbraco and other platforms and I had the chance to work with many clients who helped shape the end product as we adapted to their own needs. I hope that I can share this experience with the community and be able to contribute to the advancement of such a great platform.
I've been working in the IT industry for more than 20 years now where I have professionally been working with various CMSs for more than 15 years. During these times, I've seen many platforms evolve as they tried to catch up with the latest tech stacks and best-of-breeds. During my journey I've learned that beyond the bills and whistles of buzz-words in every technology, many share the similar architecture and ways of thinking and with a little humility to learn from others, you can end up building the best solutions that are set to serve your customers many years to come.
I've started as a .Net developer and worked as a Solution Architect on many enterprise platforms before consulting many customers around the world as a technical director and CTO at my own Agency, ApplezTech. Working on multiple verticals and markets, I had the chance to work on many cases and pain points that helped me build a perspective that I'm excited to share with everyone.
Sean Thorne
As digital experiences become more sophisticated, I see first hand how difficult it can be to manage multiple services and orchestrate data in a cohesive, user-friendly way. When I heard about the Orchestration Team and its Advisory Board, I knew this was a perfect chance to share my knowledge, learn from others, and help shape the future of Umbraco’s headless journey.
I decided to apply because I’m passionate about simplifying complexity, especially around integrations, so that developers can focus on delivering great experiences rather than wrestling with unwieldy, over-engineered and complex tech stacks. I look forward to contributing my experience, collaborating with the Umbraco HQ team and the community
I’ve been working with Umbraco since version 6, and over that time I’ve had the opportunity to architect and implement a variety of solutions—from straightforward websites to large projects requiring advanced integrations and complex infrastructures.
Mikkel Keller
I am passionate about composable architecture and enterprise content orchestration, and this team is an ideal place for me to share my experience. Having built large-scale composable platforms on numerous Umbraco projects, I am eager to contribute my expertise and help make composable architecture more accessible to a broader audience.
Mikkel is the CTO at Novicell UK. He is a seasoned software architect and a long-time Umbraco enthusiast. With a background in computer science and 25 years of experience in the Internet industry, he possesses in-depth knowledge of Internet technologies, software principles, design patterns, and enterprise architecture. He has a proven track record of building large-scale, scalable, and high-performing enterprise platforms for major international clients.
Nick Collins
During my time working with Umbraco at PDMS, I’ve seen it grow from version 7 to where it is today. As the demand for integrations between CMS platforms and third-party systems increases, the need for efficient orchestration has become essential.
I see joining the Orchestration Advisory Board as an opportunity to help shape Umbraco’s future, particularly in improving integration capabilities and data flow between Umbraco CMS and other systems. As well as to collaborate with Umbraco HQ and the community to help drive forward these initiatives.
I have worked with Umbraco for nearly 10 years and it has been my CMS of choice throughout this time. I am passionate about understanding how Umbraco and its capabilities can help customers with their digital transformation.
Over the past few years, I continue to hold Umbraco Certified Master status and have contributed to a range of large-scale projects, including those that integrate with various technologies and the extending of the backoffice. I'm always eager to explore how Umbraco can provide innovative solutions to meet our clients' evolving needs.
Teunis Roes
I decided to apply to join the Umbraco Advisory Board because I’m really passionate about Umbraco and the opportunities it creates for businesses. After working with Umbraco for several years, I’ve come to really appreciate its power and the strong community behind it. I’ve also worked with a variety of clients, which has given me a good understanding of their needs and how Umbraco can be used to solve their challenges. I see this as a great chance to share my experience, collaborate with other experts, and help shape the future of Umbraco in a way that benefits both users and developers.
Seven years ago, I discovered my passion for IT while digitalizing a business process in my first job. Since then, I’ve worked with various technologies and CMS platforms, constantly expanding my expertise. During my three years at Proud Nerds, I’ve come to love the great user experience that Umbraco offers.
Starting as a Product Owner, I successfully delivered numerous exciting projects. Along the way, I identified recurring challenges faced by teams and clients. Now, as a Product Manager, I focus on addressing these challenges and developing solutions that benefit multiple teams and clients.
I’m deeply passionate about connecting people, technology, and innovation to deliver impactful and meaningful results that drive success.
Younes van Ruth
My name is Younes van Ruth, and I serve as Technology Directors at iO Campus Den Bosch. With extensive experience in enterprise application development, system integrations, and orchestration, I am eager to contribute to the Orchestration Advisory Board. I actively work with approximately seven teams on our campus, spanning diverse tech stacks, which gives me a broad and practical perspective on integration challenges and opportunities. I believe this hands-on involvement positions me to bring valuable insights and actionable ideas to the table. At the Efteling I work closely with our teams to deliver the right experiences to our guests of the theme park and resorts in a MACH composable software architecture, with a best-of-class approach from the business perspective.
I bring a unique perspective that bridges technical and business domains (also one of the recommendations on LinkedIN), informed by both strategic leadership and hands-on technical experience. This dual approach enables me to address the nuanced challenges developers face while aligning solutions with broader organizational goals. My experience in orchestrating multi-disciplinary teams and technologies equips me to contribute meaningfully to discussions about improving developer experience and building scalable, standardized solutions.
I am passionate about creating tools and frameworks that simplify complex architectures and empower developers. I am excited about the opportunity to collaborate with Umbraco HQ and the broader community to tackle orchestration challenges, align products with real-world needs, and drive innovation in this space.
Roberto Modica
When I learned about the opportunity to join the Orchestration Advisory Board, I saw it as an excellent chance to give back to the Umbraco community. By sharing the knowledge and experience that myself and my team have gained delivering enterprise projects where Umbraco plays a central role in integrating multiple systems.
I have been working with agencies for over 20 years, and a big part of that work has been delivering websites with CMS systems to give clients the right tools to manage and deliver content to their audiences.
Having worked with and delivered many projects with Umbraco since version 4, I have always found it to be an exceptional CMS offering a unique blend of usability and developer flexibility that few other systems can match. Beyond the core product, the evolution of the Umbraco ecosystem is something my team and I are excited to be a part of, enabling us to deliver best-in-class solutions with Umbraco at the heart of our projects.
Written by: Lasse Fredslund
Published: February 7, 2024