James Foster is a seasoned engineering executive with over two decades of cross-functional experience leading QA, finance, operations, and product engineering at GemTalk Systems and predecessor organizations. Currently Vice President of Engineering, he blends deep hands-on technical skills in software, testing automation, and Python with strategic business responsibilities such as contracts, finance, and global customer engagement. He has a track record of modernizing engineering practices—building integrated bug-tracking and repo workflows, introducing automated testing, and streamlining releases to boost productivity. An adjunct computer science professor, he also brings an academic lens to mentoring and curriculum-driven teaching. Comfortable negotiating complex international contracts and presenting at conferences, he pairs practical delivery focus with an ability to translate technical value to customers. Unusually for an engineer at his level, he also holds a JD and has early-career legal and policy experience that informs his pragmatic approach to risk, compliance, and contracts.
11 years of coding experience
34 years of employment as a software developer
MS Computer Science, MS Computer Science at North Dakota State University
BA Math major History & Econ minors, BA Math major History & Econ minors at Walla Walla University
MBA, MBA at Southern Adventist University
JD Law, JD Law at University of California, Los Angeles - School of Law
Contributions:5 reviews, 9 PRs, 7 pushes in 1 year 8 months
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James Foster - Vice President Of Engineering at GemTalk Systems