Sam Barker
Principal Software Engineer at IBM
Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand
Summary
🤩
Rockstar🎓
Top SchoolSam Barker is a Principal Software Engineer based in Christchurch, New Zealand, with 13 years of experience building high-performance Java systems and driving agile, test-first delivery. He has progressed through roles at LMAX, Lab49, MahiFX, Ströer Labs and Red Hat, and now works at IBM, consistently focusing on back-end reliability, low-latency messaging and pragmatic architecture. An active open-source contributor, Sam has contributed to the well-known LMAX Disruptor project, improving its RingBuffer batch publication and test quality—evidence of his attention to both performance and developer ergonomics. He blends deep Core Java and Spring expertise with XP/Kanban practices and strong communication skills, frequently translating complex systems into maintainable code and team processes. Equally comfortable digging into compiler warnings or leading cross-functional teams, he brings a practical, quality-first mindset honed across finance, infrastructure and data-processing domains.
13 years of coding experience
17 years of employment as a software developer
1st class Bsc Computing Science, 1st class Bsc Computing Science at University of AberdeenBalwearie High School
Stackoverflow
843reputation
38kreached
38answers
0questions
Github Skills (16)
testing10
javas10
java10
concurrency10
data-structure9
algorithm9
data-structures9
algorithms9
lmax6
oop6
design-patterns6
apache-storm6
spring6
netty6
protocol-buffers6
Programming languages (8)
Github contributions (5)
LMAX-Exchange/disruptor
Apr 2013 - May 2013
High Performance Inter-Thread Messaging Library
Role in this project:
Back-end Developer
Back-end DeveloperContributions:17 commits, 8 comments in 1 month
Contributions summary:Sam primarily contributed to the `RingBuffer` component of the `disruptor` library, a high-performance inter-thread messaging library. Their work involved exposing features related to batch event publication, including batch size control and offset parameters. Additionally, the user addressed compiler warnings and made improvements to the testing framework, demonstrating a focus on code quality and usability.
concurrencydisruptormessaging-libraryinterperformance
SamBarker/kafka
May 2022 - Feb 2025
Mirror of Apache Kafka
Contributions:8 pushes, 1 branch in 2 years 9 months
kafka-streamsapache-kafkaapachekafkajava
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