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Heikki Hellgren - Lead Developer

Hello, I'm
Heikki Hellgren.

I am a
Focusing on OP Hub (IDP) & own Backstage plugins

Latest Updates

  • I'm super excited to announce that I'll be speaking at BackstageCon on a panel about Building a Healthy Backstage Plugins Ecosystem. If you are around, come say hi!
  • I will also be hosting a ContribFest at KubeCon titled Supercharge Your Open Source Impact. It's going to be a hands-on session where we work together on Backstage plugins. Hope to see you there!

About Me

My journey in software development started over 15 years ago with low-level C and assembly code for Nokia's S40 mobile phones, optimizing graphics engines pixel by pixel. Fast forward to today, and I'm building cloud-native developer portals at OP Financial Group, helping hundreds of developers ship better software faster.

What drives me? Developer Experience. I believe that great tools unlock great teams. Whether it's championing Backstage adoption, speaking at conferences, or contributing to open source, I'm passionate about making developers' lives easier.

From embedded systems to modern web interfaces, from assembly to TypeScript—I've seen technology evolve, and I love being part of that evolution. When I'm not coding, you'll find me with my family (husband and father of two), brewing beer, or playing football on late Sunday evenings.

I'm a strong believer in Open Source. I believe it's not just about code, it's about community. Every bug fix, every contribution, every shared insight helps us all grow together.

Heikki Hellgren

Quick Facts

  • Based in Kempele, Finland
  • Expert Lead Developer @ OP
  • Open Source Contributor
  • Tech Blogger
Download My Resume

Work Experience

Expert Lead Developer

OP Financial Group

Oulu, North Ostrobothnia, Finland

Dec 2022 - PresentOP Financial Group logo

Leading development initiatives with a primary focus on Developer Experience (DX), streamlining workflows and building internal tools to empower development teams. Developing and maintaining OP's internal developer portal based on Backstage.

Backstage.ioAWS ECSElasticsearchPostgreSQLReact.jsTypeScriptNode.jsJavaAzureDX

Senior Lead Developer

OP Financial Group

Oulu, Finland

Jan 2020 - Dec 2022OP Financial Group logo

Led multiple development teams in the retail banking sector, delivering robust financial services and modernizing legacy systems.

JavaIBM DB2ReactAWS LambdaKafkaRESTAgileRetail BankingLeadership

Expert (Product Software Architect)

Elektrobit (EB)

Oulu Area, Finland

Apr 2018 - Jan 2020Elektrobit (EB) logo

Product Software Architect responsible for the overall architecture of the Adaptive AUTOSAR product. Spearheaded improvements in the architecture design process and established comprehensive design guidelines.

C++Adaptive AUTOSARArchitectureDesign GuidelinesAutomotive

Projects

Open source is where innovation thrives. I'm passionate about contributing to the community, with a special focus on the Backstage ecosystem. Below you'll find my contribution history and the repositories where I've been making an impact.

-Public Repositories
-GitHub Followers
-Monthly NPM Downloads
 

backstage-plugin-qeta

Internal Q&A and knowledge base for Backstage. Empower teams to share knowledge, ask questions, and integrate AI-powered answers directly into their developer portal.

#ai-assistant#backstage#backstage-plugin#developer-experience#developer-portal
107 48
TypeScript
Share:

backstage-plugin-toolbox

Most commonly used developer tools within Backstage

#backstage#backstage-plugin#dx#hacktoberfest#plugin
66 42
TypeScript
Share:

video_auto_pause

Chrome extension to automatically pause/continue video on tab focus changes

#chrome-extension#disneyplus#firefox-extension#hacktoberfest#netflix
38 14
JavaScript
Share:

codetutor.vim

"Extended" vimtutor for developers

#hacktoberfest#lessons#productivity#vim#vim-lesson
31 1
Makefile
Share:

PHP-Fuzz-tester

PHP Fuzz testing framework

26 1
PHP
Share:

rustybeer

CLI tool to calculate beer brewing values for different things

#brewing#brewing-beer#brewing-software#cli#hacktoberfest
13 7
Rust
Share:
View all repositories

Skills

With nearly two decades of software development experience, I've cultivated a diverse skill set focused on building innovative, user-centric applications. Below is a comprehensive overview of my technical expertise. Note that proficiency ratings reflect both depth of knowledge and recent hands-on experience.

Languages

5/5
5/5
4/5
4/5
3/5

Frontend

4/5
4/5
4/5
4/5
4/5

Backend

5/5
5/5
4/5
4/5
4/5

Testing

4/5
4/5
4/5
4/5
3/5

Ops

5/5
5/5
4/5
4/5
4/5

Miscellaneous

4/5
4/5
3/5
2/5
2/5

Latest Blog Posts

I believe in sharing knowledge and learning in public. My writing explores programming concepts, emerging technologies, and occasionally ventures into other topics that spark my curiosity. While I write when inspiration strikes rather than on a fixed schedule, I'm committed to staying current with industry trends and contributing to the developer community.

View all posts on Medium

Media

Explore my conference talks, resources, and other media content.

KCD Helsinki 2025

KCD Helsinki 2025

My session at KCD Helsinki 2025 about Seamless Backstage Onboarding

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Backstage Community Session February 2025

Backstage Community Session February 2025

Demo of our Backstage instance at Backstage Community Session February 2025

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Gear

A curated list of the hardware, software, and tools I use daily to get work done.

Get In Touch

I'm always open to new opportunities, collaborations, and conversations. Whether you have a project in mind, a question, or just want to connect—let's talk!

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Support My Work

Fuel my caffeine addiction ☕ and help me keep the contributions going (and the dogs fed 🐕)

© 2026 Heikki Hellgren. All rights reserved.

Busy Building