Ken Bostoen

Freelance frontend lead and fullstack developer, Antwerp region

Frontend lead who knows the whole stack.

Ten years of building Angular applications for enterprises, with hands-on Spring Boot, .NET and MongoDB experience behind them. I build features, set up architecture and quality, and lead frontend teams.

Email Ken See my experience

Where I work in the stack

  • InterfaceDesign systems, accessibility, UX detailExpert
  • FrontendAngular, TypeScript, RxJS, signalsExpert
  • API contractsOpenAPI, BFF authenticationHands-on
  • BackendJava Spring Boot, .NET (C#), Node.jsHands-on
  • Data and messagingMongoDB, SQL, Kafka, RabbitMQHands-on
  • PlatformDocker, Kubernetes, Azure, Google CloudHands-on

Trusted by

  • Euromex
  • Volvo Cars
  • ASML
  • Smals
  • Fednot
  • Liantis

What I bring to your team

Frontend work for insurers, manufacturers, healthcare and the public sector since 2017. In Dutch and English, with a working understanding of French.

Frontend development and architecture

Complex, data-heavy applications in Angular: from the first component to monorepos, shared libraries and design systems used by several teams at once. Built to perform, easy to maintain and pleasant to use.

  • Volvo CarsHelped lead the shared Angular libraries used by all manufacturing teams.
  • ASMLA graph that renders up to 1000 parts on a single canvas.
  • FednotFrontend lead on Biddit, winner of a Best Customer Experience award.
  • Angular
  • TypeScript
  • State management
  • Design systems
  • Data visualisation

  • Fullstack delivery

    Currently fullstack on a .NET (C#) backend, with years of Spring Boot behind me and working experience in Node.js, so I can own features end to end and keep frontend and API in step.

  • Modernisation

    Upgrading older Angular applications to current versions, with signals and standalone components, without stopping feature work.

  • Quality and accessibility

    Unit and end-to-end tests, CI checks, and accessibility built with WCAG 2.2 AA and the European Accessibility Act in mind.

  • Frontend leadership

    Guidelines, code reviews and coaching, so a whole team writes frontend code the same way.

  • AI-assisted delivery

    Setting up Claude Code and GitHub Copilot so they speed up the team without lowering the bar.

Experience

Freelance and consultancy work since 2017. Open a project for details.

Current project

Frontend lead and fullstack developer on Euromex's policy management rebuild

Euromex is rebuilding its internal and external policy management applications. I joined a team of four developers with little frontend experience to take ownership of the frontend. Today I lead the frontend and work as a fullstack developer across the Angular frontend and the .NET backend.

  • Upgraded the frontend to the latest Angular and set the best practices for the team.
  • Wrote the frontend architecture decisions and guidelines: components, forms, authentication, API clients, translations and accessibility.
  • Built a shared UI library with design tokens, and checks for strict TypeScript, formatting and accessibility.
  • Build features end to end: .NET (C#) API endpoints and backend logic, the OpenAPI contract and the Angular screens.
  • Review code across the stack. The rewrite is AI-driven, with those guidelines steering the tools and me responsible for the result.
Role
Frontend lead and fullstack developer, freelance
Period
to now
Team
4 developers and a solution architect
Stack
  • Angular
  • Signals
  • Angular CDK
  • Bootstrap 5
  • .NET (C#)
  • OpenAPI clients
  • BFF auth
  • axe-core
  • Claude Code
  • GitHub Copilot

Earlier projects

  • Manufacturing execution systemVolvo Cars, fullstack developer –

    Frontend point of contact for the system that steers Volvo's plants worldwide. Helped lead the shared Angular libraries used by all manufacturing teams.

    • Angular
    • Spring Boot
    • Kafka
    • MQTT
    • OpenShift
    • Azure
  • IoT monitoring platformInimco, frontend developer –

    Modular dashboard platform on Azure IoT Central that served as the base for several client versions. Owned versioning and releases so every fork could keep up.

    • Angular
    • Nx
    • Storybook
    • PrimeNG
    • Tailwind
    • Playwright
  • Medication scheme applicationSmals, frontend developer –

    Rebuilt the application that shows patients their medication scheme. The backend stores no data, so all business logic lived in the frontend with high test coverage. Carried the frontend alone through release, then led the move to a Redux store.

    • Angular
    • NgRx
    • Nx
    • Jest
    • Cypress
  • Bill of materials visualiserASML, frontend developer –

    Merged two legacy CoffeeScript applications into one Angular application. The graph renders up to 1000 parts on a single canvas.

    • Angular
    • D3.js
    • NgRx
  • Conference sales toolOrdina, development lead –

    Sales environment built around CAD floor plans for assigning conference stands.

    • Angular
    • NestJS
    • AWS
  • Accounting and social security platformLiantis, fullstack developer –

    Platform for accountants and their clients across 15 microservices, owned end to end by a team of four.

    • Angular
    • Spring Boot
    • MongoDB
    • RabbitMQ
  • Biddit, public property auctionsFednot, frontend lead –

    Part of the initial team of eight, frontend lead from February 2018. Guarded code quality, coached new developers and delivered server-side rendering, with monthly releases to Kubernetes on Google Cloud.

    • Angular
    • Spring Boot
    • CQRS
    • Kubernetes
  • Consultant management toolToThePoint, fullstack developer –

    Event-driven application with CQRS in a team of ten.

Alongside freelance work

Business experience

Co-owner and manager of Bitter Sweet, our family restaurant

Bitter Sweet opened in April 2025. Outside office hours I run the business side, which gives me an owner's view on budgets, planning and people that I bring into every project.

  • Set up the entire start-up: company formation, permits and registrations, insurance, banking, accountant and supplier agreements.
  • Manage the staff: scheduling, onboarding and day-to-day coordination.
  • Run the logistics: purchasing, stock, supplier deliveries and transport.
  • Handle the administration and bookkeeping, together with the accountant.
  • Own the budget: cost control, pricing and cash-flow planning.
Role
Co-owner and business manager
Period
to now
Focus
  • Operations
  • People management
  • Budgeting
  • Administration
  • Supplier management

How I use AI in a team

AI writes code fast. The value comes from making sure it writes the right code, so the same rules and checks apply as for any developer.

  1. Decide

    Architecture decisions and guidelines are written down.

    Developer

  2. Build

    AI tools write code and tests that follow those decisions.

    AI tools

  3. Check

    CI stops what breaks the rules: types, formatting, tests and accessibility.

    Automated

  4. Review

    A developer reviews the result and sharpens the guidelines.

    Developer, accountable

Skills

Frontend

  • Angular
  • Signals
  • TypeScript
  • RxJS
  • NgRx
  • Storybook
  • Nx
  • Bootstrap
  • Tailwind
  • Vue and React (side projects)

Backend and platform

  • Spring Boot
  • .NET (C#)
  • Node.js
  • NestJS
  • MongoDB
  • SQL
  • RabbitMQ
  • Kafka
  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • Azure
  • Google Cloud

Quality and accessibility

  • Playwright
  • Cypress
  • Jest
  • axe-core
  • SonarQube
  • WCAG 2.2

Leadership and business

  • Technical leadership
  • Code reviews
  • Mentoring and training
  • People management
  • Budgeting
  • Operations

AI-assisted development

  • Claude Code
  • GitHub Copilot
  • Decision records as AI context
  • Agent workflows

Recognition

Looking for a frontend lead for your next project?

Send a short description of your project and what you need help with.

ken@bostechsolutions.be