A software engineer who builds small-business websites
I'm James Duong. By day I'm a software engineer at Canva; the rest of the time I build fast, hand-coded websites and automations for Australian small businesses. The same engineering standards that go into software at scale, applied to a market that's usually handed a template and a login.
What I bring to a build
Engineer at Canva
I work as a software engineer at Canva — one of Australia's largest tech companies — building consumer software at real scale. The standards that go into that (performance, reliability, clean code) are the same ones I bring to every client site.
Formally trained
I trained as a developer at Coder Academy and work as a software engineer professionally. This isn't a side hobby with a page builder — it's hand-written code from someone who does it for a living.
Genuinely hands-on
I'm active on GitHub and write every site myself, from scratch. No outsourcing, no template, and no account manager sitting between you and the person actually building your site.
Why I do this
Most small businesses get one of two options: a cheap template that looks like everyone else's and loads slowly, or an expensive agency that wraps a simple website in project managers and overhead. Neither sat right with me.
So I do the thing in the middle — a custom, hand-coded site built to the same standard as the software I work on professionally, at a fixed price, dealing directly with the one person who's actually building it. No WordPress, no drag-and-drop, no surprise invoices.
I've built for clients across healthcare, finance, real estate, and construction — practices, brokers, agencies, and trades who needed a site that actually brings in enquiries rather than just existing online.
More than a website
Because I'm an engineer, I can do things a typical web designer can't: connect your site to your CRM, build a custom quote flow, or wire up an automation that saves you hours a week. The website is often just the start.
And because it's just me, you get straight answers, a fixed quote within 48 hours, and someone who's still around after launch — not a support-ticket queue.
Common questions
Straight answers before you ask for a quote.
Do you really work at Canva?
Yes — I'm a software engineer at Canva. The freelance work is separate, done in my own time, but the engineering standards carry straight across. It's a big part of why these sites are faster and more robust than a typical small-business build.
Do you work with businesses outside Sydney?
Yes. I'm Sydney-based but work with businesses right across Australia — Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and beyond — entirely remotely. The whole process runs on calls and shared docs, so location makes no difference to the result.
Can I see your work?
Absolutely — the work page has live client builds across health, finance, property, and construction, each with the brief and the thinking behind it.