Erick E. Shepherd

Freelance

Work with me

I help teams turn slow, repetitive, judgment-heavy work into reliable software — AI-assisted tooling, automation, and the backend and data plumbing underneath it. Available for remote freelance and contract engagements.

AI-assisted dev tooling & automation

Custom internal tooling and automation backed by LLMs and agents — turning repetitive, judgment-heavy workflows into reliable pipelines with a human in the loop. I build the gated, reviewable kind: clear checkpoints where a person stays in control, not a black box.

  • Python
  • Claude Code
  • MCP
  • LLM integration
  • Automation

Backend & data engineering / APIs

Python backends, ETL and data pipelines, structured-data and REST/JSON-LD services, and self-hosted infrastructure. Equally at home wiring AI and automation into existing enterprise data environments — without credentials or data ever leaving them — and building greenfield.

  • Python
  • PL/SQL
  • OracleDB
  • REST APIs
  • ETL
  • Self-hosted infra

Process

How an engagement works

  1. Email Tell me the problem, the constraints, and the rough timeline.
  2. Scoping call A short call to define what "done" looks like — no charge.
  3. Fixed-scope proposal Milestones, timeline, and price up front, so there are no surprises.
  4. Build Regular check-ins and working increments you can see as they land.
  5. Handoff Documented and owned by your team — nothing locked behind me.

Rates on request. I work fully remote on Eastern Time and keep only a few engagements running at once, so each gets real attention.

FAQ

Common questions

What kind of engagements do you take?
Short-to-mid, fixed-scope builds and automation projects suit me best. Longer-term contract work is open to discussion — reach out and we can talk specifics.
Do you work remotely?
Yes — fully remote, on Eastern Time (US). All collaboration is async-friendly with scheduled check-ins.
How do you price work?
A fixed-scope proposal after a short scoping call, so you know the cost before any work starts. Rates on request.
Can you work inside our existing stack?
Usually, yes. Much of my experience is integrating new tooling into established enterprise systems without disrupting what already works — and I am just as comfortable building greenfield.
What is your availability?
I take on a small number of engagements at a time so each gets real attention. Email me and I will share current lead time.

Get started

Have a project in mind?

Send a short note about the problem and the constraints. I read every message and reply personally.

Email dm@erickshepherd.com Download résumé