Dr Chukwuemeka Emele

Biography

Dr. Chukwuemeka David Emele is a Senior Programmer / Project Development Team lead at CHaRT/HSRU where he leads the development team in designing new cutting-edge applications to support modern-day clinical trials. The current portfolio involves collaborative randomised controlled trials across over 50 studies in healthcare interventions, representing research monies totaling over £10M and involving about 300 study centres. The IT applications and software developments supporting these trials utilise a wide range of modern day tools and technologies including C#.Net, Asp.NET stack (including .Net Core 2.0), SQL Server, Javascript, Report Server, Crystal report, Sql Server Reporting Service (SSRS), Php, HTML5, Angular, Java, Android development, Xamarin, iOS development using SWIFT, Python, MVC and non-MVC development paradigms, Web services, and many more.

David manages the seamless migration and deployment of new technologies within the stack of CHaRT's application tools and handles systematic integration of new approaches into the solution space. These solution sets are composed of complex applications and sophisticated algorithms performing clever stuff behind the scenes yet presented in very clear, user friendly and straightforward formats using simple/engaging interfaces that make them very easy to interact with. Our solution space covers applications that are used by both internal and external audience/clients including UK's National  Health Service (NHS), other Clinical Trials Units, research teams and other private and public organisations. Our randomisation systems allow patients to be randomised into randomised controlled trials via telephone, Web or hand-held devices. We are constantly integrating new functionalities that ensure the smooth management of clinical trials across all the studies in our portfolio.

David is particularly skilled in breaking down complex processes into simple, effective and fast algorithms to achieve the same level of sophistication and with high efficiency and mechanical/computational advantage. He is great at designing solutions that can consume data from different sources including text messages, emails, voice calls, xml, json, social media and so on.

Before assuming this role, Dr. Emele was managing the design and development of research tools and simulations to support a £12M Digital Economy Research as well as carrying out fundamental research as a Researcher on a £2.9M International Technology Alliance project, which involved collaboration across a consortium of 22 international organisations including universities (Carnegie Mellon University, University of Carlifornia, University of Maryland, Imperial College London, University of Cambridge, etc), Defence Research Labs (ARL, DSTL), and world-leading organisations including IBM, Honeywell, Boeing, Logica CMG, Airbus Group, etc. The project was funded by UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) and US's Department of Defence (DoD). David managed and mentored a team of researchers, developers, research assistants and student placement programmers in the delivery of modern tools (with cutting edge research support), and the team delivered great tools that have since been deployed in real life projects.

Key IT/Project management skills include:

• Lead the development team, schedule work tasks, manage expectations, meet with management and act as interface with the other departments in the Unit.

• Design, develop and maintain multiple web-based Healthcare applications using ASP.NET and C#, Android, IOS Swift, Xamarin.

• Create and maintain reports for SQL Server Report Services

• Manage and maintain Legacy trials software authored

• Contribute to project costing and task prioritisation

• Manage and maintain the in-house randomisation service

• Database design & Administration within SQL Server.

• Installation & Configuration of 3rd party software.

• Provide project management, task allocation and resource planning for the team

• Facilitate hardware specifications for the various applications that we use and develop.

• Contribute to the IT infrastructure planning for the department

• Provide mentoring for new developers and student placement candidates in the team

Dr. Emele has wide experience in Software Development, Project Management, People management, and Business Development in academia as well as industry. He has worked in various capacities in both settings and is always looking for new challenges. He graduated from the University of Ibadan in 1997/98 session with a First Class (Hons) Bachelors degree in Computer Science and became a Commonwealth scholar in 2003 when he bagged a Commonwealth scholarship to pursue a Masters degree in Electronic Commerce Technology at the University of Aberdeen. He graduated with an "A" in his dissertation in 2004. After working for some years in the University, he decided to pursue a doctorate degree at the University of Aberdeen and graduated in 2011 with a Ph.D. in Computing Science.

David was a key member of a team of pioneers that engineered and implemented several projects that are still thriving in the African continent. For example, Dr. Emele was very instrumental in the installation and testing of the first few real-time ATMs in First Bank Nigeria Plc and United Bank for Africa (on Marina, Lagos in 2001) and he was key in the implementation of the in-house tool that enabled the Mastercard International Payment processing platform (called Mastercard Interface Processor) to resolve transactions that emanated from Nigeria (through the then Cards Technology infrastructure). David was a key developer and one of the pioneers of a number of online (and eCommerce) initiatives that have opened up the Nigerian and West African market and contributed hugely to the economy of Sub-Saharan Africa. Some of the notable projects and online initiatives that Dr. Emele worked on include JambOnline, WaecDirect, NABTEBOnline, NECOonline, ATMs and Card Printing and Embossment technologies, Online testing and recruitment (for Globacom Plc), and so on. Some of these projects and technologies have given rise to new products and emerging markets such as computer based testing and assessment, online registration for services, consumer services eCommerce, eMoney and eEducation and many more.

Dr. Emele is also a seasoned musician, singer/songwriter and minister. He is the Provincial Director of Music for the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Scotland, overseeing the whole of Scotland and Northern Ireland. He is a volunteer at Fountain of Love (a local church in Aberdeen), where he manages a choir of over 70 adult members and trains/mentors over 200 children (ages 3 to 17) in singing, playing musical instruments and engaging in other creative arts.