About Aspiriant
An independent, 100% employee-owned wealth management firm that provides personalized financial planning and investment services. With $13B in assets under management and 11 offices nationwide, the firm is well-positioned to support clients through significant life changes and long-term financial decision-making.
Summary
At Kurt Noble Inc., I substantially contributed to revamping Aspiriant's WordPress site by acquiring new skills in PHP and the Advanced Custom Fields plugin. By creating custom WordPress templates and expanding the component library, I significantly boosted the site's performance and customization options. The project offered users an engaging experience, and also expanded my understanding of PHP, WordPress, and modern web development.
Exploring New Technologies
Joining this project, I was stepping into uncharted territory, needing to quickly grasp PHP and associated plugins/frameworks. In contrast to my experience with more modern CMSs such as Contentful, Strapi, and Prismic, the learning curve with the Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) plugin was steeper. However, the challenge proved to be an opportunity for growth, eventually allowing me to generate new components at a rapid pace.
Crafting the Component Library
Adapting to the structure of this project, we disassembled the new design into reusable components and created an interface for each component in the CMS using the Wordpress ACF plugin. I contributed to over half of the 35 components spread across nearly 40 pages, enabling the Aspiriant team to customize pages to their preference, similar to a page builder connected to the component library we developed.
Enhancing CSS Skills and Component Contributions
This project provided a chance to really hone my CSS skills, especially concerning CSS Grid layouts. While I had prior experience with CSS Grid, the complexity of the designs for this project allowed me to tap into its true potential. I’m particularly proud of my work on the Home, Blog, Podcast, Awards, and the Services/Stories pages, which involved writing thousands of lines of CSS and PHP.
Reflecting on Outcomes and Skills Development
The Aspiriant project was an intensive learning experience, introducing me to new technologies and pushing me to adapt quickly under pressure. Beyond mastering PHP and enhancing my CSS skills, the project underscored the importance of component structuring and the value of continuous learning in development, regardless of the language or framework used. Furthermore, the time constraints associated with this project were instrumental in refining my project management skills.
