Johan Basson

Contact

Sun, 28 Jun 2026 11:28:01 +0200

I’m always interested in discussing backend engineering, software architecture, Kotlin, Java, and functional programming.

Whether you have a question, would like to collaborate on a project, or simply want to connect, feel free to reach out.

Connect

GitHub
https://github.com/johangwbasson
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/johangwbasson
Email
johangwbasson@gmail.com

Open Source

Many of my personal projects and experiments are available on GitHub. If something here interests you, feel free to open an issue or start a discussion.

I enjoy learning from other engineers and sharing ideas through open source and technical writing.

About

Sun, 28 Jun 2026 11:19:13 +0200

Hi, I’m Johan.

I’m a Senior Backend Software Engineer from Johannesburg, South Africa, with more than 20 years of experience designing and building backend systems. My primary languages are Kotlin and Java, and I enjoy creating software that is simple, reliable and easy to maintain.

Throughout my career I’ve worked in product development, consulting and enterprise environments, helping teams deliver systems that solve real business problems. While I enjoy learning new technologies, I believe good software is driven more by sound engineering principles than by frameworks or trends.

Why I Chose http4k Instead of Spring Boot

Sat, 20 Jun 2026 11:30:00 +0200

Why I chose http4k over Spring Boot for my latest Kotlin project, and the trade-offs I considered.

Every Abstraction Has a Cost

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 20:30:00 +0200

Abstractions make software easier to change, but they also make it harder to understand. The challenge is knowing when they’re worth the cost.

Code Should Read Like Documentation

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 20:00:00 +0200

One of the principles that has shaped how I write software over the years is that code should explain itself.

Discovering Railway-Oriented Programming

Sun, 15 Jun 2025 20:00:00 +0200

A talk by Scott Wlaschin changed the way I think about error handling and composing business logic in Kotlin.

How Functional Programming Changed the Way I Write Kotlin

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 20:00:00 +0200

Functional programming didn’t change the language I use. It changed the way I think about designing software.

Why I Don't Like Generic Repository Interfaces

Tue, 13 May 2025 21:00:00 +0200

I used to create a repository interface for every aggregate. Over time I found a simpler approach that makes dependencies more explicit and business use cases easier to understand.

Projects

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

I’m passionate about building software that is simple, maintainable and enjoyable to work on. These are some of the personal projects I’m currently investing my time in.

Arventis

A knowledge management platform built with Kotlin and PostgreSQL.

Arventis started as a way to organise my own technical notes, but has grown into an exploration of search, clean architecture, background processing and functional programming.

Rather than chasing features, I’m using the project to experiment with software design decisions and to better understand how simple systems evolve over time.