Brian Ball
Developer & Entrepreneur · Boulder, CO · February 2026
Summary
Hi — I'm Brian. I love methodical process and using and/or buildings systems to effect this type of process. I imagine the Poppins Payroll clients probably appreciate that kind of thinking.
I'm looking for meaningful work with good people — where being reliable and detail-oriented actually matters. I thought: payroll compliance is a systems problem, and I'm a systems person.
Why This Role
I'm intentionally seeking a role where I'll be good at it from day one and have the capacity to make everything around me a little better too.
Below is my honest self-assessment: what I can do now, what I need to learn, and exactly how I plan to get up to speed. I built this page to show you how I work — I find a problem, I think it through, and I ship something.
67% of core skills ready on day one
4 Ready2 Ramp-Up4 Bonus
Core Job Requirements
Answer client inquiries via email and live phoneTransfer
15+ years running direct-to-consumer software business (AppZapper) — handled all customer support personally. Thousands of email conversations, phone calls with customers ranging from confused to furious.
Explain complicated concepts like taxes clearlyTransfer
Built software documentation read by hundreds of thousands. Routinely translate technical complexity into plain language. Teaching is my default mode — I think by explaining.
Complete online applications for FEINs and state tax accountsRamp-Up
I've registered my own businesses, obtained EINs. I am familiar with the pain of government sites and compliance.
Week 1-2: Shadow current team member on 10+ applications. Build personal checklist of state-by-state quirks. By week 3, handling independently with review.
Assist in filing tax reportsRamp-Up
Filed my own business taxes for 15 years. Understand quarterly schedules, estimated payments, and compliance deadlines. Haven't filed household employment taxes specifically.
Week 1: Study Schedule H, state DE/UI forms, and Poppins filing workflow end-to-end. Week 2-3: Prepare filings with senior review. Week 4: Filing independently.
Communicate with state and federal agenciesTransfer
Years of dealing with IRS, state tax agencies, and regulatory bodies for my own businesses. Comfortable navigating hold queues, referencing notice numbers, and following up until resolved.
Daily team Zoom, collaborative work styleReady
I think by talking and work best in conversation. A daily standup isn't overhead for me — it's how I process. Small team energy is where I thrive.
The Multiplier — What I Bring Beyond the Listing
Spot and fix process inefficienciesBonus
Built and sold a software company. I instinctively see where manual steps can be streamlined, where errors creep in, and where a small tool saves hours.
Build internal tools — fastBonus
Full-stack developer (React, Cloudflare Workers, databases). Can go from "this is annoying" to "here's a working tool" in a single afternoon. This application you're reading is an example.
Obsessive attention to detailBonus
AppZapper shipped to hundreds of thousands of users. In consumer software, one wrong pixel or confusing label means support tickets. I was trained by customers to care about every detail.
Genuine curiosity about household employmentBonus
This isn't a fallback job for me. Household employment is a fascinating niche — real families, real compliance complexity, underserved by big payroll companies. I want to understand this world from the inside.
Experience
AppZapper2006 – 2021
Built and sold a Mac utility app to hundreds of thousands of customers. Handled all development, design, marketing, customer support, and business operations as a solo founder.
Freelance Developer2021 – Present
Full-stack web development (React, Cloudflare Workers, databases). Building tools and internal systems for small businesses.
This page as proof.
I saw your listing, identified the skills gap, built an honest assessment, and shipped it — in one sitting. Work is just fun.