I’m a technical manager with over 15 years of results driven infrastructure design and solutions implementation and management experience. My top priority is making sure that my company systems are secure and built to scale. I think about the long term and the end user. My management style rewards curiosity, experimentation, learning, and flexibility. I fix the root cause -- not the symptom. I thrive in a collaborative and open environment. I have a passion for computers, networking and cybersecurity and have contributed to multiple, small, Free/Open Source Software projects.
Professional Profile
Systems skill Set Overview
Professional Experience Overview
Professional Experience Detail
Non-Professional Skills and Experience
Professional Profile
- Windows Server 2003-2022, Azure, Hyper-V, Linux and UNIX systems administration, automation and maintenance.
- Process automation using PowerShell, and automated policy-based systems management.
- Excellent understanding of DevOps, and DevSecOps methodologies and their place in holistic infrastructure design and testing.
- Network-based security, threat management, penetration/vulnerability testing and security focused infrastructure management, design and maintenance.
- Troubleshooting and issue resolution skills with a focus on permanent root-cause analysis and resolution.
- Insightful performance and requirements data analysis and systems planning with an emphasis on scalable, resilient systems with redundancy and a viable backup solution.
- Values teaching, mentoring and improving the overall knowledge of the organization.
Systems Skill Set Overview
- Highly experienced with Azure management, deployment and architecture design using ARM, PowerShell, and Azure-CLI for VM, Load Balancer, Application Gateways, Logic Apps, Network and Storage Account provisioning and administration.
- Highly experienced with Infrastructure as Code, automated deployments, dynamic infrastructture.
- Highly experienced with on-prem to Azure migrations: VMs, SQL server, automation workloads.
- Highly experienced with PowerShell scripting, systems and process automation.
- Highly experienced with Windows Server 2000-2019; Desktop Experience and core installations.
- Highly experienced with Linux server administration (Debian, and Ubuntu).
- Highly experienced with Nginx in webserver and reverse-proxy configurations.
- Highly experienced in Exchange management with Exchange Online, in hybrid configurations as well as on-prem 2003 – 2016.
- Highly experienced with server virtualization Microsoft Hyper-V 2008-2019.
- Experienced ZFS administrator
Professional Experience Overview
Professional Experience Detail
Google Cloud
April 2022 - Current
Cloud Solutions Developer Manager
Plan International Canada
May 2018 - April 2022
Senior Manager IT Infrastructure and Security
Plan International Canada is the Canadian arm of Plan International, a global non-profit which focuses on improving the lives of children, and specifically girls, in developing areas. Plan has a focus on increasing gender equality, and advancing childen's rights. I worked with several teams to coordinate technical requirements and implement solutions using cloud and on-prem resources as appropriate. I was the sole technical contact at the organization and was responsible for providing technical guidance to all internal projects with an IT component.
I built and designed Plan's cloud-based infrastructure. I was responsible for implementing multiple security enhancements while modernizing legacy systems running on Windows Server 2003, 2008 and 2012. I actively supported plans implement DevOps workflows for Plan's business applications; source-code management; securely archive over a decade's worth of mailbox data; and replacing time-consuming, and error-prone manual tasks with scripted automations.
Accomplishments
- Introduced and developed automated DevOps processes for deploying all Windows and Linux infrastructure.
- Designed and built fully automated role-based secure server templates using GitHub, Azure Automation, DSC, PowerShell.
- Cleared a decade’s worth of tech-debt through modular infrastructure replacement with a focus on bringing cloud-first practices to on-premises infrastructure.
- Implemented automated vulnerability detection and alerting using Rapid7’s InsightVM
- Implemented MFA, conditional access policies, Just In Time access control.
- Automated multiple business processes using PowerShell scripts saving the organization over 40 hours of work per week.
- Designed and implemented hybrid-cloud infrastructure, migrated multiple on-prem workloads seamlessly to the cloud while improving application response time and security.
- Reduced on-prem virtual infrastructure by 50% without impacting production work, performance, or service availability.
- Implemented standardized configurations for newly deployed infrastructure via GPO and centralized PowerShell scripts.
- Automated multiple security incident responses allowing for rapid containment of suspected malware and phishing emails.
- Replaced legacy systems running on unsupported versions of Microsoft SharePoint, Windows Server 2003 and 2008.
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Right To Play
June 2012 - April 2018
Technology Manager
Right To Play is a non-profit organization which aims to develop communities and life skills in developing areas of the world. We work with children in 22 countries across Africa, Asia, and North and South America. I worked with a team of 7 other employees and managed all IT related vendor relationships, purchases, infrastructure changes and implementations. I wrote a comprehensive five year IT infrastructure roadmap which included migrating over 500 users in 5 different countries from a primarily Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 to Server 2012 and Windows 7 based environment, and a migration from Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2013 and then to Office 365.
I was the lead system administrator and technical contact for all IT related projects across all offices and the global headquarters in Toronto. I oversaw our in-house helpdesk staff as well as managed the technical relationship with our outside IT Services provider.
Accomplishments
- Created five year IT roadmap for the organization to simplify IT management, procurement and implementation of new projects.
- Created and implemented virtualization strategy including consolidation and standardization of virtual host hardware and operating system.
- Designed and implemented plan to incorporate more remote offices into the global Active Directory.
- Performed advanced problem resolution of all versions of Windows Server 2008 and 2012 issues related to software and hardware configurations.
- Reliably identified and repaired Active Directory replication, organization and maintenance issues across sites in four different countries across various site-to-site link types to ensure compliance with Microsoft's Best Practices.
- Documented all processes, server functions, network locations, including physical and logical topologies.
- Maintained 99.99% uptime across all key systems during upgrade and replacement projects.
- Created new processes to automate and simplify onboarding and offboarding of employees, server and desktop deployments, software deployments, updates, patches, and configuration changes.
- Implemented international office technology overhauls, completely replacing all desktop, server and networking systems in several key fundraising locations.
- Worked with over 15 international offices to coordinate with external vendors for installation, configuration and testing of Polycom video conferencing systems.
- Created scripts to facilitate near instant solution for the most common account and system maintenance issues in the Windows environment.
- Designed maintenance schedule for minimal global impact on all employees
- Designed infrastructure to support 15,000 volunteers in Africa, South-Asia and Latin America with their work in refugee camps, disaster shelters and developing areas.
- Reduced number of physical servers across the organization from over 40 to less than 25.
- Replaced insecure site-to-site links with new IPSec based tunnels.
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Jolera
June 2008 - May 2012
Senior Systems Administrator
Jolera is an outsourced IT Department specializing in the non-profit sector. We work with major national and international charities, as well as for-profit enterprises. The varying networks I assisted with maintaining had between 50 and 2,000 employees, spanning across Canada, into the US, Africa, Asia and Europe. I assisted with escalated user issues, server-side and network troubleshooting, maintenance and administration, migration, new platform implementations and disaster recovery. I performed on-call weekend and overnight work, providing escalated issue assistance to junior co-workers and was routinely contacted by other senior staff members for assistance in complex issues.
Accomplishments
- Performed advanced troubleshooting of Windows Server issues related to hardware, software and configuration issues on Server 2000-2008 R2 standard, enterprise and SBS.
- Performed advanced Active Directory administration and troubleshooting in single and multi-domain configurations, troubleshot WAN replication issues
- Performed advanced troubleshooting of BES 4.0, 4.1, 5.x issues.
- Performed upgrades, installations and migration of users across BES upgrades.
- Performed advanced troubleshooting of Exchange 2003-2010 issues
- Performed upgrades, installation and migrations from Exchange 2003-2007, 2003-2010, 2007-2010, assisted in planning migrations to Exchange from non-enterprise email systems (Google Apps, SquirrelMail, ISP based POP/IMAP accounts)
- Performed low-level root cause analysis ranging from basic eventlog analysis to kernel dumps and live kernel debugging
- Assisted in planning and implementing domain upgrades from 2003-2012 domain controllers as well as domain functionality and schema upgrades
- Assisted in disaster recovery operations for file and mail servers, assisted with updating plans for future incidents
- Configured and troubleshot backup systems, local backups to tape or external hard drive, as well as cloud based and hosted backup solutions.
- Troubleshot LAN connectivity, file sharing configuration, printer and server-side application troubleshooting
- Troubleshot VMware ESX(i) 3.5-5.0 configuration and installation issues in both stand-alone ESX hosts and multi-SAN, multi-host vCenter environments.
- Configured WSUS and created stand-alone Windows Updates policies
- Troubleshot webserver issues on IIS6, IIS7 and Apache servers.
- Responsible for creating, implementing and enforcing corporate policies involving network access, maintenance and issue documentation
- Responsible for creating and maintaining client network documentation
- Conducted technical interviews for second and third tier staff hiring
- Assisted with unofficial after-hours technical training for staff
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The Columbia Connextion
March 2005 - May 2008
Systems Administrator
I was the sole administrator for 10 client offices with between 10 and 50 employees. I performed all network and configuration troubleshooting for end-user computers and servers. I was responsible for daily maintenance and disaster recovery operations. When not required on-site with a client, I assisted with minor website maintenance and ISP related troubleshooting.
Accomplishments
- Responsible for installing, maintaining and updating all systems, configurations and operations.
- Performed all troubleshooting for Server 2003 SBS configuration, software and hardware issues
- Performed Exchange 2003 maintenance, configuration, installation and troubleshooting
- Performed all web-server maintenance and configuration
- Maintained anti-malware systems with Symantec Anti-Virus/ Endpoint Protection and McAfee
- Configured firewalls for all offices using Cisco PIX, SonicWall, Barracuda,
- Responsible for creating and maintaining network documentation
- Worked with A/SDSL, ISDN and dial up issues for residential users
- Responsible for provisioning accounts, managing SendMail user accounts and mailboxes
- Responsible for creating and implementing an automated offsite backup solution via SCP/rsync across Windows and Linux servers
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Non-Professional Skills, Interests, and Experience
Outside of my professional experience I run an Active Directory domain at home which I use to test configuration changes, duplicate work issues in a lab environment, and increase my ability to learn new products and technologies.
My lab environment contains a Hyper-V 2019 installation with direct and ISCSI storage. I run multiple different Linux/UNIX-like VMs to maintain knowledge of those respective operating systems, and to provide various services including system monitoring, and in-home audio/video streaming. The majority of my over-complicated setup now runs within Docker containers.
I have a file server running Ubuntu with a ZFS based storage array which is used to provide backups to multiple other systems at home.
I also run various Windows virtual machines with various installation and software configurations to test updates for stability or other issues which may appear in my professional life.
I’m an avid reader of technolgy and industry news and follow IT security news closely. I have a passion for computers and have assisted with several small FOSS projects.