Christopher Watson
Winnabow,NC
Summary
Experienced IT professional with 18 years in management and System Administration and Engineering roles, specializing in Managed Service Providers (MSPs). Collaborative leader that partners with coworkers to promote engaged, empowering work culture. Documented strengths in building and maintaining relationships with diverse range of stakeholders in dynamic, fast-paced settings.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
9
9
Certifications
Work History
Client Solutions Manager (Contracted)
University of North Carolina Wilmington UNCW
12.2023 - 05.2024
- Developed accountability, time management, and growth
- Acting member of the Change Approval Board and Systems Coordination Committee
- Eliminated software licensing that saved the University hundreds of thousands in expenses
- Created and implemented policies and procedures to standardize the support department
- Proactively worked on University needs for students, faculty, and other staff
- Hosted training sessions on new technologies for faculty and staff
- Implemented support staff KPIs and setup new reporting with PowerBI
- Reduced costs while maintaining growth, security, and stability
- Handled JAMF, SCCM, AutoElevate, AdminByRequest, and Entra/MFA
- Implemented University ticketing SLAs
- Hosting educational sessions for faculty, staff, and students
- Assisted with Microsoft 365, Defender, and InTune.
Operations Manager / Sr. Network and Systems Engineer
Atlantic Computer Services
03.2021 - 12.2023
- Directed the day-to-day operations of the business as a whole
- Planned and implemented SMB networks, servers, and cloud infrastructures
- Supported existing infrastructures and implemented improved processes
- Planned and implemented large campus wide wireless mesh networks
- Identified and modernized old equipment and infrastructures
- Tracked and performed lifecycle on aging equipment
- Corrected the company trajectory with new technologies, processes, documentation, and standards
- Hosted educational and planning meetings with staff and clients
- Directed and scheduled staff on projects to meet objectives
- Implemented monthly cost analysis and provided monthly lifecycle and vulnerability reporting to customers
- Monitored and improved efficiency of processes, performance, and customer service with KPIs
- Planned and implemented multiple Hyper-V and VMWare virtualized environments
- Migrated virtual servers to new hosts and to Azure
- Performed disaster recovery when needed
- Handled the deployment of SPAM protection, antivirus, and network security appliances
- Designed new networks and server infrastructures for new and remodeled facilities from the ground up
- Used scripting to automate fixing common IT problems before the client was even aware (Powershell, batch, and SQL).
Sr. Network Engineer/Helpdesk Manager
Data Spring Inc.
01.2011 - 02.2021
- Managed and fostered hundreds of client relationships
- Used scripting of various languages to automate resolutions and alerts for break fix tickets through monitoring and proactivity
- Implemented failover clustering and replication with VMWare, Azure, Hyper-V, and Citrix
- Implemented brand and partner product standards across the board to simplify our resolution times
- Trained staff on new technology and promoted certifications while actively achieving certifications myself
- Led a team to higher profitability and consistency by changing the wide mix of products and services into reproducible and achievable outcomes
- Managed and implemented all our RMM platforms from Kaseya, Atera, Ninja, Datto, and Level Platforms
- Implemented multiple layers security platforms across all clients such as Multifactor authentication and biometrics
- Provided technical support for local area networks, wide area networks, virtual private networks, VOIP, and security systems
- Implemented advanced Layer 3 networking as well as VLANs for customers to optimize network traffic segmentations
- Implemented STP/RSTP, load balancing, and failover for all equipment and software possible
- Converted all our clients to a remotely manageable backup infrastructure and wireless network management across the board with great success
- Supported and grew the remote worker culture during COVID and maintained that culture for clients and staff
- Performed onboarding and offboarding of customers and acted as an expert resource during organization transitions
- Rebuilt our company website
- Acted as the top escalation engineer for all departments including technical support, software development, SQL DBA team, and cloud engineers
- Enforced a change to have every server setup with offline remote access via iLO, iDRAC, and BMC
- Supported deprecated and modern customer PLC Siemens and Bottero systems.
Education
Telecommunications Systems Management -
Trident Technical College
02.2003
Oakley Road Christian School
05.2001
Skills
- SIDA Clearance
- DNS, ADDS, GPO, Azure AD
- Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace
- Ubiquiti, Dell, Cisco, PfSense, SonicWALL, HP, Aruba, FortiGate, WatchGuard
- High Availability, Load Balancing Failover Clusters
- RMMs: Kaseya, Atera, NinjaRMM, ConnectWise
- JAMF, SCCM, Azure B2C
- Disaster Recovery and Systems Security
- Documentation, Policies, Procedures
- SNMP, SMTP, FTP/SFTP, TCP/IP, VLANs, LAN/WAN, MPLS, Fiber, SDWAN
- ITIL
- Admin By Request and AutoElevate
- QuickBooks, CRM, Sage
- VMWare, Hyper-V, Citrix XENServer
- ITGlue, Datto, Huntress, DNSFilter
- Defender, InTune, Entra, IAM/CIAM/SAML
- DFS, Hybrid File Services, FRS/DFRS, SAN/NAS, EMC
- Scripting, Powershell, Batch, Automation
Certification
- MCTS
- MCP
- Volume Licensing Specialist
- Configuring SBS 2011
- Deploying Office 2010 and Windows 7
- Installing and Configuring Windows Server 2012
- Altaro Backup Certified
- Introduction to Microsoft Azure Certified
- Auvik Certified Professional
Accomplishments
- Published author of "How To Make Group Policy Work For You"
- Tutored and assisted countless others in my field starting and progressing their careers
- Became the head of research and development strategies for two consulting firms
References
- Benjamin Baker, Director of IT Operations, The Davis Community, bbaker@thedaviscommunity.org, 910-523-7834
- Ethan Svensson, Field Engineer, Wilmington Airport, esvensson@fly-ilm.com, 716-266-3777
- Dennis Buswell, Senior Systems Engineer, IAM – Global Infra, dennisbuswell@gmail.com, 919-909-3657
Work Availability
monday
tuesday
wednesday
thursday
friday
saturday
sunday
morning
afternoon
evening
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Work Preference
Work Type
Full TimeContract WorkWork Location
RemoteHybridOn-SiteImportant To Me
Work from home optionCareer advancementCompany CultureFlexible work hoursQuote
Risk comes from not knowing what you are doing.
Warren Buffett
Timeline
Client Solutions Manager (Contracted)
University of North Carolina Wilmington UNCW
12.2023 - 05.2024
Operations Manager / Sr. Network and Systems Engineer
Atlantic Computer Services
03.2021 - 12.2023
Sr. Network Engineer/Helpdesk Manager
Data Spring Inc.
01.2011 - 02.2021
Telecommunications Systems Management -
Trident Technical College
Oakley Road Christian School
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