Matt Preston
Arlington,TX
Summary
Seasoned IT Manager with over 20 years of experience, spanning hands-on work with nearly every technology found in modern data centers to strategic leadership as a vCIO for key clients. Demonstrated expertise in designing, implementing, and managing comprehensive IT solutions that meet complex business needs. Known for mentoring junior team members, driving their development, and fostering a collaborative, high-performing environment. A strong communicator with a talent for building and strengthening client relationships, ensuring IT services align with client goals and deliver tangible value.
Overview
24
24
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
IT Manager
Canes Midstream
01.2023 - Current
- Managed vendor relationships to ensure timely delivery of IT services and products, negotiated favorable contract terms, monitored vendor performance, and resolved any service issues to maintain alignment with organizational objectives and budget constraints.
- Collaborated with other departments to help meet IT needs and properly integrate and secure systems.
- Ensured robust security protocols and proactive threat mitigation measures, resulting in zero security breaches throughout my tenure.
- Reduced downtime by promptly addressing hardware and software issues, ensuring minimal impact on business operations.
- Optimized help desk performance through process improvements, enabling faster response times and increased user satisfaction levels.
- Vastly improved network reliability to all sites by implementing Starlink and various network improvements.
Solutions Manager
Herrod Technologies INC
09.2019 - 12.2023
- Acted as a Virtual Chief Information Officer (vCIO) for a primary client, providing strategic IT guidance, aligning technology initiatives with business goals, and overseeing project roadmaps to enhance operational efficiency and drive innovation.
- Led special projects from planning through execution, ensuring alignment with client needs and timelines, while mentoring and training junior team members to enhance their technical skills and support their career growth.
- Maintained strong relationships with key clients through regular communication and exceptional service delivery..
- Developed and implemented strategic plans for successful project completion, ensuring high-quality deliverables.
Senior Solutions Engineer
EST Group LLC
01.2006 - 12.2018
- Served as project lead for 30,000 device ZENworks deployment that allowed the school district to remotely manage all of their workstations including asset management, inventory, application deployment, and workstation imaging
- Created large school district’s base image and lead the effort to reimage all workstations
- Served in an integral role in a 10 x Dell M1000E chassis deployment project with over 160 ESXi servers, core and ToR switches
- Acted as project lead for a 1500 seat Horizon View VDI deployment utilizing VMware AppVolumes, User Environment Manager, and Microsoft RDSH application server pools backed by VMware vSAN
- Configured a VMware Stretched Metro Cluster backed by Compellent Live Volume and a Stretched vSAN cluster for a large college
- Project lead for a large client’s physical to virtual migration to Nutanix
- Performed migration of over 300 physical servers to VMware
- Created countless Statements of Work, Implementation Plans, and project documentation for all solutions
- Consult with IT decision makers to determine needs and constraints so as to design solutions that can meet both business and needs, increase revenue, and decrease administrative costs
- Assists with resource planning and resource management, leads the technical delivery team, and serves as the primary point of contact for technical related questions or concerns
- Demonstrates products and solutions to potential customers and, at times, build proof of concept systems in the potential customer’s environments
- Helped develop many new employees into billable resources
- Provide technical expertise and consulting during both the presales and technical delivery process
IT Consultant
Herrod Technologies INC
01.2002 - 12.2006
- Provide full IT managed services to small-medium size businesses
- Experience working with Windows 98/2000/XP/Server 2000 and 2003
- Implemented multiple Microsoft AD and Windows Software Update Servers
- Configured firewalls/site-site VPNs/router and switch configurations
- Install/Configure/Troubleshoot Microsoft Exchange
- Troubleshoot network issues from hardware to software level
Computer Technician
South Arkansas Community College
01.2001 - 12.2002
- Troubleshoot, repair, and upgrade lab and faculty computers
- Installed and terminated cat5 and fiber cable for campus building
- Configured Cisco routers and switches
Education
CCNA -
Cisco Networking Academy
Frisco, TX01.2001
Business Management and Computer Science
Harding University
Searcy, AR01.1999
Skills
- VMware vSphere Solutions
- VDI
- Dell Storage Solutions
- Infrastructure Solutions
- Project Management
- DHCP/DNS Services
- Dell / Cisco Switching
- Microsoft Hyper-V
- vCIO
- Microsoft Office 365
- Desktop Resource Management
- Disaster Recovery
Certification
- VMware Certified Professional 6 – Datacenter Virtualization (VCP6-DCV)
- VMware Certified Professional 6 – Network Virtualization (VCP6-NV)
- Certified ZENWorks Administrator
- Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist – SCCM
- Cisco – CCNA (Expired)
Coreprofiencies
- VMware vSphere Solutions
- VDI
- Dell Storage Solutions
- Infrastructure Solutions
- Project Management
- DHCP/DNS Services
- Dell / Cisco Switching
- Microsoft Hyper-V
- vCIO
- Microsoft Office 365
- Desktop Resource Management
- Disaster Recovery
Timeline
IT Manager
Canes Midstream
01.2023 - Current
Solutions Manager
Herrod Technologies INC
09.2019 - 12.2023
Senior Solutions Engineer
EST Group LLC
01.2006 - 12.2018
IT Consultant
Herrod Technologies INC
01.2002 - 12.2006
Computer Technician
South Arkansas Community College
01.2001 - 12.2002
CCNA -
Cisco Networking Academy
Business Management and Computer Science
Harding University