Stewart
Alexander

Developed cross-functional, innovative solutions by integrating departmental insights and vendor recommendations for Covariant’s Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) team

Key Accomplishments:

• Improved network reliability and cybersecurity readiness by 25% through consolidating 125 network appliances, upgrading infrastructure, and implementing zero-trust security strategies over the course of the role.
• Upgraded security posture via the implementation of dual Juniper SRX320 firewall appliances (NGFWs) in an active-passive high availability setup, incorporating redundant Wide Area Network (WAN) and Local Area Network (LAN) failover paths with dual Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in Q1 of 2024
• Decreased remote client network interventions by 20 monthly through strategic network design and cellular hotspot integration; minimizing travel and improving customer satisfaction by Q2 of 2023
• Provisioned 130 Ubuntu servers, Peplinks, and Ubiquiti appliances for their AI robotic systems utilizing Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools including Git, Amazon Web Services (AWS), SaltStack (Salt), Python, and Pre-boot Execution Environments (PXE) during tenure
• Elevated solution networking requirements to a crucial pre-sales focus by Q3 of 2023, which assisted product integration success with 75 new customers

Spearheaded comprehensive network and systems engineering efforts across Alamance Community College

Key Accomplishments:

• Engineered comprehensive network redesign (including modernization of 17 distribution frames, moving WiFi to Meraki) in 2022, enabling seamless digital learning for 5,000+ college community members, while reducing technical resolution times on average from 3 days to under 4 hours.
• Maintained ACC’s Amazon Web Services Virtual Private Cloud (AWS VPC) environment implementing VPC security best practices such as multi-AZ deployment, security groups, and network access controls; supporting operational requirements during tenure.
• Integrated an Arctic Wolf security appliance for continuous monitoring as well as ISO/IEC 27033 / zero-trust network access (ZTNA) best practices in Q1 of 2021; improving ACC’s cybersecurity posture and operational resilience by greatly reducing ransomware risks
• Developed endpoint management solutions leveraging Saltstack, OSQuery, Jenkins and Python that reduced local computer management overhead and manual interventions from once a week to less than once a month by Q3 2019
• Designed a high-performance remote work solution using Glyptodon (now Keeper Security), NGINX, and Tailscale, supporting 400+ concurrent teachers and staff with 99.99% uptime during the COVID-19 remote work transition in Q2 2020
• Crafted extensive technical documentation (approximately 1,500 wiki pages) covering ACC’s network, infrastructure, and software environment, reducing problem-resolution timeframes on many issues from 2-3 days to several hours on average.

Conducted critical pre-General Availability (GA) testing and bug resolution for Red Hat Enterprise Linux on IBM Power and Z s/390 mainframe systems

Key Accomplishment:

• Resolved 50+ ServiceNow bug tickets involving drivers, firmware, and software to qualify Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8 builds for s/390 mainframes.

Optimized and secured Red Hat Linux KVM cluster, prioritizing system stability and data protection.

Key Accomplishment:

• Identified and resolved a critical flaw in NAA Life's Bacula backup system, then assisted in implementing Veeam as a replacement, resulting in a robust data preservation and disaster recovery process.

Tested cash accounting and dispensing solutions, emphasizing security and quality assurance.

Key Accomplishment:

• Collaborated with Trustwave security group to identify and resolve a critical MitM attack vector, improving the security of over 3000 ATMs.

Led network design for autonomous vehicle testing, combining innovative technologies (Locata Global Positioning System Beacons, Radwin Proxim and Meraki Access Points, etc) for optimal performance.

Key Accomplishment:

• Developed a secure vehicle-to-vehicle LAN for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS's) autonomous crash test system, using proprietary compression algorithms and Zigbee mesh networking, improving overall effectiveness by greater than 50%

Resolved critical defects in high-value hardware servers, interfacing with enterprise customers and vendors.

Key Accomplishments:

• Promoted to primary Peripheral Component Interconnect express (PCIe) Network Card Product Engineer (PE) for high-value systems
• Awarded for exceptional performance in resolving 600+ critical situation tickets for Fortune 500 clients' engineering teams and executives

Specialized in:

• Maintaining SAS Inc’s production environment for mainframe and server systems
• Managing emergency resolutions during overnight shifts
• Ensuring consistent system uptime and reliability

Key Accomplishment

• Resolved over 100 ServiceNow tickets, contributing to the stability and availability of SAS Inc.'s Data Center

• Interdisciplinary degree incorporating, Computer Science, Physics, International Policy, and Meteorology
• Graduate classes in Computer Science & Meteorology

Achieved certification as a BISDN Network Architect