I'm Paul Fitzgerald

Infrastructure Architect | Microsoft IT Pro | Virtualization Specialist | Linux Master

Husband, father, geek, dog lover, and coffee addict.

Hello, My Name is Paul.

I’m an IT Pro that specializes in architecting and implementing high quality infrastructure solutions using a variety of technologies across a number of disciplines.

I absolutely love what I do. I always have. When I was a kid I said I wanted to be an architect. Back then, I wanted to design houses but I ended up architecting IT solutions instead. Folks that know me well say it suits me perfectly and I’m glad it does. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Over the last eighteen years I’ve helped design and build systems from the ground up, including servers, storage, networking, Windows Server and Microsoft software, and Linux and open-source software. More recently, I’ve had the opportunity to take advantage of Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services to build more cost effective, efficient, and resilient services for businesses.

Contact Details

  • Paul Fitzgerald
  • Greater Memphis Area
  • +1-901-937-4053
  • pgfitzgerald.com
  • pgf@pgf.org

Strengths

Input

You are inquisitive. You collect things. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting.

Learner

You love to learn. You will always be drawn to the process of learning. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence.

Achiever

Your Achiever theme helps explain your drive. You have an internal fire burning inside you. It pushes you to do more, to achieve more.

Deliberative

You are careful. You are vigilant. You like to plan ahead so as to anticipate what might go wrong. You identify the dangers, weight their relative impact, and then place your feet deliberately.

Intellection

You like to think. You like mental activity. You are the kind of person who enjoys your time alone because it is your time for musing and reflection. You are introspective.

Responsibility

Your Responsibility theme forces you to take ownership for anything you commit to and you feel emotionally bound to follow it through to completion. Your good name depends on it.

Futuristic

As if it were projected on the wall, you see in detail what the future might hold, and this detailed picture keeps pulling you forward, into tomorrow.

Ideation

You are fascinated by ideas — concepts, connections, new perspectives. You love these ideas because they are profound, novel, clarifying, contrary, bizarre. Ideas are thrilling.

Skills

1. Virtualization

Experienced with Type 1 hypervisors from VMware (ESXi) and Microsoft (Hyper-V) as well as Type 2 hypervisors from VMware (Workstation) and Oracle (VirtualBox).

2. Microsoft

Experienced with many Microsoft products and services including Windows, Windows Server, Active Directory, Exchange, SQL Server, Office, and more.

3. Linux & UNIX

Experienced with many flavors of Linux and UNIX including Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Fedora, CentOS, Ubuntu, and AIX. [Linux Geek Since 1996!]

4. Cloud

While relatively new in the grand scheme of things, I have some experience as well as great interest with both Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services.

5. Networking

Experienced with LAN and WAN as well as switches, routers, and firewalls from a variety of vendors including Dell, HP, Cisco, Ubiquiti, and VyOS.

6. Storage

Experienced with local, Fibre Channel, and iSCSI storage from a variety of vendors including IBM, Dell, and Compellent.

7. Security

While I wouldn't consider myself an incredibly experienced and talented security expert, security is something I take very seriously.

8. Databases

While I wouldn't call myself a seasoned DBA, I have experience with many database systems including SQL Server, Oracle, and MySQL.

Methodology

I love ideas! They embody what "could be" and that's right in line with my commitment to continuous improvement. I also have a deep commitment to excellence, so I believe that if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right.

Sometimes I'm asked to describe how I structure projects. While there isn't necessarily a strict prescriptive process, I have found that projects normally follow the same general path. Once an idea grows feet and is on the move, I like to spend some time analyzing the need in detail to ensure we're moving in the right direction and to gather the details that will be necessary during the next phases of the project. Next we tackle designing the solution. That usually entails a fair amount of research and development and discussions with other subject matter experts to bring to the table all the information that will lead to a succesful project.

1. Idea
2. Analyze
3. Design
4. Build
5. Deploy
6. Operate

After architecting the solution and defining how the various pieces will work together and integrate with other systems and services, we dive into building out and standing up all the components of the solution. This phase is generally pretty exciting and requires a certain amount of agility and resourcefulness. Sometimes the best laid plans don't always go precisely the way we expect. Nevertheless, once the new system is built out and tested, we can move through change management and user adoption. Finally, once all the kinks are worked out, we can place the solution into it's final operational state.

While the preceeding explantation illustrates a somewhat simplified view of the work process, I hope it provides a bit of insight into how the process generally works for me.

Resume

Education

Present

Christian Brothers University
Bachelor of Science in Business Studies

  • Concentration in Management of Information Systems
  • Enrolled in the College of Adult Professional Studies
  • Currently working toward degree
2002

Southwest Tennessee Community College
Associate of Applied Science in Information Technology

  • Concentration in UNIX
  • Member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
  • Graduated Cum Laude

Experience

2016 - Now

Microsoft Corporation
Customer Engineer

Responsibilities:
Act as a trusted technology advisor and strategic partner to enterprise commercial customers with focus on the Windows platform and Microsoft 365 services.

1998 - 2016

Buckman International
Computer Systems Engineer

Responsibilities:

  • Plan, design, build, and operate systems and services on Microsoft and Linux platforms.
  • Set direction and define strategy related to infrastructure architecture and cloud services.
  • Drive adoption of new technologies that increase efficiency and decrease complexity.
  • Lead projects and initiatives to deploy infrastructure that support business applications.
  • Manage infrastructure components including physical servers, storage, and networking.
  • Manage virtualization systems utilizing Microsoft and VMware hypervisors.
  • Manage systems and services including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, etc.
  • Manage backup and recovery and disaster recovery systems for business continuity.

1996 - 2016

PGF IT Consultation Services
Founder and Principal IT Consultant

Responsibilities:
Assist small businesses and individuals with a variety of IT needs including PC procurement and support, web site design and maintenance, wired and wireless network design and management, remote access and firewall configuration and auditing, and server procurement and support.

1997 - 1998

Buckman International
IT Support Specialist

Responsibilities:
Support global associates with focus on client PC hardware, Windows, Office, and internal applications and services.

1996 - 1997

Buckman International
Part-Time Associate

Responsibilities:
Support day-to-day needs of an accredited technical library serving regional research associates.

References


"I have worked with Paul for the better part of 12 years. He is one of those resources that you can give any project to and be comfortable that he will know the subject matter inside and out with the nuances of someone who has worked in that area all their career. He is extremely detail oriented but also has a keen eye on the strategic aspects of his job/project not just from a technology perspective but also from a business angle as well. Paul is passionate about his work and would make any organization an asset that they would not soon want to part with."

Chris Wess
Managing Principal / Cloud Services Architect at WinTelliSys


"I've known and/or worked with Paul for over 12 years now and can verify that he is a very focused individual with a solid technical base of knowledge and skill sets that would be a valuable asset to any organization that is smart enough to hire him. He is very serious about his work and believes in doing the job right the first time and the best way possible. He is definitely someone worth your consideration."

Michael D. St. John
Retired Network Systems Engineer at Buckman Laboratories


"Paul is talented, committed, and conscientious. I would trust him to design and implement thorough, well-designed, reliable, and polished technical solutions ranging from end-user software/web apps to LAN/WAN to Windows or UNIX administration."

Michael Shayne Dowdie
Former Software Engineer at Buckman Laboratories


"I worked with Paul for nearly 10 years and can vouch for his character and work ethic. He has extensive technical knowledge and expertise and superior analytical skills. Paul was frequently called on to come up with creative solutions for difficult problems and he never failed to deliver. I believe that Paul will excel at any tasks he puts his mind to and can whole heartedly recommend him as a valuable resource to add to your team."

Mike Bowen
Co-Founder at CrossBrowserTesting.com LLC


"Paul Fitzgerald is a versitle and knowledgable technician that constantly seeks to expand his skill set. Paul consistently delivers superior results, even under seemingly unrealistic time constraints. Paul has an excellent work ethic, constantly driving for the best solution in each situation. It is my pleasure to recommend Paul Fitzgerald to you."

Darrell L. Carden
Implementation Project Manager at RIB Americas

Accolades

Regional Leadership Forum Graduate

Society for Information Management — November 2015

Society for Information Management

Memphis Chapter Member — December 2014

ITIL Foundation Certification

November 2013

Contact Me

Have a project you'd like to discuss?

Say
Hello

Paul Fitzgerald

pgf@pgf.org