John Provost

acriew@r.postjobfree.com 469-***-****

**** * ****** ** - **********, TX 75067

Lead Systems Engineer

Senior IT Professional with 15+ years of experience aligning business needs with technology solutions. Architecting scalable, client-focused solutions that satisfy business needs. Success coordinating technical and non-technical resources and creating momentum through project lifecycle. Execution of projects on-time and within budget. Industry background in Insurance, Call Center Management, Transportation, Information Technology Consulting, Construction, Education and Energy Management.

Needs Assessment & Technology Evaluation, Solution Architecture Design, Client Relations & Customer Service

Enterprise Architectures, Vendor Selection & Negotiations, Project Management, IT Security Systems, Technical Support

Technology Portfolio

Software: VMWare 4.x – 5.x, Citrix XenApp, Citrix XenDesktop, Citrix Netscaler, Backup: Symantec, Quest, Veeam, System Monitoring: Big Brother, SolarWinds: Network Performance Mon, Server Application Mon, Log & event Manager, SEIM. Exchange, Microsoft Active Directory,

Hardware: Dell, HP, Cisco Computers and Servers, XioTech SAN, EMC Clarion

Networks: Microsoft NT4.0 – Windows Server 2012, Active Directory, Cisco, Citrix XenApp & XenDesktop

OS: Windows Server, Linux

Education & Certifications

Southern Methodist University – Applied Engineering & Networking Technologies

University of North Texas – Chemistry & Biology – Bachelor’s

Citrix – Citrix Certified Administrator; CCA-V

Microsoft – MCSE, MCTS

VMWare

Professional Experience

Ecova – Dallas, TX

(LPB Energy acquired by Ecova) 2012 – Present

Energy management firm offering BPO, energy procurement, data analysis and reporting services

Senior Systems Engineer – Information Technology

Responsible for architecting, supporting and maintaining servers and applications. Responsible for technology and security infrastructure. Implement and maintain security controls per SSAE16 requirements.

-Hands-on experience architecting and supporting VMHost and guest environment.

-Hands-on experience architecting and supporting Citrix Environments.

oDesign, Engineering and Performance Tuning of XenApp 5, XenApp 6.5 & XenDesktop 7.5 operating environments.

oConfiguration of High Availability and Load Balanced environment.

oCapacity Management.

oCoordination of patches and upgrades with Vendors and Technology Teams.

oMigration of users and workloads from XenApp to XenDesktop environment.

oPerformed troubleshooting and Level-3 support on escalated issues.

oDesign Documentation

-Troubleshoot and resolve VM Host issues and guest issues.

-Performance monitoring of Host and Guest environments.

-Hands-On training and mentoring across all areas to support technology adoption.

-Network Load Balancing

LPB Energy Management – Dallas, TX 2007 – 2012

Energy management firm offering BPO, energy procurement, data analysis and reporting services

Senior Manager – Information Technology

Define technology operations infrastructure and design process improvements to support organizational growth. Responsible for technology and security infrastructure, helpdesk, and telephony systems. Partner with corporate leadership to evaluate business processes and align technology infrastructure and strategy with business needs. Build and maintain strategic vendor relations and develop purchasing budget. Determine capacity planning and scheduling for vendors in support of all infrastructure modifications.

-Extended datacenter services to multiple locations across the US via Citrix Presentation Server 4.5.

-Migration of Datacenter operations between geographically distant datacenters.

-Implemented first department and capital expense budgets within 4 months of hire. Optimized resources after staff size more than doubled in short time period and eliminated unnecessary spending.

Modified services and negotiated persuasively with vendors to reduce expenses including reduction of telecom costs by 20%.

-Streamlined data storage and significantly enhanced disaster recovery plan. Centralized data centers and leveraged virtualization to reduce number of physical servers from more than 20 to 3.

Additionally consolidated server storage, which reduced data center costs by 70%, minimized required maintenance, and significantly improved Disaster Recover solution.

-Formalized helpdesk tracking system – providing transparency and enabling reporting capability for user issues. Migrated system to SalesForce and leveraged case management features to track technical support requests.

-Enforced controls for IT processes within Business Process Outsourcing service to successfully achieve SAS 70 (SSEA16) compliance and pass external audit.

El Centro College – Dallas, TX 2003 – 2007

Member of Dallas Community College District, specializing in medical and technology education

Manager Information Technology & System Support

Led team of 12 in maintaining network availability and resolving user issues for 30+ computer labs and smart classrooms with 1400+ computers. Administered hardware and software purchasing budget. Developed curriculum for Network Administration classes, with a focus on translating technically challenging topics to audience with limited prior knowledge.

-Automated desktop management to streamline bi-yearly refresh process. Implemented Novell Zenworks and reduced refresh time by up to 80%. Maintained one of the Districts lowest support cost to computer ratios.

-Overhauled server infrastructure and implemented Disaster Recovery Strategy to create homogenous computing environment. Minimized unplanned outages and improved response time.

-Consolidated IT aspects of sister campus, the Bill J. Priest Institute. Absorbed 150 end-users, 450 computers, and 6 servers. Transitioned staff of 3 and supported educational culture change. Expanded network automation and merged organizational cultures and technologies.

-Concurrently taught Network Administration classes as Adjunct Professor, including Novell, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and TCP/IP. Effectively communicated complex technical concepts to non-technical users.

-Honored with Professional Support Staff Employee of the year for outstanding contributions.

Black Box Network Services – Carrolton, TX 2001 – 2003

Communications and infrastructure solutions provider serving 175K+ customers in 142 countries worldwide

Systems Engineer

Provided pre-sales support by performing network assessments and recommending technology solutions to clients. Administered yearly technology budget and managed client-facing implementations across several industries.

-Led statewide initiative to upgrade all Cisco infrastructures for SouthTrust banks and successfully converted 20+ branches.

-Identified and trained technical resources within Brinks Inc. to support server upgrades. Successfully rolled-out pilot project to 3 markets and expanded upgrade to all 12 locations.

-Citrix Metaframe 1.8 implementation and integration with Novell Directory Services.

American Truck Source – Irving, TX 1999 – 2001

Peterbilt dealership with 8 locations across Texas and American Truck Source was purchase by Rush Enterprises in 2004.

Network Administrator

Maintained WAN network supporting 350+ end-users spread across 7 locations. Remediated issues affecting TCP/IP, DNS, and WINS, network connectivity outages and Microsoft server failures. Engineering and Support of Citrix Metaframe.

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