Storage Engineer Disaster Recovery

Ontair Watkins Chicago, IL 312-***-**** *************@*****.***

Professional Summary

Accomplished Senior Global Storage Engineer with 26+ years of experience designing, implementing, and managing enterprise-level storage and mainframe infrastructure in mission-critical global environments. Proven expertise in modernizing storage systems, optimizing performance, and leading large-scale infrastructure transformation projects. Adept at troubleshooting complex technical challenges, mentoring teams, and driving innovation through automation and process improvement. Recognized for delivering secure, resilient, and scalable solutions in fast-paced environments.

Core Competencies

Infrastructure Design & Implementation: Microsoft & Linux OS systems, VMware, Azure, NetApp, Hitachi, and HP SAN environments

Modernization & Migration: Storage upgrades, cloud migration, and automation

Performance Optimization: Risk analysis, compliance, disaster recovery, and system tuning

Technical Leadership: High-level and low-level architecture design, mentoring, and cross-functional collaboration

Certifications: NetApp NCDA, NCIE-SAN; Microsoft MCP, MCSE

Technical Skills: NetApp, Hitachi, Hp, Rubrik, Cloudain and Microsoft.

hardware architecture

Professional Experience

Arthur J. Gallagher and Co. – Rolling Meadows, IL

Sr. Global Storage Engineer (February 2012 – Present)

Designed and implemented global storage strategies for multi-data center environments, ensuring 99.99% system availability.

Spearheaded a migration of 1 PB+ of data across global environments, reducing storage costs by 15% through optimization.

Established disaster recovery protocols and conducted annual drills, achieving a recovery time objective (RTO) of under 2 hours.

Deployed Rubrik Cloud Cluster and Cloudian Hyperstore for hybrid cloud storage, improving scalability by 30%.

Authored and enforced infrastructure standards, reducing system incidents by 20% year-over-year.

Led a team of 5 engineers in performance tuning of NetApp FAS and Hitachi VSP systems, enhancing throughput by 25%.

Delivered seamless firmware upgrades for SAN environments, mitigating risks through rigorous testing and fallback plans.

Global Storage Engineer (April 2007 – February 2012)

Managed a 50/50 mix of virtualized and physical servers across global data centers, overseeing 800+ TB of data.

Improved storage provisioning efficiency by 40% through automation scripts and streamlined workflows.

Designed and implemented enterprise-wide policies for storage and backup, boosting compliance audit scores to 95%.

Transitioned legacy HP SAN environments to modern solutions with no downtime, enhancing performance by 20%.

Collaborated with cross-functional teams to deploy NetApp ONTAP systems, meeting 100% of project deadlines.

Gallagher Bassett (Division of AJG) – Itasca, IL

SAN Administrator (September 2001 – April 2007)

Managed a SAN environment with 160+ TB of storage, achieving 95%+ backup success rates using Data Domain and Commvault.

Automated reporting and monitoring processes with custom VB scripts, reducing manual effort by 30%.

Supported disaster recovery activities, completing 100% of planned restores within SLA timelines.

Optimized storage utilization through analysis and reorganization, increasing efficiency by 25%.

Mainframe Computer Operator (August 1998 – September 2001)

Monitored system processes and implemented proactive fixes, reducing system downtime by 15%.

Coordinated with IT operations to streamline maintenance activities, improving operational efficiency.

Certifications

NetApp: NCDA (Certified Data Management Administrator), NCIE-SAN (Certified SAN Implementation Engineer)

Microsoft: MCP (Certified Professional), MCSE (Certified Systems Engineer)

Education

Moraine Valley College – Palos Hills, IL

Information Technology (2004)

Classes Included: Systems Development and Design, Management of IT Helpdesk, Information Resource Management.

Daley College – Chicago, IL

General Studies (1992)

Classes Included: General education, Math, English, History and Sciences

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