Tim Y.
Calgary, Canada
Senior Cisco Networking Consultant
$145.00/hr
8+ years of experience as a self-employed enterprise networking consultant. Major project experience with Cisco WAN (DMVPN, VPN's of any kind), Wireless, Voice, Data Center, etc. For more details, see below. If that's not enough, just ask.
There is an abundance of talented and technically capable resources out there; however, what may separate me from the others is that I am:
- Responsive
- Transparent
- Efficient with my time
- Effective with my communication
Responsive: I know that people don't like to be kept waiting, so I always respond to correspondence as quickly as possible. If I can't answer a question fully right away, I will at least respond initially to say that the message was read, a response is forthcoming, and provide an ETA.
Transparent: I value open communication and speak plainly, even if it is uncomfortable. For example, if you were considering me for a job using technology I was not an expert with, I would tell you that up front and that you may want to consider someone else.
Efficient with my time: I am capable of managing my time efficiently by staying organized, utilizing the basic principles of project management, being able to see the big picture, and being able to discern between important vs urgent. In addition, because I only accept work in which I am an expert, I tend to complete things quickly. I have used Cisco for so long that I can configure routers, switches, and firewalls in my head.
Effective with my communication: The importance of written and verbal communication cannot be understated. It is necessary for avoiding misunderstandings, understanding the task at hand, and especially troubleshooting. As a consultant, I am well versed in this area, and my past activity on the Cisco Community Support Forums demonstrates my experience in written communication as it relates to troubleshooting. You can look me up there to see examples where I helped people solve problems for free.
--------------------
Order of difficulty (easiest to hardest):
1. Supporting an existing system
2. Building a system from scratch
3. Making major changes to an existing production system
As a networking consultant, I don't just support existing network implementations. I build them from scratch by learning the clients' unique requirements, and designing solutions that are stable, expandable, efficient, secure, follow best practices, and of course account for disaster recovery scenarios.
I also have major experience in performing changes to existing networks in a way that mitigates risk, lowers downtime, communicates the impact of any outages to the client, and follows any change management protocols in place. I define implementation, back out and test plans, and execute changes according to plan.
--------------------
Technical:
I am only realistically interested in working with Cisco, where I am experienced in the following areas, including: Data Center, Enterprise LAN/WAN, Firewall, Voice, and Wireless.
There are too many different protocols and technologies to list. Many of which I am well versed, and some of which I have rarely had to use. The problem with creating a large list is there is no context behind each acronym. Instead, here are a few diverse projects I have completed which not only identify some of the technologies in my repertoire, but also demonstrate how I have used them:
Data Center core switch upgrade:
- Upgraded existing core switching from 3750-X stacked switches to a Nexus 7000 switch
- Used: NX-OS, OTV, LISP IGP Assist
-----
Data Center Firewall / Internet Edge Upgrade:
- Made changes to the Data Center perimeter to improve resiliency and reduce complexity with minimal disruption to production using ASA firewalls (I have 8 years experience with these)
- Used: ASA Software, ACL, NAT, Site to Site VPN, GRE over IPSEC VPN, SSL VPN
-----
Cisco DMVPN Phase 2 to Phase 3 Migration:
- Upgraded existing WAN infrastructure from a Phase 2 architecture to a Phase 3 tiered architecture
- Used: IPSEC, NHRP, Point-to-Multipoint Tunnels, DMVPN
-----
E164 Dial Plan Implementation for North America, Mexico, Argentina:
- Migrated multiple CUCM clusters from a traditional dial plan to an E164 dial plan for three different countries within a few weeks with complete TEHO setup across countries and within countries (NXX)
- Used: CUCM 11.5, Partition, Calling Search Space, Route Pattern (over 5000), Route List/Group, Translation Patterns, Called Party Transformation Patterns, SIP trunk, CUCME or Call Manager Express, PRI
-----
Cisco Unified Wireless Implementation:
- Designed and implemented an enterprise wireless system using Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers and Cisco lightweight access points
- Used: WLC, FlexConnect, Local/Central switching, CAPWAP, WPA2 with 802.1X Authentication, Cisco ACS, Cisco ASA Firewall
Skills
- Wireless Network Implementation
- Network Design
- Cisco PIX