Jeff R. Allen

Intervened in a troubled IT deployment project. Analyzed existing capacity, needs, and hardware on hand. Implemented a scalable network providing services meeting the needs of the client. Made rapid assessment, project plan, and implemented the project in two weeks on site. Final report offers a clear path forward to maintain the momentum created during the engagement.

Designed and implemented a software architecture for embedded devices targeted at developing economies. Potential applications in healthcare, supply chain management, and education.

• Implemented a PKI using OpenSSL.
• Created an online upgrade system targeted at the needs of the device.

Managed logistics, finances, and construction for MSF Switzerland's four healthcare structures in Nimba County, Liberia, responded to a meningitis outbreak in Aru, Congo, and responded to a nutrition emergency in Ethiopia. In Liberia, sixty staff reported to me and I was responsible for human resources for 180 staff including preliminary accounting for the $1.2 million project.

• Completed construction of a new health post. Managed renovation of an existing health post.
• Reorganized logistics of the hospital food supply addressing problems with over- and under-supply, proper food storage, and record-keeping.
• Participated in yearly planning, including staff count and budget analysis.

Provided short-term, project-oriented contract services for several clients. I participate in pre-sales meetings, prepare statements of work, then deliver finished projects on time.

• Designed and implemented a server to translate SNMP traps.
• Architected a configuration management system and trained the client's staff on using and extending it.
• Configured a pair of highly available load balancers.

Volunteered as the on-site project manager for a community wireless Internet service provider in Hancock County, Mississippi, where Hurricane Katrina made landfall.

• Managed customer relationships and scheduled work by a continuously varying volunteer workforce.
• Secured new office space and organized a warehouse transition.
• Selected and trained a Mississippi resident to run the project when I left.

Volunteer network administrator and programmer at a project in Guatemala to use tourist demand for Internet services to employ and train Guatemalans in Internet technologies.

• Created a system for management of names and numbers in a private network. Documented the organization's network using the system.
• Discovered and solved several preexisting performance and reliability problems in the network.
• Engaged in ad-hoc training with the Guatemalan staff, teaching in Spanish.

Improved task automation by designing and implementing innovative tools. Identified and accomplished numerous special projects, especially those involving cross-team dependencies. Mentored junior system administrators and honed the culture of the team.

• Wrote and released the open source package Verdad for managing all of the configuration information in a large system.
• Managed the logistics of a complex data center move with a requirement for zero customer visible downtime.
• On a $5,000 budget, imported from a discontinued European subsidiary used hardware with a value of over $30,000.

Mastered the operations of an immature system in order to successfully export it to Belgium.

• Established a new datacenter in Diegem, Belgium on time. Work included network, host, software, and telco design, procurement, installation, and debugging.
• The Belgian team I trained assumed responsibility for hardware repair and software upgrades and operated the system independently.
• Incorporated several cost-saving features in the network design to reflect the small initial market in Europe.

Pursued self-directed research into ways to improve the cost or performance of the existing system. Implemented proposed changes via system tuning, code changes, or staff retraining.

• Used Cricket to identify a performance problem on a subset of servers, then ran experiments to find and verify a solution.
• Implemented prototypes and completed features to demonstrate how to keep the product competitive and to engage new customers to prevent subscriber churn.

Identified, designed, and built tools for the WebTV Network Operations Center.

• Wrote Cricket, a network and system management tool. Released Cricket to the Internet community as open source software. Cricket is installed worldwide in over 5000 installations.
• Formalized publication of modem number database by writing processing tools, setting up a QA process, and training coworkers to operate the system.
• Deployed and customized several network management systems, including Concord's Spectrum and Tivoli's Netcool.