IT role
IT Manager · Regional HVAC business
Apr 2011 to Oct 2022 · Charlotte, NC
Built and ran the standardized technology platform for a 125-user, three-office, three-brand HVAC business across 11.5 years. I inherited consumer network gear, cheap custom desktops, unrelated laptops, no Active Directory, no central storage, a failing PBX, and paper field workflows. I replaced that with one supported stack across identity, business-grade endpoints, Microsoft 365, networking, servers, backup, phones, mobile devices, monitoring, documentation, and support. No platform team to lean on at any point.
Nicholson and Melton joined the same underlying platform while keeping the brand distinctions customers saw. This was the smaller-scale predecessor to the national standardization program I run today: different vendors and governance, same operating method.
Responsibilities
- Shared technology standard across three offices and brands: Active Directory and Microsoft 365, business-grade endpoints and managed iPads, Meraki/Ubiquiti/Aruba networking, Windows Server and Hyper-V, Synology and Backblaze, OnSIP then Zoom Phone, Polycom phones, monitoring, documentation, and common support practices
- Network design and administration: multi-vendor segmented topology (Meraki MX, Ubiquiti EdgeSwitch, Aruba Instant On) and site-to-site VPNs across 3 locations
- Active Directory from scratch: redundant DCs, SQL Server, Hyper-V; full rebuild executed twice (original site + office relocation)
- Microsoft 365 administration: Exchange Online, SharePoint, Teams, OneDrive (launched the company's first M365 environment)
- File storage and backup: three architectural eras from P2P through Synology NAS to OneDrive/SharePoint + Backblaze
- Legacy service-platform modernization: evaluated HVAC service-management options and selected the replacement, then owned rollout, schema maintenance, mobile provisioning, and ongoing administration
- Telephony: inherited Tadiran Coral PBX; migrated to OnSIP, then Zoom Phone
- Physical security: AxTraxNG access control, NVR camera systems, self-pulled and self-terminated Cat6 runs
- HVAC technical consulting: load calcs, duct design, building performance diagnostics, Energy Star accreditation
Selected systems and tools
SRE-style observability at a 125-user business
Three-layer observability stackPRTG as primary monitor, InfluxDB as the time-series store, Grafana for dashboards, Influx Capacitor for Windows agents, and hand-written bash SNMP collectors pulling from both network and HVAC equipment. Per-role telemetry profiles across hypervisor, SQL, domain controllers, network, and storage.
Legacy Unix to a modern Microsoft stack
Full-stack technology modernizationModernized the whole stack as one program: server and network infrastructure, Active Directory from scratch, Office 365 migration, and the move off a legacy Unix service platform on SCO OpenServer. Self-taught SCO OpenServer administration to keep the legacy system running first, then owned vendor selection, cutover coordination, data validation, training, and legacy decommission.
Replaced one-off consumer hardware and disconnected systems with one supported platform per layer. Reapplied the same standards during a full office relocation and the Nicholson and Melton acquisitions, preserving customer-facing brands while sharing identity, connectivity, communications, administration, documentation, and support underneath.
Moved field operations from paper work orders to iPad-based workflows with in-field credit card processing, real-time work-order capture, and live dispatcher view. Included mobile device provisioning and ongoing in-field support for the full technician fleet. Ended the weekly cycle of technicians returning to the office with stacks of paper for re-keying.
Inherited a Tadiran Coral PBX. Migrated to OnSIP hosted VoIP (published as an OnSIP case study), then to Zoom Phone for full UCaaS integration. Substantial cost reduction across the full program.
Peer-to-peer chaos at the start. Synology NAS with folder redirection and VPN access for the middle era. OneDrive/SharePoint + NAS-as-backup + Backblaze cloud tier from the 2020 COVID cutover, executed under operational pressure.
Stood up Active Directory from scratch including redundant DCs, SQL Server, and Hyper-V. Multi-vendor segmented network: Cisco Meraki MX, Ubiquiti EdgeSwitch, Aruba Instant On APs, site-to-site VPNs. Full rebuild executed twice. Azure AD hybrid via AD Connect.
Mobile and web apps for field technicians and salespeople. LMS for staff training. PhishMe (Cofense) security-awareness program. AxTraxNG (Rosslare) physical access control from scratch. Two NVR camera systems across two buildings, including self-pulled Cat6. WordPress sites for the parent company and two acquired companies.