Paul Willard - Systems and Network Manager
About Paul
- At heart, I'm a geek.
- I've also studied management:-
- Masters of Business Administration (MBA) at Waikato University.
- I've driven some trucks.
- But at heart, I'm a geek.
I've been a constant users of Debian since 2005, and prior to that Ubuntu, Gentoo, Mandriva, Mandrake, all sorts. But y'know, I've installed Windows™ when I've wanted to play some non-Linux games, or configure some Checkpoint™ firewalls.
I can code in bash (although Google™ helps), and can code in PHP™ pretty easy, although I've never done any OOP.
I was fully emersed in the ISP environment first as Senior Network Engineer, then as the Rural Network Operations Manager at Lightwire, so I can do some networking.
Occasionally I get bugged by something, then start a project to solve my problem.
I ran a TiVo™ project in New Zealand for a while, where I was hacking TiVos™ to work in NZ, before they were officially launched.
I ran the largest XMPP / Jabber server in New Zealand for many years, until spammers ruined it for me.
I ride motorbikes, and as a result help out with some clubs ( like Ulysses ).
Testimonials
Working both alongside and for Paul in the IT and telecommunications industry, he has proven to be great colleague, leader and manager. His wide ranging knowledge and skills are a conclusive asset to any employer.
Paul designed and implemented key technical systems that enabled the business to operate in a more efficient way and better maintain relations and make improvements with the company’s customer engagements.
Velocity has used Paul and his team at NetValue to provide a number of web based solutions for us. Including a secured wiki and interactive, database driven web pages. The projects have always been delivered on time, on budget and often exceed our required performance criteria.
Paul has worked on a number of projects with us and has always delivered a great service and on time. He definitely knows his stuff when it comes to IT and sysadmin.
Paul would have to be one of the most ethical people I know. In his time on the Fraser High School Board of Trustees he made good governance and integrity a priority and in doing so showed true grit in a challenging situation.
Paul is effective, efficient and very capable. He has in depth technical knowledge and experience, and can get things done. He is organised and in control of his team. I like the way he thinks through the angles of a particular change or system, to understand the downstream impacts and consequences.