Darren Holt Email & Phone Number

Champaign, Illinois, United States

Provide oversight and direction for projects undertaken by a team of System Administrators under the Director of Internal Technical Operations in addition to all roles and responsibilities from the Systems Administrator II position.

Champaign, Illinois, United States

Provide guidance and direction for a team of System Administrators as well as assign tickets, projects and tasks to same, under the Director of Internal Technical Operations in addition to all roles and responsibilities from the Systems Administrator II position.

Champaign, Illinois, United States

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:• Managing day-to-day tasks including documentation of projects• Maintaining, patching, troubleshooting and administrating production Linux-, macOS- and Windowsbased servers running a variety of different software applications• Implementing new technologies to help streamline internal operations• Designing new tools/utilities to automate processes• Taking ownership of tasks escalated by the HelpdeskRequirements include:• Advanced knowledge of Linux/Unix operating systems• Strong understanding of networking concepts, technologies and principles• Strong understanding of virtual machine environments and hypervisors• Working knowledge of services that provide directory management, DNS, database management andconfiguration management• Ability to work well on stressful and fast-paced projects• Ability to work well both independently and in a team environment• Excellent problem-solving, critical-thinking and documentation skills

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

Responsibilities included, but not limited to• Maintaining production systems• Implementing changes for existing services• Designing new tools/utilities to automate processes• Administrating a variety of servers and environments (VMware, Active Directory, domain controllers,Group Policy)• Building, configuring, patching and maintaining various servers and servicesQualifications• Strong Windows experience• Strong knowledge of various scripting languages• Strong understanding of networking concepts, technologies and principles• Strong understanding of virtual machine environments and hypervisors• Strong documentation skills• Demonstrated knowledge of Active Directory structure and Windows domain administration• Ability to work well on stressful and fast-paced projects

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

Amongst my small team, I am considered the expert for all things Linux, Mac and Windows-related.I routinely work with Oracle, perl, mysql (mariadb) behind the scenes in addition to providing user support and direction for the technology usage within the company. In addition to virtualizing the vast majority of server infrastructure, we completely retired Windows XP and other legacy platforms with a focus on Windows 7 and Windows 2008R2.This position redefined my role in the company as an emerging leader and I was named Employee of the Year for 2012.I regularly write documentation for my staff, primarily in RT, a request tracker and ticketing tool. In addition, I write instructions for end-users, present solutions to managers and keep under budget for supplies and equipment.

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

In addition to supervisor responsibilities for a small staff; I taught myself how to install, maintain and work with Linux (mainly CentOS) systems for a variety of production-dependant tasks. Although not trained as I programmer, I routinely modify scripts in Perl, PHP, bash and Windows batch, the latter of which I often create from scratch. My group supports end-users and maintains the integrity of server, data networking, printer, and desktop client infrastructure as well as maintaining numerous specialised business systems.

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

As IT lead for the News-Gazette Community Newspaper division, I was responsible for all computer deployment, maintenance and trouble-shooting for 8 remote sites around Central Illinois. This required regular visits to the sites, but is mainly done via SSH tunnels, VNC and Microsoft Remote Desktop. In addition to maintain multiple PCs running Windows XP, I was considered the Mac OS X expert within our group, as well as being responsible for a variety of Windows 2000 and even some Windows NT and Mac OS 9 workstations.

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

After accepting a position at The News-Gazette, I continued to work for the Geek Squad in a part-time capacity.

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

Primary role was to provide in-home support and service on a variety of computer-related products including new PC setup, wireless networking, training and maintenance. When not on an in-home appointment, I would assist technicians in the store with repairs on customer units and help the sales floor promote services. I was considered a team leader and the person to ask first for most questions.

Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Area

As an in-store technician, I would work on PCs brought in for maintenance and repair, sell both in-home and in-store services and assist customers purchasing new PCs. This position helped me learn more about consumer technology in general and Windows XP in particular.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Worked on projects for a number of clients, with duties ranging from tele-marketing, list-building and account intelligence to company profiling. A major element of this involved working with client sales and marketing representatives. Clients included Talisma, AttentiV, eGain, PeopleSoft, Detica, Fujitsu, London Bridge Group (part of Fair Isaac Corporation), VeriSIM and Versata.After relocating to USA and getting married, I did some research projects for TMP as a consultant; using Internet and VOIP for customer contacts.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Temporary employment contracts with:Heinemann: Conducting market research by telephone.Oxford University Press: Primarily promoting a book to International Baccalaureate schools around the world.Alexence MG Rover: Customer tele-contact for car service needs and new model promotions.

Champaign, Il

Responsible for sales to the University market in the US and Canada. Generating new business, account management, some external visits. Typical sales values were between $2K/year and $20K/year for 3-year contracts. Annual target of $1,000,000 was always exceeded. Named “Salesperson of the Month” on multiple occasions.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Responsible for sales to various European countries, through a channel of resellers. Supervisor for the Sales Administrator and the Regional Sales Associate (UK). Other duties: Account management for direct sales in the UK and Ireland when necessary; training of new Sales staff; advice and instruction to Sales and Customer Service Departments; liaising with the American office as needed.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Responsible for sales to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Making quarterly targets, with an annual target of £500K. Other duties: Deciding where adverts are placed; training of new Sales staff; interviewing new Sales staff; advice and/or instruction to Sales and Customer Service staff; acting as a sounding board for Sales, Customer Services and Marketing; working with American counterparts as needed. Attended a “Solution Selling” course at the main office in Champaign, Illinois.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Duties included: answering general Emails to the Sales Department; maintaining spreadsheets and internal web-pages to keep salespersons up-to-date; answering the sales line; handling all inquiries from students; co-coordinating orders from European resellers; acting as a liaison between the Sales and Customer Service Departments; covering for Business Development Managers during their absence plus general advice, support and administration within the Sales Department.

Oxford, United Kingdom

Duties included: answering reception inquiries; sorting mail; distributing faxes; directing Emails from customers to Sales or other departments as appropriate; ordering stationery; general assistance to Customer Service.