Robert Thompson

Experience

• 

  StorageTek

  Oct 1991 - Oct 1994

  Electrical Engineer

  • Maintained and updated design of a shared memory controller for DASD mainframe storage.• Principal engineer responsible for designing and implementing error correction technologies in a custom ASIC used in StorageTek's first helical scan tape product.

• 

  HP

  Nov 1994 - Mar 2006

  • Designed and implemented the HP digital camera DirectPrint technology.• Improved digital camera performance achieving the goal of being the fastest camera in the market segment.• Implemented firmware build system integrated with firmware test teams. • Designed, verified, and delivered custom ASIC to correlate time separated optical image scanner data in the HP ScanJet 4P flatbed scanner with no re-spins in 6 months.• Invented the ScanJet XPA transparency adapter.• Co-designed the CapShare handheld digital scanner.• Responsible for flatbed scanner firmware testing.

  • Firmware Engineer

    Jan 2000 - Mar 2006

  • Hardware Engineer

    Nov 1994 - Dec 1999
• 

  HP

  May 2006 - Dec 2016

  Asked by senior management to lead HP HC-250 hyperconverged Microsoft Azure Pack solution implementing a C# based per-node setup solution, integration with HP StoreVirtual storage and inventing a novel automatic node expansion discovery solution.• Managed off-shore teams to complete deployment software for the solution delivering a step by step experience for deployment teams. On-site engineers were enabled to deploy the solution faster with fewer errors.• Created a customer networking readiness checklist and methodology to greatly reduce the likelihood of a deployment failure.• Invented a client-server C# based solution to enable customers to simply plug in a new node and automatically expand their solution.• Drove customer experience improvements to enhance the solution update process eliminating the need for customers to invoke multiple PowerShell scripts to update their system.• Collaborated with manufacturing stakeholders to deliver the HC-250 improving confidence and eliminating production run problems.• Provided direct deployment team and end customer technical support increasing the knowledge level and reducing subsequent support issues. Show less Solely responsible for the $60M+ HP StoreEasy product R&D effort including ProLiant server hardware specification, product delivery, and customer support.• Devised and implemented strategic architectures for multi-tenant SMB and NFS file services enabling the use of StoreEasy solutions by service providers.• Invented new solutions to customer problems using unique use cases of Microsoft Windows Storage Server features. • Furnished direct pre-sales and post-sales end-customer support for business-critical issues including in-person customer visits. Root cause analysis and troubleshooting resulted in rapidly developed solutions and product improvements.• Designed and specified new UX and UI and managed off-shore developers to create value add solutions to reverse a downward product sales trend. Show less Designed and implemented new data replication feature for existing customers and created a new product reimaging solution. • Created, implemented, and maintained a robust JavaScript based system recovery solution used in four follow-on product lines including the current Azure Stack solution.• Invented a patented solution to replicate data and maintain data snapshots across geographically separate servers solving business continuity problems.Improved the support experience for Storage Works products establishing customer support relationships; reducing support delays and customer confusion. Show less

  • Architect

    Apr 2015 - Dec 2016

  • Architect

    Feb 2011 - Mar 2015

  • Software Engineer

    May 2006 - Feb 2011
• 

  Hewlett Packard Enterprise

  Jan 2017 - Jul 2020

  Architect

  Chosen to lead HPE Azure Stack R&D software development team delivering over 15 successful releases by using my organizational skills to manage multiple tasks including implementation guidance, coding standard development, code hygiene adherence, and code development.• Designed, implemented, and debugged PowerShell and multi-threaded C# code to deploy the HPE Azure Stack solution.• Implemented and maintained CruiseControl CI/CD build system to reliably deliver build products. Pester test installers, ISO images, and PXE boot files were created for automated testing and developer validation improving setup times from 2 or more hours to 20 minutes.• Created new Github Enterprise SCCM branching strategy to facilitate agile PSI build schedules while also allowing inter-PSI development eliminating wasteful delays for development validation.• Drove procedure improvements to eliminate team confusion and improve efficiency.• Devised and created documentation for coding standards, pull request review guidelines, version control rules. Coding standards and code review guidelines reduced code review times from weeks to days while improving code quality and maintainability.• Mentored team members with architecture, implementation, and development practices expanding the team knowledgebase and raising team effectiveness. Show less

• 

  Hewlett Packard Enterprise

  Oct 2020 - now

  Senior Software Engineer

  A member of the 3PAR, Primera, and Alletra PEAK team responsible for identifying solution management improvement opportunities using customer support case data mining techniques.• Perform periodic reviews of cases with product development, product marketing, and program management stake holders.• Implemented tools using Python to automate area review presentation creation.• Updated Golang and CSS code used in web-based case data editor used by entire PEAK team.• Assisted with Share Point organization and structure to facilitate software release and recommendation efforts.• Created tool to cross reference product serial numbers with bugs fixed in release code to ensure those systems were prioritized for the release.• Point of contact for team Slack, Teams, and SharePoint guidance. Show less