
Lesley Withers
Project Manager and Senior IT Specialist

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About me
Technical Manager and Infrastructure Engineering Specialist
Education

The University of Hull
1999 - 2001Master of Business Administration - MBA Business Administration and Management, General Distinction
University of Kent
1986 - 1990Bachelor of Arts - BA Economics 2:1
Experience

IBM
Nov 1990 - Jul 2002Project Manager and Senior IT Specialist
Viglen
Nov 2002 - Aug 2003Project Manager
The Rent Service
Aug 2003 - Sept 2004Systems Manager
NHS Counter Fraud Service
Sept 2004 - Oct 2005Head of Systems
Monsoon Accessorize
Nov 2005 - Apr 2017Network and Security ManagerManaged the Network infrastructure for Head Office, Warehouse, 300+ stores.Product selection, installation and management of firewalls.Oversaw the design, procurement and installation of the Core and edge switch infrastructure for relocation of the Monsoon / Accessorize Head Office. Responsible for the selection and implementation of internal and external penetration tests and vulnerability scanning.Managed projects for networks, new firewalls, wireless infrastructure.Provided 3rd level support to IT Service Desk.Procured, setup and managed multi-factor authentication for remote access users.Systems used: Microsoft Windows 2012/2008 Server, Office 365, AWS, Azure, SQL Server, Cisco routers and switches, IP networks, Meraki, DHCP, DNS, Nessus, Snort, Splunk, Qualys, Ruckus, Microsoft Windows 10, 8 & 7, Group Policy, iBoss, SCCM, Citrix, VMWare, Juniper firewalls, Checkpoint firewalls, Palo Alto Firewalls, Cisco firewalls, Avaya, Bluecoat, EPOS Systems. Show less

Affinity Water
May 2017 - Nov 2017Network Team Lead
Ministry of Justice UK
Jan 2018 - Jun 2019Network Operations ManagerThe Ministry of Justice Network Operations Manager is responsible for all operational aspects of the MoJ WAN and LAN networks. The MoJ network service covers a large estate of over 70,000 users and more than 900 physical sites, including a number of data centres. ● Service operations of large scale enterprise networks ● Working technical knowledge of WAN technologies (routing, DMVPN, MPLS, etc). ● Working technical knowledge of LAN technologies (switching, routing, VLANS, 802.1x etc) ● Outstanding knowledge and experience with network monitoring tools. ● Management of external network suppliers ● Incident management ● Network capacity management ● Cost and budget management, including forecasting and tracking ● Using recognised methodologies - e.g. ITIL Show less

Goldsmiths, University of London
Sept 2019 - May 2020Network and Infrastructure OfficerThis was a hands on role providing 2nd and 3rd line support to the University. Back in the field again after recent management roles. • I managed (set up / maintain/ monitor) a mixture of VMWare and hardware based MS Windows/ Unix/ Linux Servers, firewalls, network switches, appliances and SAN storage to meet or exceed agreed service levels.• I ensured the security of infrastructure through patching and fixing vulnerabilities. • I was responsible for upgrading network equipment, servers and firewalls to the latest versions of operating systems and firmware when appropriate, and for installing appropriate operating system fixes or fixes.• 2nd / 3rd line troubleshooting of faults within the Infrastructure environment and undertaking any consequent liaison with suppliers and service engineers when appropriate.• I implemented performance monitoring, capacity planning and disaster recovery planning.• I ensured that system security was upheld and adequate action taken in relation to security incidents.• I configured high availability/standby software, load balancers, UPS devices or RAID arrays to ensure continued operation of the server infrastructure.• I supported all networked services that run on the servers such as web, email and printing support. Show less

Atos
Jun 2020 - Aug 2020Network EngineerThis was a hands-on network installation role at West Herts NHS Trust.I decommissioned old network equipment and installed new Cisco Core and edge switches across 4 sites and many buildings.This was a contract role via AToS and Allvotec.

EBRD
Sept 2020 - Apr 2023Communications and Collaboration Delivery ManagerI worked with the Bank's IT teams and Core Project Teams to design and deliver Infrastructure and Collaboration solutions across the following towers:-o Networking Infrastructure (Routing and Switching, WAN Optimisation)o Collaboration tools o Video Conferencing o IPT o IM o IT Security I gathered requirements to shape programme deliverables.I formulated and documented technology artefacts to articulate the desired direction of travel:o Design principles and policieso Requirements (Functional and Non-Functional)o Technical standardso Solution briefs and low level designso Contribute to required procurement processes such as vendor selection and workshops.o Oversaw and assured the work of in-house and external design and delivery streams. Show less

Royal Museums Greenwich
Jan 2023 - Oct 2023Technical ManagerI was the Senior Support person for all networks, firewalls, servers, IoT and M365. I managed the installation of a new Wide Area Network (WAN), internet links and firewalls. I set up patch schedules for all systems to comply with the requirements for Cyber Essentials. I provided third line support to the helpdesk on technical issues. I managed the surveying, updating and improvement of the wifi estate. I managed and supported the Microsoft SaaS estate including MS Entra (Azure), Teams, Entra ID (Azure AD), and Exchange. I managed and supported the Hyper-V virtualised server estate and NetApp storage solution I managed and supported Active Directory, including Azure AD connect and Group Policy. I managed and supported Access Control and Security for Microsoft Entra, e.g. conditional access rules, MFA I ran projects to implement new systems as required by various departments in the business, e.g. HR, Finance. Show less

MUFG
Dec 2023 - Jun 2024Infrastructure and Application Support SpecialistThis project was to outsource networks, systems and helpdesk to a third party provider.This included the design and implementation of a new SD-WAN and LAN based on Meraki and Fortigate, this included redesigning VLANs and dismantling the MPLS. I planned and managed the move from Checkpoint to Fortigate firewalls. Supporting the Microsoft SaaS estate including MS Entra (Azure), Teams, Entra ID (Azure AD), and Exchange. I supported the VMWare virtualised server estate: installing, maintaining and managing servers. I ensured that none of the business systems were impacted by the transition, this included Bloomberg, SWIFT and IPC Unigy. I provided BAU support on all technical issues. Show less
Licenses & Certifications
- View certificate

Exam 411: Administering Windows Server 2012
Microsoft 
ITIL Foundation in IT Service Management
BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT- View certificate

Exam 412: Configuring Advanced Windows Server 2012 Services
Microsoft - View certificate

Exam 414: Implementing an Advanced Server Infrastructure
Microsoft - View certificate

Exam 410: Installing and Configuring Windows Server 2012
Microsoft - View certificate

MCSA: Windows Server 2012 - Certified 2016
Microsoft - View certificate

MCSE: Cloud Platform and Infrastructure — Certified 2016
Microsoft 
PRINCE 2 Foundation and Practitioner
AXELOS Global Best Practice
SSADM v4 (Structured systems analysis and design method)
OGC- View certificate

Oracle Database 10g Administrator Certified Associate
Oracle
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