Jim's Technology Consulting Offerings:

With more than 20 years in the IT industry, I have developed considerable depth to my work experience.   My strengths lie in my experience in a broad range of networking technologies and requirements, implementing best practice solutions that fit the technical and financial requirements of my customers based on an in-depth understanding of requirements, and building lasting relationships.  I have incorporated my extensive experience in strategic planning, network performance, IP architecture, cableplant design, wireless technologies, technology standards, and specifications in all my work.

 As a consultant I have worked on a number of projects for a variety of companies.  The most significant of these being Bank of America (for seven years from April, 1993 – Sept., 2000), US Bank, BB&T, Los Angeles Unified School District, Bowater, NetCom Solutions, and the US Department of Labor.  The following highlight some of the activities on these projects:

·        Enterprise Network Strategy

·        Campus and building fiber cableplants

·        IP address and DNS / DHCP architecture

·        Network test and performance review

·        Mergers and Acquisitions

·        Application performance review

·        Network standards and specifications

·        Capacity Planning

·        Device naming standards

·        DMZ and VPN design and performance

·        Network design and implementation

·        New construction / renovation up-fits

·        Technology project management

·        Test & Certification / R&D Lab

RESUME    (MS Word format)

Offerings:

Network Design and Architecture    Detail network design solutions and network strategy for networks and projects of all size and complexity.  Specialties include new construction, renovations, upgrades, mergers & acquisitions, WANs, and much more.

    Network Assessment    Validate as-is network design and architecture against business and technology requirements

        IP Services    IP Address architecture and planning.  DNS/DHCP services. 

            Wireless Networking    Design freedom from wires without sacrificing security

                Network Performance Assessment    Evaluate performance of applications, protocols, and utilization

                    Application Network Review    Evaluate performance of a specific application

                        Capacity Planning    Strategy, Tools and Analysis for intelligent network planning and growth

 

Reference Material

For more information or help with your network opportunities, please email me 

Network Design and Architecture

Network architecture is a high level blueprint by which all tactical network additions and changes should be designed.  Usually preceded by a network assessment, a Network Architecture is a strategic step in the life of your network.  Network strategy and detailed design solutions are essential for smooth implementation of network changes due to Mergers and Acquisitions.   I can offer years of experience building solutions to meet business, technology and financial requirements of even the most complicated networks.  These solutions include detailed design documentation, bill of materials, and implementation and test plans.  Following are examples of a few key network areas.  

 

IP Address planning 

DNS hierarchy Naming standards

Routed network design

VLAN Strategy Physical plant design 

Internet DMZ

VPN Project Management
Wireless strategy Security M&A activity

 

SAMPLE PROJECT MATERIAL:

    Sample VPN project (February 2002) (1 MB)

    Sample WAN project (1998)

    Sample Building LAN design document (1998)

    Another Sample Building Design    (1997) 

Network Assessment 

Whether you are merging networks, relocating, building or expanding a campus, upgrading to new technology or just need help getting your arms around your current network infrastructure, many complex issues are involved with your legacy environment.  When implementing a network architecture, the best starting place is an assessment of the existing network.  Maintaining up to date documentation is all to often overlooked in the rush of day-to-day operation.  The assessment will validate as-is design and network architecture.  The next phase of Network Assessments is to identify the business driving factors for the network.  Once the requirements are understood, recommendations will be made for the existing network to support the defined requirements and to meet network design best practices.   

IP Services

The IP protocol is at the heart of nearly every network today.  Proper advance planning can save mountains of work down the road.  Mergers and Acquisitions can create untold IP and routed network issues.  This service targets requirements for IP address space, planning, implementing an address plan and DNS/DHCP strategies, and managing change. 

Wireless Networking

Wireless LANs have opened an entirely new avenue of networking.  Portable, no wires, fast.  Especially convenient for warehouses, open office areas, and outdoor line of site, it can simplify connectivity in many other environments as well.  Inherent to this architecture are security risks.  The built in options in your equipment may not be enough to thwart even casual malicious mischief let alone the serious hacker.  A well designed RF plan, security and even encryption are your best practices to providing optimal functionality while minimizing risk. 

Network Performance Assessment

Because of today’s business environment, IT managers are being asked to improve network performance and reliability without spending significant budget on major initiatives.  Customer service level and network capability expectations continue to grow while IT budgets are kept steady or even reduced.  Demand for network performance improvement is increasing as computers become more powerful and as applications add images, sound, and other time (latency) sensitive features to traditional data transmissions.

The objective of a Performance Assessment is to identify the applications, protocols, and utilization at various points in the network to ensure that your network communications infrastructure is ready to meet current and projected performance, availability and response challenges.  The results from the assessment will facilitate effective use of existing resources, informed equipment purchase decisions and proactive identification of potential performance risks and exposures.

        Sample DMZ Performance Assessment

Application Network Review

As its title suggests, an Application Network Review is a technical study undertaken to examine the data communications behavior of applications to be executed on a corporate network.  This is one of many tools for IT staff to understand the behavior of applications on their networks and manage network capacity and resources.  It is most effectively performed prior to releasing an application into production service, however, it is also a very effective tool for documenting existing applications and isolating application performance issues.  An ANR will identify the volume and types of data required by applications at the client, server, and other strategic points in the network.  The key features of an ANR are to document the logical application network paths, bandwidth requirements, protocols, application performance characteristics, and service level baseline measurements.  The review helps ensure that all users of network resources can harmoniously utilize those resources and provide information for planning network capacity needs.

        ANR Case Study

        Sample ANR deliverable 

Capacity Planning

While a Performance Assessment provides a snapshot of your network infrastructure, Capacity Planning provides the long term performance and usage data required to truly understand the performance dynamics of your network.  Special projects and network initiatives rely on specific application requirements and historical network data to succeed .  

        Network Capacity Methodology    - What is network capacity planning?

 

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For more information or help with your network opportunities, please email me