Curriculum Vitae

Simon St John Chamberlain – North London – United Kingdom

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Highlights

  • Extensive “hands-on” in-depth technical network experience
  • Successful technical lead and manager for large scale networks
  • Network Infrastructure Project Manager for BBC (major projects)
  • Group Network Manager for Hitachi Capital
  • Global Network Manager for iomart
  • UK Network Manager for Concentrix (ten-billion-dollar organisation)
  • Global Network Manager for Synthomer (Major chemical manufacturer)

About Me

I have extensive experience in designing, implementing, and supporting enterprise, data centre, and ISP-grade networks. As a Network Architect and former owner of Ping Networks Ltd—an ISP that later became LDeX Connect—I provided comprehensive connectivity solutions across seven data centres.

Industry Certifications

CiscoCCNA
CCDA
CCNP
CCDP
CCIE R&S (Written)
Meraki ECMS1
Currently studying AWS certifications

Proficient Technologies

TroubleshootingPing, traceroute, MTR, Embedded packet capture, Wireshark, CDP, LLDP, UDLD, SPAN, RSPAN, MTR, debug, OSI 7 layer model, TCP 4 layer model, AppNeta
TechnologyProtocol/Feature
VLANsVTP, 802.1q, Native VLAN
EtherchannelLACP, PAgP, Load balancing
Spanning TreePVST+/RPVST+/MST
Portfast
BPDU Guard
BPDU Filter
Loopguard, Rootguard
Layer 2 WANPAP, CHAP, PPPoE, MLPPP, Frame relay, HDLC
AddressingIPv4, IPv6, ARP, DHCP, IP Helper, RFC1918, GLOP
RoutingStatic, Default, Distance Vector, Link State, Path Vector, VRF lite, Route tagging, Split Horizon, RIPv2, OSPF, BGP, ISIS, EIGRP, HSRP, VRRP, GLBP
MPLSMP-BGP, LDP, L3VPN, CE, PE, P, Pseduowire,
TunnellingGRE, L2TP, L2TPv3, VTI, IPSec
MulticastIGMPv2, v3, RFP, PIM (Dense, Sparse, Sparse-Dense), Static RP, Auto-RP
Network SecurityAAA, ASDM, Management Plane protection, ACL (Standard, Extended, Time), VACL, iACL, Storm control, Private VLAN, Port-security, uRPF, Static/Dynamic NAT, PAT
QoSCoS and DSCP Mappings, NBAR, Policing, Shaping, RED, WRED, Jitter, MOS, RTT, IPSLA
Network/Monitoring ServicesNTP, Netflow, SNMP, EEM, VTY, Telnet, SSH, FTP, TFTP, TCL, Python, Ansible, Git, YAML, APIs

Platform Experience

VendorHardware
CiscoCatalyst 2950, 2960, 3550,3560,3750,4500,5500, 6500 (7600),9200,9300, 9500
Metro me3750, me3600, me3800, me6500
Nexus N3K, N5K, N7K, N9K
NCS 520,540
ASR 920, 1000, 9000
VXR 7200
ISR 800, 1800, 1900, 2900, 3800, 3900, 4300, 4400, 8000v
ASA 5500, 1000
Meraki MS120, MS125, MS210, MS225, MS250, MS350, MS410, MX85, MX105, MX250
JuniperEX 3330, MX80, MX204, SRX320, SRX340, SRX380
OtherArbor
Dell N2024, S4048
Barracuda F80B, F180B, F280C, F380B
VyOS, PFSense, Fortinet, Palo Alto, Aruba, Ubiquiti, Versa
Monitoring/
Management
SNMPc, Observium, LibreNMS, Nagios, Cacti, Netbox

Operating Systems

RoutingIOS, IOS-XE, IOS-XR, NX-OS, Junos, OS9, OS10
ServerLinux Ubuntu/Mint, Windows

Non-Technical skills

Technical LiaisonI am able to bridge the gap between technical leadership and executive management by presenting complex technologies in a more comprehensible form enabling management to make informed choices.
Team ManagementI have a proven record of successful team management, with low attrition, focusing on team cohesion, well-being, development, and effectiveness.

Employment History

Synthomer – Global Network Manager (March 2024 – Present)
Synthomer is a Global UK-based speciality chemicals manufacturer focused on innovation and sustainability, operating globally and listed on the London Stock Exchange.

As Global Network Manager I am responsible to leading a team of four network engineers. My responsibly is split 50/50 between hand-on configuration and team management.

Area of responsibility include:

Maintenance and operation of a Versa Global SD-WAN network operation spanning 50 sites.
Management of onsite switching and WiFi infrastructure
Infrastructure security management
Monitoring, Altering, and Capacity management
Change and configuration management
Security advisory to CISO
Future network strategy (SSE/SASE), AWS Network Migration
Hardware procurement

Infrastructure including Aruba Switches, Cisco Switches, Palo Alto firewalls, Versa SD-WAN, Libre-NMS, PRTG, Solarwinds, Ubiquiti WiFi, Cisco CW9800 WiFi etc
Concentrix+Webhelp – Network Manager (August 2023 – March 2024)
Concentrix+Webhelp is a global ten-billion-dollar organisation specialising in customer engagement and business performance. I am currently working as the Network Manager for the UK, South Africa, and India regions.

My responsibilities include the following:

In-depth, hands-on, configuration and operational support of large-scale complex international networks supporting 50,000+ staff
Management and leadership of nine network and security experts
Management and coordination of additional external technical support
Technical liaison with Network Architecture heads and IT steering group
Monitoring and capacity planning and licensing authority
Network development advisory
Network Incident and Alert resolution
Internal Subject Matter Expert (SME) support

Infrastructure including Cisco ASR 1K, 4K, 920, 9K, ASA 5K, FTD, Nexus N3K, N5K, N7K, N9K, Catalyst 2960, 3560, 6500, 7600, 9200, 9300, 9500, Dell N2024, S4048, Cisco Umbrella, Cisco Prime, Cisco DNA/Catalyst Centre, Juniper EX3300, EX4500, PRTG, Solarwinds, Observium, Nagios, VyOS, PFSense, FS.com DWDM
iomart – Network Manager (July 2020 – July 2023)
Iomart is a UK-based cloud computing and managed services provider, offering cloud hosting, data security, and digital transformation solutions. Serving businesses globally, it specializes in secure, scalable, and resilient IT infrastructure. At iomart I lead the iomart global network team.

My responsibilities included the following:

Administrative and technical management of the Network Team
Analytical network reporting
Network architecture design
Network security and DDoS protection
Large customer network support
Incident resolution
Full management and monitoring of national and international networks
Transit planning and maintenance
Alert resolution
Internal Subject Matter Expert (SME) support
RIPE management

Infrastructure including Cisco ASR 1K, 920, 9K, ASA 5K, ACI, Nexus N3K, N5K, N7K, N9K, Catalyst 2960, 3560, 6500, 7600, 9200, 9300, 9500, ASA 5K, Dell N2024, S4048, Juniper MX80, MX204, SRX320, SRX340, SRX380, Barracuda F80B, F180B, F280C, F380B, Arbor sightline, Observium, Nagios, VyOS, PFSense, FS.com DWDM
Ping Networks / LDeX Connect Ltd CTO (April 2010 – July 2020)
I started an ISP called Ping Networks in 2010 providing Internet and connectivity solutions. In December 2013 I joined forces with the London Data Exchange (LDeX) group and rebranded as LDeX Connect. LDeX Connect Ltd was recognised as one of the fastest growing companies in the Deloitte top 50 for two years running.

During this time I grew the company to over 100 customers providing and supporting a number of different technologies including:

Full data centre WAN (over 6 data centres)
IP Transit and BGP connectivity
MPLS layer 2 and 3 services
Managed Firewall
RIPE management
DWDM wave solutions
Broadband (LNS) and Ethernet connectivity
SD-WAN, DM-VPN
Multicast Streaming
Full 3rd party ISP management and support
Consultancy
Hardware procurement

The LDeX group was sold to iomart in July 2020.

Infrastructure included Cisco ASR 1K, 9K, ASA 5K, Nexus N3K, N5K, Catalyst 2960, 3560, 4500, 6500, 7600, ASA 5K,ISR 800, 1800, 1900, 2600, 2800, 2900, 3800, 3900, Metro me-3750, me-6500, me-3600, me-3800, VXR 7200, Juniper EX3300, Castlerock SNMPc, Cacti
Adapt (now Rackspace) – Lead Network Architect (May 2004 – March 2010)
At Adapt I was responsible for growing the company’s network during a period of rapid expansion (Adapt was the only UK master reseller for Level(3) transit). Key responsibilities included:

Lead a team of three Network Architects, responsibilities including:

Colo IP Transit and BGP connectivity (multiple data centres)
MPLS layer 2 and 3 services
Managed Firewall
RIPE management
DWDM wave solutions (Transmode)
Broadband and Ethernet connectivity

Infrastructure included Cisco ASA 5K, Catalyst 2950,2960, 3560, 4500, 6500, 7600, ASA 5K, ISR 800, 1800, 1900, 2500, 2600, 2800, 2900, 3800, 3900, Metro me-3750, me-6500, VXR 7200, Castlerock SNMPc, MTRG
BBC Worldwide – Infrastructure Project Manager (March 1999 – May 2004)
I was headhunted to join the BBC to project manage a full campus LAN replacement project for the main BBC Worldwide campus. This followed the successful delivery of a similar project for Hitachi Capital.

Following this I was assigned a number of high-profile projects:

Replacement LAN Project
Full Project Management responsibility for the design and implementation of a £500,000 fully switched replacement Cisco LAN

IPTV Project (multicast IPTV)
Project managed in consultation with Cisco technical resources.
Used to broadcast Greg Dyke’s quarterly message to staff

BBC Audiobooks Acquisition Project
Full project management responsibility
Strategically important project for BBC Worldwide
Designed interim and final network solutions

BBC Worldwide Japan Acquisition Project
Full project management responsibility
Oversaw implementation of new LAN and WAN infrastructure

BBC Worldwide Global Dynamic Routing Protocol Project
Global network routing upgrade for strategic BBC Worldwide office
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Author: Simon Chamberlain

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