THE THROUGHLINE
Twenty years of enterprise security architecture. A Coast Guard captain’s license, built mile by mile. A wake surfing habit that keeps humbling me in the best way. Different arenas, same discipline: show up precisely, let the hard parts teach you something, and trust that competence is earned one rep at a time, not claimed.
“Falling equals learning.”
— Ashley Inloes, my wake surfing coach
It’s a good rule for architecture reviews too.
THE WORK
Two Decades in Enterprise Security Architecture
Pre-sales engineering, Zero Trust transformation, and large-scale federal and commercial network modernization.
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Solutions Engineer
Pre-sales architecture across Zero Trust, SASE, and AI security for enterprise accounts spanning healthcare, manufacturing, and hospitality. Partner to customers modernizing identity, access, and AI governance on a single control plane.
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Cybersecurity Technical Solutions Architect
Senior pre-sales lead across NGFW, Duo, ISE, and Secure Access. Architected and scaled one customer’s security infrastructure to sustain 6 million connections per second, with headroom to 16 million, presenting outcomes directly to CTO and CISO leadership.
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Systems Architect
Technical lead for a $50 million national network modernization initiative spanning ten regions. Recognized for mission-critical support during Hurricane Harvey response operations.
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Technical Project Systems Engineer
Validated large-scale service provider architectures inside a 185-rack lab environment with a $1.2 million annual budget.
Speaking: Cisco Live (US & Europe) · DEF CON
LEARNING THE WATER
Offshore Development, Seamanship, Passagemaking
Licensed U.S. Coast Guard captain, currently advancing through Celestial and Oceans Navigation toward the 200-ton level. I approach this the same way I approach a complex architecture: seriously, with humility, and willing to be a beginner in public.
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Sea time
Caribbean island chain aboard Leopard 55 Power Catamarans. Passages, watchstanding rhythms, changing weather, anchorage management.
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Hands-on
Troubleshooting electrical faults, charging systems, pumps, plumbing, and onboard controls.
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Ongoing
Chartwork, dead reckoning, tides and currents, voyage planning.
The goal isn’t a title. It’s being useful offshore first, and accomplished second.
FALLING EQUALS LEARNING
Competitive Wake Surfing
I picked up wake surfing in 2020, and it has turned into one of my favorite forms of joy, exercise, and continuous learning, in that order. For the last two to three years I’ve trained under Ashley Inloes, widely regarded as one of the top competitive female skim riders in the world. The progress has been real, and competing myself is now something I’m actually considering, not just dreaming about.
From the outside, wake surfing looks easy. It isn’t. It rewards precision the same way a production architecture does: the margin for error is small, and the water does not care how confident you feel.
Ashley trains me in Florida. The current goal is getting her out to Smith Mountain Lake to surf with my family once the water’s back up for the season.
My boat: a Supra SL450, built for exactly this.
