How long have you worked for Brightspot? What brought you here?
I’ve been with Brightspot since 2022. After grad school, I was exploring opportunities at several companies, and Brightspot was one of the first to treat me like a real candidate rather than just another applicant in a system. It felt like I was talking to real people. I also appreciated how seriously Brightspot takes its mission and commitment to giving back to the community. That mattered more to me than joining one of the big “FAANG” companies.
How did you first find yourself drawn to the world of infrastructure and DevOps?
My background is in theoretical computer science, and in today’s job market, infrastructure and DevOps are about as close to the foundational, under-the-hood side of technology as you can get outside of compiler engineering. We still maintain an in-house compiler for Gyro, so I get some hands-on time with it, although we’re gradually moving away from it. DevOps has been a great way for me to stay connected to how computers actually work at a low level.
Can you tell me more about your role as Senior DevOps Engineer? What is a typical day like for you?
It’s a slightly unconventional Senior DevOps role because I manage three direct reports, soon to be four, with different skill sets and specialties. A typical day might include production deployments, building new critical infrastructure or mentoring my team. It really varies.
What do you enjoy most about your role? What do you find most challenging?
Honestly, the same thing: the variety. There’s always a new problem to solve, which keeps the work interesting, but it also means it never really stops.
Is there a specific project or challenge from your time at Brightspot that you learned a lot from or that really helped you grow?
Our multi-region migrations, especially the one we’re working on now. It’s probably the biggest challenge I’ve faced, not just at Brightspot but in my career. It’s pushed me to strengthen my interpersonal skills as much as my technical ones because I’m handling customer requests on the fly while developing technical solutions just as quickly.
If you could pick another role to try within Brightspot for one week, which would it be and why?
I’d pick Lee Teague’s, our Chief Technology Officer. I think his day-to-day is probably just as chaotic as mine, but from the software side instead of infrastructure. My background is actually in software, so I’ve always been a little envious of our software engineers. I’d love to see how they experience Brightspot from that side of the fence.
Besides the people, what is your favorite part about working at Brightspot?
The scrappiness. Whenever a big issue comes up, everyone rallies around it. No matter what we’re facing, I feel like we always bounce back as a company.
What are your favorite activities or hobbies outside of work?
Hiking, biking and video games, although becoming a new dad has cut back on the gaming lately. I’m hoping to get back to it soon.
Congratulations on becoming a dad recently! What has been the most surprising part of fatherhood so far?
Honestly, either how much a baby’s stomach can hold or how little sleep I can function on. Between being on call and taking care of the baby while on call, I’ve had weeks where I got maybe 10 hours of sleep total and still made it through. I’m still kind of impressed by that.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I’ve traveled quite a bit already, but if I had to choose somewhere new, it would be Japan. My dad used to travel there when I was a kid and always brought back little souvenirs. Ever since then, I’ve wanted to see it for myself.
