NOC to Network Engineering

Working in a NOC styled position is what I was used to for the previous 2 years, as well as 2 years on a help desk. A Network call/ticket comes in, I solve said issue either on the phone or shortly after, and it’s done. Quick and simple. This is not the case with Engineering.

I successfully obtained my first Network Engineering position in April 2015 and boy has it opened my mind a lot. I’ve learned that it’s okay to slow down and think about the design in more depth, possible risks and opportunities to make things better. I’ve already made (plenty) mistakes as a Network Engineer, but it’s not a bad thing. That’s the great thing about change; you’re always going to make new mistakes, but that in turn means you’re going to learn as well.

“Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment.”

I can still hear my high school teachers; “Tim works well, but he needs to spend more time with the details.” This is especially true with Engineering. Lots of sanity checks and thinking outside the box to ensure your design works the first go.

My first big change didn’t go entirely as planned, because I erred on the faster side on the quality vs speed scale.

Whilst this wasn’t the best situation, I’ve definitely come out of it with a much bigger understanding of the pieces of the puzzle which need to align.