DAVID C. FIELDS, M.S.

Professional Summary

Senior automation and infrastructure engineer with 35+ years of hands-on experience designing, securing, automating, modernizing, and supporting mission-critical technology environments across financial services, state government, federal/DoD, healthcare, critical infrastructure, consulting, and small-business organizations. Deep expertise in Python, Ansible/AWX, Terraform, Azure DevOps, Linux, cloud platforms, network automation, cybersecurity, virtualization, APIs, enterprise operations, and incident response. This combination of infrastructure automation, network engineering, cybersecurity, infrastructure as code, CI/CD, and platform operations provides strong alignment with modern DevSecOps engineering and architecture roles.

Current work includes hands-on IT consulting, infrastructure automation, cybersecurity, Linux and cloud systems, AI-enabled workflows, website and business-systems development, and development of CharterVantage, an AI-enabled multi-tenant SaaS platform for charter transportation operations. Current work also includes technology leadership and automation support for Lake Area Transport Services LLC dba Ohio Party Bus.

Professional Experience

• Provide hands-on IT consulting, infrastructure support, software development, systems engineering, cybersecurity, website development, and business-process automation for small businesses, individuals, and internally operated companies.
• Design, configure, maintain, and troubleshoot Windows, Linux, macOS, endpoint, network, cloud, SaaS, identity, backup, website, database, API, and business-application environments.
• Develop Python scripts, API integrations, and automated workflows for reporting, notifications, scheduling, customer communications, operational support, and system administration.
• Architect and develop CharterVantage, a multi-tenant SaaS charter-transportation operations platform covering requirements analysis, workflow design, database design, application architecture, integrations, testing, technical documentation, deployment planning, and AI-assisted features.
• Build and evaluate AI-enabled workflows for trip-data extraction, operational analysis, customer communications, dispatch readiness, follow-up, and administrative automation, using human approval gates for customer-facing and financial actions.
• Build and maintain Linux-based AI and automation lab environments using Ubuntu, Docker, Kubernetes, Git/GitHub, Telegram-integrated agents, laptops, Raspberry Pi systems, and local/cloud development tools.
• Diagnose and repair hardware, operating-system, driver, network, account-access, security, and performance problems; provide end-user support, technical assessments, documentation, recommendations, and training.

• Serve as technology and systems lead for Google Workspace, websites, booking and CRM systems, telematics, electronic logging, mobile devices, computers, user accounts, cybersecurity controls, backups, and cloud applications.
• Design and implement workflows using APIs, Python, Zapier, AI tools, email, forms, databases, and reporting platforms to improve sales, dispatch, pricing, payroll, customer communications, and fleet operations.
• Build policies, operating procedures, dashboards, pricing tools, customer-communication templates, and automation-assisted decision workflows.
• Translate real-world charter operations into product requirements, workflows, test cases, and validation scenarios for CharterVantage.
• Own and operate a seven-vehicle interstate charter transportation company with approximately 30 independent contractors and support personnel, while directing sales, dispatch, finance, compliance, safety, fleet planning, vendor management, and day-to-day operations.

• Designed and delivered enterprise-scale automation using Python, Ansible/AWX, Terraform, Git/GitHub, Azure DevOps, ServiceNow, PagerDuty, Rundeck, Docker, and Kubernetes.
• Built automated infrastructure health reporting and remediation workflows supporting executive visibility and 24x7 operations.
• Developed a Palo Alto firewall policy-analysis solution that examined hundreds of thousands of firewall objects and rules in minutes, produced structured reports for disaster-recovery and site-recovery readiness, and replaced extensive manual analysis.
• Automated incident and service workflows across network, security, remote-access, ATM, WAN-circuit, VoIP, proxy, power, and high-bandwidth events; automation accounted for more than half of incoming ticket volume and supported resolution of 10,000+ incidents and requests annually.
• Supported Cisco routers and switches, Nexus, ACI, Palo Alto and Cisco firewalls, F5 load balancers, branch networks, ATMs, remote access, WAN services, and critical financial-services infrastructure.
• Created Python-based data-analysis and decision-support pipelines for large firewall and network datasets in a regulated banking environment.

• Provided enterprise operations support for network, security, remote-access, branch, and ATM infrastructure.
• Developed Python automations supporting WAN circuits, VoIP, web proxies, vendor coordination, conference bridges, power events, and high-bandwidth incidents.
• Documented incidents, refined support procedures, and contributed to audit and regulatory readiness.

• Engineered and supported large-scale regulated LAN, WAN, MPLS, VPN, firewall, NAC, wireless, and multi-datacenter environments across the United States and Canada.
• Led Cisco ISE, Aruba ClearPass, and Forescout NAC evaluations; supported Aruba ClearPass rollout, 802.1X, compliance remediation, WAN migrations, and disaster-recovery testing.
• Worked extensively with Cisco IOS, NX-OS, Nexus, Catalyst, F5, SolarWinds, Wireshark, and related enterprise platforms.
• Served as subject-matter expert for a 500+ device Cisco enterprise supporting financial-services datacenters and call centers.

• Led a managed-services and engineering practice delivering SaaS, IaaS, PaaS, monitoring, hosting, virtualization, storage, networking, and systems-integration services.
• Designed high-availability VMware, storage, load-balancing, VPN, Windows, Linux, SaaS, and IaaS environments for healthcare, government, hospitality, energy, and commercial clients.
• Built centralized monitoring, alerting, help-desk, and managed-services operations; hired, developed, and mentored a team of more than 10 engineers and technicians.

Earlier Experience

• Plannet Group — Senior Network Architect
• Ohio Department of Job and Family Services — Unix Firewall Specialist
• C-TEC — Cisco Networking Academy CCNA and CompTIA Security+ Instructor
• The Longaberger Company — Senior Information Security Analyst
• Cisco Systems — Systems Engineer, Military and Enterprise Accounts
• Miami Jacobs College — Cisco CCNP and CCDP Instructor
• ACS Defense at Wright-Patterson AFB — Senior Systems Engineer; held Secret clearance
• Electronic Data Systems — Systems Administrator
• Freudenberg Spunweb Company — LAN Administrator

Education & Certifications

Master of Science, Information Security & Assurance — Norwich University

Bachelor of Science, Computer Information Systems — DeVry University

Current Certifications: CompTIA Security+ | ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity (CC) | ITIL v3 Foundation

Previously Held / Expired: VMware VCP5-DCV | CISSP | CISM | CISA | CCNP Enterprise | CCDP | CCSE | CCNA | CCDA

Professional References

Multiple professional references available upon request.

Current online version based on David-Fields-MASTER-Engineering-ATS-2026-v1.3-FINAL.