A personal website for Chris Coulter, software engineer working at Microsoft.
Associate Consultant - Mar 2021-present
Developing and delivering Python-based tools directly to customers to transform subscriber data from legacy and competitor class-5 telecoms switches onto the Metaswitch platform. These tools broadly work by ingesting existing data in various formats, typically static database dumps or proprietary extracts, transforming the data in a format bespoke to both the switch being migrated from and the customer’s target deployment. Further duties include managing the project (typically as a smaller subset of a wider project), training the customer in use of the tools, and supporting the customer through migration execution.
Professional Services Engineer (Subscriber Migrations) - Dec 2019-Mar 2021
Same as above, under previous job title (prior to Microsoft’s acquisiton of Metaswitch)
Professional Services Manager - Apr 2018-Dec 2019
Managed a team of engineers (a combination of local FTEs, local and remote contractors), with the team responsible for delivering commissioning services to customers, bringing a wide range of products across a typical class-5 telecom stack into production service, including core voice switches, application servers, media gateways, and session border controllers. Personal responsibilities included workload assignment, accountability for delivering quality work on-time and on-budget, as well as being a backstop for any technical issues the team encountered. Further, I also had pastoral responsibilities as a first-line manager, such as promoting personal development, conducting performance reviews, and day-to-day administration.
Out of Hours Engineer - May 2017-Apr 2018
Executed and supported mission-critical infrastructure maintenance for telecommunications customers, including migrations from legacy hardware platforms onto current hardware, software upgrades on high-reliability systems, disaster recovery of failed hardware. With a strong focus on reliability in telecoms (99.999% uptime is typical), this meant that all work was carried out to a rigorous standard to ensure that there was minimal disruption to production systems.
Assistant (later Acting) Network Manager - 2013-2014 (placement), 2015-2017 (full-time)
Beginning as a university sandwich placement, continuing to full-time employment after graduation, responsible for local first-line IT support, as well as overseeing a number of IT modernisation projects, including a site-wide network overhaul
Queen’s University Belfast - BEng Computer Science (2:1 Honours) - 2012 - 2015
Microsoft - AZ-900 Azure Fundamentals - 2022