Bert Smith

Background

About Bert Smith

Servant leader committed to driving a technology vision for IT transformation. Deliver IT innovation through strong collaboration with stakeholders to anticipate business and customer needs. Provide a forward-thinking strategy to reduce cost, increase revenue, and improve value to customers by finding hidden organizational assets and overlooked opportunities. Build and develop global, adaptable, high-performing teams. Partner with C-suite, senior leadership, and staff across business and technology to ensure alignment with short-term and long-term goals. Expertise in software engineering, cloud architecture, security/compliance, distributed architecture, automation, and AI/ML- Whether it’s sailing the Northwest to Alaska, saddling up the Harley for a trip over the Continental Divide, or one of the many trips to Haiti, I have never backed down from a challenge. From the earliest days of my recollection, I have been one to challenge the status quo, ask the question “why”, dig a little deeper and truly understand. I believe it has been this passion for understanding that led me to my career in computer science and has continued to keep my mind fresh with the endless possibilities promised by Moore’s Law. Spending most of my youth on the family farm instilled in me a work ethic that persists to this day. Lessons from the farm, such as self-reliance and perseverance, have significant implications on life and our ability to survive. Additionally, I've learned through success and failure that building a team around you will exponentially increase one’s productivity and impact. Over an extensive career in CS, the one thing I have learned is that change is the only constant. Human nature is to resist it, but those who embrace it are the Henry Ford, the Wright Brothers, the Jeff Bezos and, love him or hate him, the Elon Musk of tomorrow. I’ve spent the last 15 years honing my craft as a visionary leader while also focusing on continuous improvement. In my experience, intentional personal growth is among the most effective ways to cultivate an authentic culture in the workplace. My own growth can then support the improvement of the teams I build and manage. My leadership style is simple: Challenge, inspire, mentor, reward. Proficiencies: Leadership, Strategy, Operations, Agile, AWS Solutions Architect, Cloud Infrastructure, Containerization, Serverless, SRE, DevOps/DevSecOps, Software Development, SDLC, IoT, AI/ML, Manufacturing, FinTech, Consulting, Accounting, Security, Compliance, Certified Speaker (AWS)