Sr. Systems Engineer, Reflexion Networks
Mike Dellacava didn't choose IT as a career. "It chose me," he believes. "I was formed along the way, as I learned to do what needed to be done. But I've been happy doing the work."
Dellacava's father, a systems enterprise administrator and project manager, introduced him to computers, starting with an old 386, an early desktop PC.
"I've been taking apart computers, building, breaking and fixing them since I was seven," says Dellacava, now 32. "When my father brought home the first 386, I took it apart down to the screws."
Growing up, Dellacava helped family and friends with their computer problems and upgrades, in addition to working on his own projects. Eventually, he became good enough to join his father's team at age 16, working as a web developer and IT support at CMGI, then an incubator of Internet companies.
"It was such a great opportunity," says Dellacava. "CMGI had 30 different Internet companies working inside their physical building—from an online stock trading company to a social messaging site." As a result, he was exposed to a wide variety of business models and IT set-ups and became skilled at learning new technologies fast.
He eventually left his father's team to strike out on his own—working for five different companies in six years, largely in web development and programing. "It was the dot-com era, and all the companies kept failing," explains Dellacava. "I should have been discouraged, but I was young and felt I'd always find another job, and I did."
For two years he worked for technology services company EveryNetwork Inc. in Waltham, Mass. There he was an IT consultant to more than 20 venture capital company clients. He joined hosted email provider Reflexion Networks, based in Woburn, Mass., in August 2010.
Education: Associate degree of science in audio engineering, New England Institute of Art, Brookline, Mass.; also attended computer science programs at Merrimack College, North Andover, Mass.; and Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston, Mass.
Certifications: Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP), Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Implementation/Administration, Dell EqualLogic PS SAN. "I do want to earn my MSCE and CCNA, and also CompTIA Security+, CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA A+ to validate that I do have that knowledge."
Tell us about your current job.
It's a great, hybrid job where I do a lot of things that interest me.
I work in a team of about a dozen brilliant people who have designed and developed a suite of email services that our clients use 24/7: Anti-spam, anti-virus, archiving and encryption. Basically, my job is to keep it running 24/7.
I am the liaison between all the different moving parts of the application and the team members that support each part. I'm involved whenever we need new servers built or when we have to shift our virtual server resources to eliminate bottlenecks. I do a lot of project planning—spec-ing out data centers, for example.
In addition, I handle our internal IT: Exchange administration, Active Directory, and desktop support to the 20 people in the company.
On a daily basis I'm identifying vulnerabilities and spam leakages and monitoring server and network health, and making changes to firewall sever patching, for example. We probably block 20 million pieces of spam a day.
Virtualization is probably my most frequently used skill, along with storage and systems building. My newer skills are focused more on networking: Firewalls, load balancers, switching. I'm now researching data replication — how to take a database and synchronize it off-site, real time at the kernel level.
For two years, I was one of the go-to-guys within the company. (My go-to guy is the original architect who designed our technology; he's still here.) But I can't do everything with the pace of business and technology these days. So I'm now working with a co-worker to share my responsibilities. We're also building a new monitoring suite that will make the entire company aware of the status of all our systems and networks.
Delegating is the biggest challenge for me because I've been so comfortable doing things on my own. But my co-workers are great. They want to help, and when we come together on a project, it's really done well and solid once it's complete.
What's the best part of your job?
Working with all the cutting edge technology. Being in a 24/7 shop, you have to employ the latest and greatest solutions out there. We're using stuff that didn't exist 10 years ago. I like the excitement of it.
What's the worst part of your job?
When things aren't working so well. When the network is up, it's great. But when it's down, it's huge. Luckily that doesn't happen that often. Also, when I'm not able to handle all the projects. I want to, but there's not enough time, so you have to pick and chose. But I wish I could do them all and control every piece of the puzzle.
How do you stay up-to-date with what's happening in IT?
Emails from vendors (Microsoft, Dell, HP). Word of mouth. I research the latest technologies for my job, but I'm also a hands-on gadget guy, so I'm reading Engadget, CNET, Ars Technica and Gizmodo.
What is your advice to people thinking about pursing a career in IT?
Don't be afraid of it. Get hands-on with it. Build a sandbox of equipment, break it, and fix it. Install software and figure how it works.
And always have a back-up plan. Technology is not perfect. The best thing you can do is to understand its limitations.
