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Derek Sparks

Cloud Infrastructure Engineer
Services Engineering · Customer Support · SRE / DevOps
drsparks@gmail.com linkedin.com/in/derekrsparks Greater Seattle, WA

Results-driven Azure support professional with a demonstrated history in the computer software industry. Fifteen years of experience contributing to engineering teams responsible for delivering highly available cloud services to enterprise and government clients. Skilled in project management, problem-solving, and exceptional customer support. Well-versed in IT Service Management and proficient in driving cultural change toward Site Reliability Engineering and DevOps methodologies for streamlined operations — with a consistent "customer first" approach for some of the world's most prominent brands.

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Skills

Azure Administration Microsoft Entra ARM / BICEP Scripting Terraform Run State Management PowerShell / AZ CLI Docker / Docker Swarm Linux (Ubuntu / Alma / Debian) Microsoft SFI Compliance Bash Scripting SRE / DevOps
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Career Overview

MICROSOFT · Redmond, WA

Service Engineer — Azure Quantum Elements Platform (Contracted)

Feb 2024 – Jul 2025
  • Designed and deployed scalable High-Performance Computing (HPC) infrastructure to support computational chemistry and materials science workloads using ARM/BICEP and Terraform.
  • Delivered on-call incident response with an average of under one critical incident per month, minimizing service disruptions.
  • Used native Azure tooling for logging and monitoring of HPC clusters.
  • Translated evolving system requirements into technical specifications, driving enhancements aligned with scientific computing demands.
  • Developed and maintained custom code and applications, ensuring compliance with modern development practices and client-specific configurations.
  • Partnered with cross-functional teams to refine software solutions and optimize overall HPC performance.
MICROSOFT · Redmond, WA

Service Engineer — Services, Engineering & Labs (Office Engineering)

Feb 2022 – May 2023
  • Managed 300+ Azure subscriptions and associated resources, providing tier 3 & 4 support to Office developers across the Microsoft Office build ecosystem.
  • Ensured secure integration of Azure resources into the Office build system, implementing Protect the Admin and Safe Deployment procedures.
  • Maintained an accurate resource inventory and executed right-sizing strategies, achieving annual cost savings of up to $57K.
  • Designed and deployed reusable BICEP/ARM templates for rapid provisioning of regional Azure DevOps proxy clusters.
  • Implemented Privileged Identity Management (PIM) and Azure Entitlement Management policies to safeguard Office Engineering environments.
  • Built comprehensive monitoring infrastructure for Azure DevOps proxy clusters and automated an internal security monitoring system using PowerShell.
  • Migrated on-premises workloads to Azure, enhancing availability, scalability, and maintainability.
MICROSOFT · Redmond, WA

Software Engineer — Microsoft Project Online

Mar 2019 – Feb 2022
  • Leveraged operations expertise while expanding proficiency in C# to contribute to Microsoft Project development.
  • Diagnosed and resolved software bugs and implemented new features to enhance user functionality and platform stability.
  • Conducted large-scale pre-production testing of the Modern Project UI, identifying browser rendering issues early and saving significant cost and support time.
  • Redesigned monitoring systems across global service clusters, improving accuracy and reducing false positives.
  • Served in the Project Online on-call rotation as the designated escalation point for live-site incidents across Project Online and Project Web Access.
  • Supported code deployment via Azure DevOps across test, pre-production, and production environments.
MICROSOFT · Redmond, WA

Service Engineer — Office 365 Enterprise Cloud Identity & Synchronization

Apr 2015 – Feb 2019
  • Supported enterprise-scale cloud identity and authentication systems for Office 365, specializing in onboarding and migrating large enterprise customers to Microsoft Cloud.
  • Maintained 99.95% availability across identity services through proactive monitoring, automated remediation, and comprehensive on-call rotations.
  • Led a cross-team initiative as Project Manager to achieve feature parity in Office 365 government tenants, delivering the secure access workstation client as the first milestone.
  • Served as primary Tier 3 engineer for complex identity, synchronization, and provisioning issues, including Forefront Identity Manager and Azure AD Connect.
  • Designed and maintained advanced monitoring solutions for reliability and performance of Office 365 identity services.
  • Used PowerShell to administer third-party integrations, including BlackBerry Enterprise Server environments.
MICROSOFT · Redmond, WA

Service Engineer Lead — Microsoft Exchange Dedicated Cloud (Contracted)

Jun 2010 – Apr 2015
  • Managed the Exchange Run State Change Team of 8, overseeing critical in-production updates — service packs, patches, and configuration changes for Exchange 2007/2010, BlackBerry Enterprise Server, and customer Active Directory/DNS environments.
  • Contributed to the design, testing, implementation, and monitoring of mobile communications services for 50+ Microsoft Premier O365 customers, including U.S. government cloud accounts — impacting nearly 200,000 users across 600+ servers.
  • Developed and maintained PowerShell scripts for Exchange Online Enterprise, automating recovery and alerting processes.
  • Applied robust testing methodologies to ensure patches and configuration changes did not disrupt production, maintaining 99.95%+ SLA uptime.
  • Created and maintained comprehensive documentation supporting Level 3 tech support and change management teams.
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Education & Credentials

Education

B.S., Information TechnologyUniversity of Phoenix · 2008

Certifications

Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104)Renewal in process
Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900)
PythonCoding Dojo · Jun 2021
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Military Service

UNITED STATES NAVY

Petty Officer First Class (E-6)

Oct 1987 – Apr 2002 · 14+ years

Completed 14+ years of exemplary service, reaching paygrade E-6 and serving in various leadership and training roles. Deployed in support of Operation Desert Shield/Storm and Operation Enduring Freedom.