From Building PCs to Protecting a Pro Sports Team | Andrew Ferrall

Описание: Ever wonder what it takes to protect a professional sports team from cyber threats? Andrew Ferrall, IT Security Architect, shares his journey from building gaming PCs in middle school to defending one of the most recognized franchises in professional sports.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
How early tech curiosity turned into a cybersecurity career. Why starting in desktop support taught skills no classroom could. The real value of taking roles outside your comfort zone. When to make the leap from a comfortable position to something challenging.

KEY TOPICS COVERED:
Building computers in middle school sparked tech passion
College networking that led to first job opportunity
Starting in desktop support for a gaming company
Moving to MSP for broader experience
Transition to systems administration for a gaming company
Landing a security architect role in professional sports
Managing imposter syndrome throughout career growth
Building technical skills through diverse experiences
Using LinkedIn to tell your career story

TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction and Episode Overview
02:37 Andrew's Current Role as IT Security Architect
04:01 Growing Up and Early Interest in Technology
08:30 High School Computer Building and Gaming
12:45 College Experience and Discovering Cybersecurity
18:20 First Job After College: Shuffle Master Desktop Support
24:15 Learning Customer Service and Technical Skills
29:40 Drinking from the Firehose: First Real IT Job
35:50 Moving to MSP for Broader Experience
42:10 Career Moves and Building Diverse Experience
48:30 Landing the Sports Organization Security Architect Position
54:20 Day-to-Day Responsibilities in Sports Organization Security
01:00:15 Working with Teams and Subject Matter Experts
01:06:40 Importance of Networking and Community Involvement
01:12:25 LinkedIn Strategy for Career Development
01:18:50 Stepping Outside Comfort Zone for Growth
01:24:30 Taking Roles as Long-Term Career Investments
01:29:15 Dealing with Imposter Syndrome
01:32:00 Final Thoughts and Advice

ABOUT ANDREW FERRALL:
Andrew Ferrall serves as IT Security Architect for a professional sports organization, where he leads cybersecurity initiatives covering daily defense, compliance, and new technology evaluations. His career path took him from building computers as a teenager through desktop support at gaming company, managed service provider work, systems administration, and ultimately to protecting a professional sports franchise. He's active in the Las Vegas technology community and brings over a decade of diverse IT experience to his current role.

CONNECT WITH ANDREW:
LinkedIn:   / annie-walker-3838ab2b1  

ABOUT CAREER DOWNLOADS:
Career Downloads is a technology career podcast hosted by Manuel Martinez, exploring diverse career paths in the tech industry. Each episode features conversations with professionals sharing their journeys, lessons learned, and actionable advice for managing your own career more successfully.

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