HHG consultants are a group of very senior consultants and engineers. We work as part of our clients' teams to complete the analyses, justifications, designs, integrations and transitions needed for successful large-scale implementation.
Unlike many competitors, we add just enough of the right people to help our clients' people get the job done. When necessary, HHG supplements our project teams with third-party experts to add specialist skills.
Scroll down for a summary of our current consultants' experience–more detailed biographies are available on request.
Rich Duran – Principal Consultant
With more than 20 years of software design and development experience, Rich is one of the world's leading WSRR implementers, as well as the creator of custom WSRR, WESB, WPS and WMB hypervisor editions for dispensing by IBM Workload Deployer. Rich is also certified for WebSphere Integration Developer, DataPower, and Tivoli Security.
Recent HHG Engagements
- Principal Consultant on the HHG private-cloud computing team, responsible for IBM Workload Deployer enterprise deployments on VMware, pSeries and zVM platforms, leveraging various Linux & IBM Products. A continuous participant in the IBM Labs IWD and IBM PureApplication systems Early Design, Early Access and beta programs.
- Principal Consultant for multiple customizations and integrations of WSRR for large health care and financial customers, including advanced policy integration with DataPower. A continuous participant in the IBM Hursley Lab's WSRR Early Design, Early Access and beta programs.
- Principal Consultant for WebSphere Integration Developer application development teams specializing in rules-driven business processes.
Prior Professional Experience
- Professional Services Consultant, HedgeStreet® Incorporated, supporting third-party integrations with major financial institutions and clearinghouse, using Oracle stored procedures and WebSphere MQ.
- Coordinated activities among cross-functional groups, including IT, customer support, operations and engineering, through all project phases including development, testing, and production; managed offshore development team.
- Interpreted project requirements and turned them into functional specifications. Gathered business requirements for CRM application and implemented them using Salesforce. Engineering Manager, Vitria Technology Inc.
- Member of Platform Engineering group, technical lead and manager for Vitria's EDI Module product (EDI to XML transformation and trading partner management).
- Staff Software Engineer: Ported EDI Module to Vitria's J2EE architecture, using WebSphere 6.1 for testing.
- Senior Software Engineer, Cross Access Corporation
- Technical lead for the ODBC Driver development team: a relational to non-relational SQL engine allowing Windows and Unix clients to access legacy mainframe data (IMS, VSAM) using dynamic SQL.
- Ported Cross Access server from MVS to AIX. Designed and developed low level API's to provide platform independence.
- Software Engineer, Aion Corporation (artificial intelligence software company)
Julian Foster – Consultant
Julian has more than 15 years' experience in Windows/Unix/Linux System Administration, Monitoring, Virtualization, Cloud construction, and Agile development with IBM and WebSphere SOA products.
Recent HHG Engagements
- Training and consulting to multiple early adopters of the IBM PureApplication systems. Co-author of the IBM Redbook on PureApplication systems patterns as well as author of PureApplication System advanced training courses.
- Senior Technical Integration Lead on HHG team responsible for cloud and virtualization across the entire IBM Software Group portfolio pSeries, x86, zSeries and hybrid clouds.
- Implemented a complex provision process crossing zVM, zOS and zLinux for the full provisioning of WebSphere Process Server Gold Topologies/HVE, WebSphere Application Server/HVE, and DB2 on zOS with full middleware, database and application provisioning, by combining IBM Workload Deployer and Rational Build Forge with RAFW.
IBM experience
- Team Lead/Senior System Administrator at IBM WebSphere® Development and Test Labs
- Responsible for managing and providing on-demand access for 3000 cores across 5 geographic locations supporting 400 software engineers
- Deployed end-to-end provisioning and monitoring to enable infrastructure to support native clouds and provide platform/software as a service
- Deployed IT solution providing shared access to software engineers and automated solutions to environments supporting 12 operating systems
- Team Lead, managing and providing on-demand access for 3000 cores across 5 geographic locations supporting 400 software engineers
- WebSphere Application Server and J2EE quality assurance and problem determination expert
- Deployed private cloud supporting WebSphere Application Server Agile Development, resulting in $170,000 in direct hardware savings, and reducing provisioning time to meaningful J2EE topologies from 1 week to 30 minutes
Virtualization and Cloud Experience
- Virtualization Technologies - Installation, configuration, deployment, and Administration of Xen (on RHEL and SuSE), Solaris Containers and Zones on SPARC and x86, LDOMs on Solaris SPARC, PowerVM (Power 4-7, pSeries), ESX/ESXi (VMware), Microsoft Virtual Server/Hyper-V, and Cloud creation.
- IBM Workload Deployer (aka WebSphere Cloudburst Appliance) - Installation and configuration of underlying infrastructure to build private cloud and construction of patterns across pSeries and ESX
System Administration
- IBM Tivoli Monitoring 6.1.1 and 6.2.2 - 2 years' experience configuring, administrating and creating Common Data Views
- IBM Tivoli Provisioning Manager 7.x - 2 years' experience configuring and administrating, including OS Provisioning, image creation and DB2 configuration
- Cisco Systems - Installation and set-up of Cisco routers and switches; also the configuration and application of Access Control Lists
- Networks - LAN/WAN configuration and designs; including JVM co-processors (AZUL) and XML co-processors (DataPower)
- Microsoft Windows 98/NT/2000/XP - installation procedures and hardware requirements - 5 years' experience with user interface and administrative control panels, problem determination and resolution, including Active Directory
- Linux/UNIX - 5 years' experience managing 3000 cores and maintaining a 98% security compliance rating, also configuring and administrating NIM, JumpStart, Ignite, and KickStart network install servers
- Native OS shell scripting - BASH/Bourne/Korn and Perl/Java/Python
Enterprise Application
- WebSphere Application Server Problem Determination Expert - 5 years' experience deploying, executing QA and problem diagnosis for enterprise topologies
- SQL - Installation and configuration of a SQL databases
- HTML/XML - HTML and Web page development, administration of web servers
- JAVA - 2 years' experience problem determination enterprise J2EE Applications
Jamie Witt – Principal Consultant
With more than 15 years of professional experience (including 13 years at IBM, 8 in the WebSphere® Development and Test Labs), Jamie is expert in Windows/Unix/Linux System Administration, Monitoring, Virtualization, Cloud construction, and Agile development with IBM and IBM WebSphere SOA products.
Recent HHG Engagements
- For several major financial institutions Jamie has implemented complex IBM WebSphere BPM and IBM WebSphere WODM operational topologies
- Jamie is responsible for HHG's IBM API Management infrastructure training and implementation program as well as HHG similar programs for IBM Worklight
- As Technical Integration Lead for a major financial institution client, delivered HHG's WebSphere Application Server Administrative Excellence program to implement best practices across the entire WAS administrative group.
- For major financial institution's first WebSphere Application Server implementation: provided design, implementation, training, and documentation for high-availability active-active configuration.
- For a global manufacturer client, provided the infrastructure implementation for WebSphere enterprise service bus, combined with WebSphere Service Registry and Repository.
- For a major healthcare provider, provided right integration between the IBM Workload Deployer and the pre-existing Tivoli infrastructure.
- For a major financial institution client, delivered Proof-of-Concept mobile access integration to the WebSphere infrastructure.
Professional Experience
IBM WebSphere Development and Test Labs, Durham, NC- As System Administrator/Application Developer: Planned, ordered and set up hardware. Managed ~700 Operating Systems, including Windows, Linux, H_UX, Solaris and AIX. Maintained and set up environments for WebSphere Cloudburst Appliance (aka WebSphere Workload Deployer) testing. Developed J2EE web application to facilitate users finding and checking out machines for development and testing.
- As Automation Developer: Developed automated tests using IBM-developed open-source tools: STAF and STAX. Assisted others with developing tests. Technical lead for test automation development team. Developed testing using BASH shell for Telco testing. Developed scripts to automate WebSphere applications using JACL and Jython.
- As WebSphere Applications Server Tester: Executed manual tests. Developed test applications in Java. Developed scripts to automate test setup using JACL.
- As Mainframe Host Access Software Tester: Executed manual tests, developed code to test product APIs (tests ran partially automated), maintained department Unix systems, developed tool to analyze defect processing times using Perl.
Education
- BS, Computer Science, West Virginia University Institute of Technology
Deborah Zippel – Lead WebSphere Analyst and Business Process Consultant
Deb specializes in Business Process modeling, State and Rules elaboration, SOA Governance and Technical process design and documentation, as well as training technical staff in support processes such as Governance. Her 10+ years in consulting to non-profits and public health organizations in database design, development and implementation as well as in data analysis and presentation has honed her skills in working with non-technical people as well as technologists.
Recent HHG Engagements
- Developed the WSRR Step-by-Step user manuals and training materials for multiple HHG clients in healthcare and financial services.
- Produced on-line videos for use as client introduction to new applications, and for training clients in HHG customizations of IBM products.
- Created for multiple clients, as-is and to-be process models in WebSphere Business Process Modeler Advanced, suitable for import into WebSphere Integration Developer.
- Constructed custom databases as prototypes of applications with business role elaborations to be developed with WebSphere Integration Developer.
Prior Professional Experience
- 13+ years experience consulting to non-profits and public health organizations in database design, development, implementation, data analysis and presentations for clients including:
- Area Agency on Aging for Napa/Solano Counties
- Berkeley Systems
- California Department of Public Health
- Family and Children's Trust of Contra Costa County
- First 5 Marin
- NexStep Telecommunications, Inc.
- Population Leadership Program
- Public Health Institute
- Youth Alive!
- Developed and installed computerized media tracking system for a media buying company
- Installed and trained users on computerized accounting/inventory management system for publishing company
Professional Certifications
- WebSphere Business Process Modeler Advanced
- WebSphere Portal Technical Sales
- IBM Maximo Asset Management Technical Sales
- InfoSphere Warehouse C-Class Technical Sales
- IBM Information Management Information Server Technical Sales
- IBM Certified Solution Designer – IBM Rational Unified Process V7.0
Education
- MA Telecommunications, University of Oregon
- BA Humanities, University of South Florida