John Ricklefs

Network Engineer

Owns configuration, hardware checks, and connectivity validation from first power-on through first-customer activation; directs field installation work and advises cooperative operations teams. Drives fast resolution of critical network escalations.

• Equipment Commissioning — Prepared Calix and Juniper configurations before installation and directed CDFP cabling corrections and faulty-card replacements at substation huts and mobile cabinets, reducing on-site troubleshooting time by 20% during deployments in harsh weather.
• Network Migration and Cutover — Owned preparation, simultaneous cutover, and validation of two Adtran-to-Calix E9 optical line terminal migrations serving approximately 300 subscribers; executed 700+ configuration lines in 2.5 hours and verified service continuity through live traffic monitoring.
• Change Execution and Validation — Completed 100+ overnight changes using pre-checks, post-checks, and rollback procedures; at least 98% completed without rollback, with the two reversals caused by vendor issues.
• Data Center Hardware Maintenance — Led six Juniper MX480 hardware replacement and software upgrade events at Netrality 1102 Grand; completed five within approved windows and managed a vendor-related rollback during the remaining event.
• Multi-Vendor Systems Support — Independently supports 52 BlueCat servers, 100+ Juniper edge routers, and 500+ Calix OLTs, diagnosing hardware and configuration faults directly and engaging vendors for confirmed software bugs.
• Fixed Wireless Commissioning — Commissioned approximately 10 initial Tarana 6 GHz base-node and remote-node implementations, checking signal strength, throughput, and latency for deployment validation and FCC testing preparation on BEAD-funded projects; trained two field agents to continue commissioning.
• Technical Training — Mentored approximately 12 Tier I/Tier II staff to handle routine and overnight tasks independently, reducing direct engineer involvement in the covered work by 20%.
• Operational Runbooks — Wrote 20+ configuration and troubleshooting procedures for engineers, field agents, and NOC personnel, reducing time needed to learn unfamiliar platforms by 25%.

Network Engineer

Telecommunications operations across an international IP core network. Directed on-site technicians worldwide from corporate headquarters and made diagnostic and recovery decisions across Cisco CRS, GSR 12K, ASR 9K, Juniper MX480/MX960, and Ciena aggregation infrastructure.

• Overnight Maintenance — Handled 200+ maintenance events in a typical month and up to 10 per night, maintaining sole-operator shift coverage during staffing reductions without major execution errors.
• Hardware and Fiber Repair — Directed 5,000+ hardware and fiber repair cases, with cumulative hardware replacement costs exceeding $1 billion; isolated fiber faults through segment testing and error counters, then directed cleaning, optic replacement, and component repairs to restore service.
• Software Upgrades — Performed 100+ upgrades using planned pre-checks, implementation steps, and post-change verification, confirming equipment operation after software changes with infrequent rollbacks.
• Hardware Replacement and Recovery — Directed replacement of incompatible or dead-on-arrival cards using site spares; kept routers operating on one routing engine overnight when parts were unavailable, completing repairs after delivery.
• IP and Transport Diagnostics — Distinguished IP faults from transport failures using interface errors, flapping, and fault-onset timing; directed on-site diagnostics and engaged transport teams several times weekly to establish root cause.
• Vendor Escalations and RMAs — Managed 10–15 vendor cases monthly, primarily return merchandise authorizations, providing diagnostic logs and evidence of failure to support replacement approval and repair coordination.
• Engineer Training — Trained wireless engineers and managed-services staff to perform maintenance, troubleshooting, and field repair coordination independently; multi-backplane Cisco CRS work remained a specialist responsibility.

Technician II

• Infrastructure Troubleshooting — Investigated server, hardware, PBX, and call-management alarms; coordinated outages and change control across technical departments, configured Juniper MX480 routers for a public safety datalink platform, and maintained troubleshooting procedures.

Service Assurance

• Incident Triage and Outage Coordination — Assessed server, network, database, call-center, and WILY alarms; created HP OpenView and BlueZone tickets, engaged repair teams by severity, and coordinated outage bridges while troubleshooting VPN, software, and hardware failures.
• Automated Service Monitoring — Ran and updated iMacros and DéjàClick scripts to check website functionality and identify service failures for investigation.

Data Center Technician

• Linux Server Installation and Diagnostics — Managed dedicated hosting server installations, including racking and Linux provisioning; performed BIOS upgrades, RAID controller troubleshooting, and hardware testing to identify failed components for RMA processing.