In this blog series, we hear from Damien Collard all about his career journey at IPI.
When did you join IPI and what was your first position?
I joined IPI in July 2021 as a Support Technician.
Tell us why you joined IPI in the first place – what attracted you to the job, the company and the opportunity?
I joined IPI as the business were working very closely with Genesys technologies, and I could see trends shifting away from original PBX on-site which was predominantly my experience, so I took the opportunity to learn a newer version of Genesys.
What made you consider an internal move and how did you get there?
I have recently made the move from a Support Technician in our Support Team to an Associate Technical Architect in our Digital Experience Team.
I always like to stay on top of the trends in the industry and ensure I am staying ahead of the curve, in which I am witnessing a skills gap and large jump in cloud PBX. They are making this very user friendly in a single user interface. When I started, I had to build the systems with my two hands compared to what the cloud is doing for everyone now. So, I see a need to diversify my skills with SIP and Networking to stay always relevant.
What support have you had throughout your IPI journey?
Here at IPI, if you want to learn, there is ample opportunity to do so. In my previous role at IPI, I grasped every learning opportunity from Genesys to Fortinet and the firewalls. I also took a keen interest in SIP, as this was pretty much every connection we do as a cloud based provider. This led me to learn our SIP Network and the way it worked. When I moved into my new role, I signed up to a company-wide learning programme called ‘Evolve’. This was EYE OPENING! The programme took me on a journey of self-reflection. We learnt more about our personality types and how they best work with others. I learnt so much about myself in that process. I’ve had lots of support at IPI and plenty of chances to develop.
What does a typical day look like in your current role?
Well as any engineer/tech person will know, we don’t have “typical” days. Everyday brings about its own challenges. However, we meet daily with our manager and the architects of the business to discuss issues/suggestions and day to day workloads. I now manage the SIP network at IPI. From support of our SIP Network, running captures and assessing these, to support of provisioning queries ports, my role is very diverse. My biggest daily tasks are to look at SIP network maintenance and fix any issues. We also spend a lot of time reflecting on how we can do things better, then implementing those improvements.
What advice would you give other people looking to make a similar move?
Embrace the now but always look forward. Never stand still or the tech world will swallow you up. Be a champion!
What is next for you?
“This time next year, Rodney, we will be millionaires”.
For me, the next steps is to be the best SIP architect I can be, but I’ll also be striving for another architect level skill in Networking so I can become a Senior Architect with two disciplines.
Lisa is the People Experience Director here at IPI. She has 20 years HR experience in dynamic, multi-national technology businesses, which lends itself well to IPI where she brings her experience as a commercial HR Leader and Strategic Business Partner to create a truly exceptional workplace. Lisa specialises in talent acquisition & development, culture & engagement, M&A and TUPE.
Lisa drives the morale and wellbeing culture at IPI and champions a ‘5k your way’ challenge.
