The Team Behind the Technology at CBT
An Interview with George Young, Chief Technologist of Networking and Security
Welcome back to our “Team Behind the Technology” series where we’re highlighting the incredible people supporting our brand promise of Technology with a Human Touch.
In this interview, you will meet George Young, Chief Technologist of Networking and Security at CBT. Learn more about George’s background in cyber security and his involvement with writing tests for Aruba certifications!
To hear more from George, check out the full transcript of his interview below:
Thank you for joining us today and sharing a little bit about your technical expertise with us! Let’s get started…
Question: Here’s a scenario for you – you just got on a plane and you’re sitting next to Mark Cuban (First Class, of course!!). He asks who you work for – how would you describe CBT to him in 30 seconds?
Answer: CBT is a domain expert integrator that brings technology with a human touch! That means that we take complex problems and provide solutions that make an impact on people’s lives and the organization itself. We have four practice areas: HPC & Analytics, ITSCO, Hybrid IT, and Industrial IoT. We have been around for over twenty years and we work with industries such as airline manufacturing and automotive. We evolved from a Systems Integrator to a domain expert integrator when we ventured into providing solutions to clients in the IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) field and began specializing in IT/OT convergence.
Question: Next Mark asks you what your role is and what value you bring to the company. How would you respond to that?
Answer: I am the Chief Technologist of Networking and Security and I have been in the industry for the past twenty-five plus years. What I bring to the company is my experience of working in both Fortune 500 companies and internet startups and the ability to wear many different hats.
I design the network infrastructure that interconnects systems and software together for organizations. This would include servers, storage, software, and use cases that involve IIoT. I also design the CyberSecurity systems that protect the infrastructure.
Question: Tell us about your involvement with HPE Aruba including your fascinating role writing tests for Aruba certifications. How did you get involved and what does it mean to write tests to determine competency of Aruba expertise?
Answer: I’m humbled to be recognized as an Aruba Networks SME (subject matter expert) and as an Ambassador to HPE (Hewlett Packard Enterprise). Roles like this offer me the privilege of helping write and design certification exams and coursework, mainly on the networking and security side, for our partner organizations. I was invited to this team because I was recognized as a thought leader with my experience in the industry. My role is bringing my perspective as a partner because there’s a lot of partners that would take this exam. I work on the theoretical side to make sure that it is applicable. To validate competency, it’s important to understand the nuances of a particular area. For example, networking at the associate level looks different from networking at the professional level. We use the Angoff process to judge the questions before launching the course and exam.
Question: How do the CBT core values play a role in your daily job?
Answer: The value Customer centric, focused and driven comes to my mind because that is what CBT is excellent at – we are able to put ourselves in our customers’ shoes. CBT is unique because we really try to tailor our solutions for each client, and we are willing to invest our resources in doing so. It would be really easy for our organization to stay with the traditional legacy and infrastructure solutions. However, what makes us special is the ability to be forward thinking and providing value in solutions that meet the customers need where there is a void. We may not have all the answers in the beginning, but we will find them, side by side, with our customers. We are not afraid to venture into new areas and become leaders in that area with the team that we have.
Question: What is special to you about CBT? Why did you choose to work here and why do you continue to work here?
Answer: I chose to work here at CBT because they allowed me to have a voice and make a difference. I valued having my voice heard, considered and making an impact within the organization and for clients. I like the challenges that it brings and the feeling of accomplishment with the results. The reason I stay is because of the family culture that CBT has created – they don’t just talk; they really walk the walk.
Question: What is a current project you’re working on that you are excited about?
Answer: I’m working on multiple projects that are percolating at different stages. I’m helping write security policies for clients and improving them for our own organization, and that excites me because cybersecurity is something that I like to sink my teeth into. We’re also providing services in the healthcare industry that help rapidly deploy data centers through the country. It will impact people’s lives by providing health services and the ability to deliver and deploy technology quickly. It will have the infrastructure, whether it’s server storage or networking, or security, walled in and ready to go. This has a big impact for me because you’re able to take technology and apply it to people’s lives to make a difference.
Question: Tell us about career. How did you get to where you are today?
Answer: I didn’t know what I wanted to do after high school and ended up working for an organization that dealt with different computer systems. The internet was starting out, so I got to cut my teeth on the networking portion of it and have stuck with networking since then. I worked my way up through manufacturing while putting myself through school. I worked in technical marketing and then became a system engineer. From there I worked for internet startups which was really fun for me and I was exposed to many types of technology. I eventually went back to school at Northwestern University. This was an incredible opportunity because I got to learn through project work instead of a traditional undergrad system. The opportunity to work for different organizations, both Fortune 500 to smaller ones, and pick up knowledge and experience has helped me to get to where I am today.
**end interview**
Want to meet the rest of our team? Keep an eye out for more team-member profiles here in the coming weeks.