Two Mentors One Leap

Two mentors, one leap.

Before SRE, I was a senior software engineer at Dycom Industries where I was hardening pipelines, owning releases, and mentoring juniors.

Alexander Maher backed my DevOps curiosity and sponsored a rotation onto the infrastructure team. The ops mindset hit different than dev, and the growth curve was steep. That experience set me up for my next move as SRE at American Express. Years later, we reconnected with a Senior SRE offer at DataSnipper. Alex is the blueprint for supportive leadership.

Curtis Chambers, Dycom’s CIO and "chief optimist," invests in the long game. He noticed I was Chair of the CS Business Partnership Council at Palm Beach State College and showed up, literally. 

With his support, Dycom and PBSC partnered to place students in real tech jobs while they finished school and created a path to full-time roles. He also sponsored Women’s Code & Coffee (trail-blazed by Sylke Lopez), where I ran Python workshops and learned to beat stage fright.

Sponsorship and visibility multiply over time. Mentors who open doors, and stand beside you when you walk through, improve lives.

Who’s lifted you higher than you could reach alone? Tag them and share what they did.

#MentorMonday #ThankYourMentor #EngineeringLeadership #SRE #DevOps #TechCareers #CareerGrowth