We have arrived at a significant turning point in IT & business. The Cloud is changing how IT works for the business, enabling rapid deployment, flexibility, elasticity, and an ability to react to threats and opportunities like never before. Adapting to utility-based computing is challenging. Businesses struggle with the concepts of switching from budget-based CAPEX spending, to a pay-for-what-you-use CAPEX spend. IT staff also face challenges. The way things were done in a data centre or computer room probably aren’t appropriate in the cloud; design & architectural patterns need to change. But even before they get to that point, they need to learn what The Cloud can offer and how to use it. Learning is hard in IT, because architects, engineers, and consultants don’t have enough time for their current workloads.
That’s why Cloud Mechanix was founded. Our mission statement is:
Enabling businesses and IT staff to understand and use The Cloud effectively to enhance their operations and careers through education.
Cloud Mechanix has developed unique custom-written Azure training with a blend of theory and hands-on exercises. By combining the knowledge-based foundation, with best practices, and real-world exercises, we can quickly educate why & how to use The Cloud in a way that works, is flexible, stable, and importantly, secure.
Aidan Finn, Managing Director & Trainer
Working in IT since 1996 as a consultant, engineer, and technical sales, Aidan Finn has seen IT change from physical client/server to virtualization, and is a part of the digital transformation in The Cloud. Today he works as a Principal Consultant in the Nordics, from his home office in Ireland, providing expertise on Microsoft Azure to clients.
Aidan has been a Microsoft Valuable Professional (MVP) for 12 years, currently with the expertise of Microsoft Azure and previously held Cloud & Data Center Management (Hyper-V) and System Center Configuration Manager expertises. He has spoken at many events and conferences around the world, including Microsoft Ignite and TechEd Europe. Aidan has been writing & delivering training for years, teaching technical and sales personnel in Microsoft partners in Ireland about Windows Server, Hyper-V, System Center, and Azure. He writes on his own blog at http://www.aidanfinn.com, is the Contributing Editor on Microsoft Virtualization at http://petri.com, and has written or co-written 5 technical books.
Nicole Finn, Operations Director
Working as an Office 365 specialist in “the channel”, Nicole has been at the point of developing one of the leading markets for Office 365 in the world. Nicole works with Microsoft partners in Ireland and helped them adopt and sell Office 365 in a previously skeptical market, by training sales staff, organizing technical training, and navigating customers through a maze of licensing complexity. In recent years, Nicole has been working in the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) channel and manages hosting & leasing licensing (SPLA-R). Nicole’s communication and organizational skills ensure that things run smoothly.