Andrew G. Hargreave, III
Shorewood, IL | andrew@hargreave.net | linkedin.com/in/ahargreave

Professional Summary

Strategic IT Director with 35+ years of experience leading enterprise infrastructure, data center operations, cybersecurity initiatives, and automation projects. Proven ability to align IT strategies with business objectives, drive operational efficiencies, and lead transformative technology initiatives. Expert in building scalable, secure systems, managing cross-functional teams, and mentoring technical talent.

Core Competencies:

Professional Experience

84.51° (A Kroger Company) – Cincinnati, OH
Technical Director, Tech Foundations & Data Center Operations
Mar 2012 – Mar 2025

Directed enterprise-wide infrastructure strategies for the Tech Foundations and Data Center Operations teams, aligning technology initiatives with long-term business goals.
Led teams ranging from 4 to 13 engineers, fostering a collaborative, high-performance environment and mentoring staff across infrastructure, storage, and security disciplines.
Managed enterprise storage systems (Dell ECS, PowerScale, Oracle ZFS, PureStorage, Synology), ensuring availability, scalability, and disaster recovery readiness.
Oversaw procurement, vendor relationships, and lifecycle management for server and storage hardware.
Streamlined change control processes using ServiceNow, partnering with the change board to optimize workflows - achieving a 90% monthly reduction in change tickets through enhanced automation and documentation.
Centralized technical documentation via Confluence, greatly improving on-call support effectiveness and issue resolution speed.
Drove automation initiatives, implementing Ansible, PowerShell, and Bash scripting to standardize data storage operations, server deployments, and security audits across the enterprise.
Led the post-acquisition integration of Market6 infrastructure, collaborating with cross-functional teams from both companies and coordinating with external vendors to transition full support internally - maintaining uninterrupted service for customers and developers.
Responded to a critical infrastructure emergency during a frozen water pipe incident by leading the disaster recovery execution - restoring full customer access to systems in under 18 hours using a pre-developed disaster recovery (DR) plan.
Successfully achieved certification for NIST SP 800-53 compliance, reinforcing enterprise security posture.
Led bi-annual data center maintenance events as Datacenter Operations Manager, coordinating cross-functional teams to patch all systems across dual data centers; successfully reduced downtime from 3 days to 1.5 days through improved planning and execution. Additionally, transitioned quarterly OS patching windows to a monthly cadence, shifting from disruptive 12-hour Saturday outages to efficient weeknight patch cycles, minimizing business impact while maintaining system integrity.

agh3 IT Services LLC – Shorewood, IL
Founder & Freelance IT Consultant
Aug 2006 – Present

Provided end-to-end IT consulting and support for small and medium-sized businesses and nonprofits, enhancing operational efficiency and reducing technology costs.
Designed, secured, and maintained client networks, including firewall implementation, VPNs, endpoint security, and proactive monitoring systems.
Delivered website development, hosting, email services, and offsite backup solutions.
Managed infrastructure relocation projects for clients, achieving four seamless office moves with zero downtime.

Earlier Career Experience

Director & Architect – Technical Infrastructure and Security
Geneer, Inc. | TLC Networks | AgileTek — Des Plaines, IL
1989 – 2006

· Led the design, implementation, and modernization of enterprise IT infrastructure across consulting and corporate environments.

· Directed multi-site data center buildouts, business continuity planning, and cross-functional support operations.

· Managed endpoint security, access control, and firewall solutions in compliance-sensitive industries.

· Provided technical leadership on network architecture, server/storage planning, and infrastructure migrations.

· Delivered hands-on support and systems integration for mid-size clients and internal teams, ensuring uptime, scalability, and secure access.

· Oversaw vendor relationships, hardware/software procurement, and lifecycle planning.

Technical Skills

Infrastructure & Storage: Dell ECS (S3), PowerScale, Oracle ZFS, PureStorage, Synology
Automation: Ansible, PowerShell, Bash scripting
Virtualization: VMware ESX, MS Virtual Server, Proxmox VE
Operating Systems: Windows (Server & Desktop), Linux (RHEL, Ubuntu, Debian), MacOS
Cloud Platforms: Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure, AWS
Networking & Security: TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, VPNs, Firewalls, Data Encryption, RFID Access, Video Surveillance
Enterprise Systems: Microsoft 365/Office365, Google Workspace, Atlassian Confluence/JIRA, ServiceNow
Backup & Monitoring: Veeam, Cohesity, Commvault, Zerto, Zabbix
Web & Hosting: Wordpress, Apache, Nginx
Leadership: Cross-Functional Team Leadership, Client Management, Strategic Planning, Mentorship

Education

Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems
DeVry Institute of Technology

Professional Affiliations

League of Professional Systems Administrators – www.lopsa.org