The Everything Feed - All Packet Pushers Pods TNO031: Attracting New Talent to Networking, Pairing Dev With NetOps, and More With Justin Ryburn
May 30, 2025
In this discussion, Justin Ryburn, Field CTO for Kentik, dives into the exciting landscape of networking. He shares insights on attracting fresh talent to the industry and emphasizes the need for familiarity with DevOps tools like GitHub and Terraform. The conversation also highlights the importance of pairing Development and NetOps to leverage expertise effectively. Ryburn advocates for network professionalism and discusses the transformative potential of AI, urging newcomers to embrace continuous learning and hands-on experience.
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Justin's Networking Origin Story
- Justin Ryburn started in networking by building small office networks to share printers and files.
- His first job involved responding to high-stress financial market data system outages, then moved into server and network administration.
Influence RFPs Early
- Get a seat at the table when RFPs are drafted to ensure operational needs are met.
- Include requirements like SNMP support and APIs to ease day-two operations.
Volunteer Beyond Your Role
- Volunteer to help engineering during maintenance events to build relationships.
- This proactive collaboration opens more internal conversations and learning opportunities.