8x8 shines the light on the amazing members of our community. In this post, we spotlight the Manager of the Network Telecom and VoIP teams at Encore Global.

8x8: Hi Chris! Thanks for chatting with us. To start, please tell us a little about your job.

Chris Rodriguez (CR): I am the Manager of the Network Telecom and VoIP teams at Encore, a global hospitality company operating in more than 20 countries. For over 30 years, we have provided solutions and tailored events proven to grow brand awareness, relationships, culture, and sales.

8x8: What path led you to your current role?

CR: I jumped into computers when I joined the United States Marine Corps in 2020. The Marines showed me that I had technical skills I didn't realize I had, so I took it and ran with it. I completed an accelerated boot camp-like program with all types of specializations from servers to databases to networks to security.

Normally, computer students spend a year learning these subjects; we had three months to master them. Luckily, I was able to pick it up fast. I did two tours in Afghanistan and left the Marines in 2015. It was easy to find a job in the IT field with that type of experience.

8x8: Tell us what it was like managing IT systems for the US Marines in Afghanistan.

CR: Even though my job was within computers, my job meant a lot. If something were to happen with the systems I was managing, lives were at stake. If they don't get communication across teams, whether it's radios or an email or something else, it's a huge problem because there are boots on the ground that need the support.

I was managing the command control center for the main base in Afghanistan, and so that showed me the type of purpose that I had. It's always a stressful environment. It was 24/7. No weekends or holidays off. We worked three shifts per day to maintain radio and computer operations at command control. Now, things are not as stressful to me anymore, and I can appreciate learning and experiencing when things do not go according to plan.

8x8: Tell us about your transition to civilian life.

CR: It was easy to translate my IT skills across to the civilian side. I started an IT company right around 2016, moved back to my hometown of Chicago and joined Encore Global where I've been ever since.

8x8: What brought you to 8x8?

CR: Maintaining our Cisco legacy environment was cumbersome. We were interested in moving to the cloud, especially with our limited staff. A big selling point of 8x8 was the integration with Microsoft Teams.

8x8: How has your experience been with 8x8?

CR: I like 8x8. The system is easy to use and it's great to not have to worry about the servers staying up. The implementation team and the porting coordinates were great. We had 6,000 numbers to port, which is no small task, but the rotation manager, project manager, and implementation engineer gave so much attention to our project. Our questions got answered right away. 8x8 held our hand through implementation. That's one of the big things I like about it.

8x8: How simple was it for your employees to pick up 8x8?

CR: It was easy. Because we moved away from physical phones, the soft phone experience was easy for them to pick up. Using a softphone for everything was a little bit of a learning experience, but in the end it was really helpful. We also held training with a Q&A session at our major offices and provided documentation to help with the transition.

8x8: Tell us how the customer success team has helped your account.

CR: I do appreciate the effort that 8x8 puts in keeping up with communications. That's something that I care about. Our CSM has helped us through issues that we've encountered. You could sell the biggest, baddest thing, but if there's no relationship between reps and clients, it loses so much. And I think COVID did hurt that a lot for a lot of companies. So I'm glad that you guys were able to help us out on that!

8x8: Overall, what are your thoughts on 8x8?

CR: It relieves a lot of the having to worry about hardware and having to worry about multiple venues. Those are big pluses for anyone who's trying to manage a huge web infrastructure.

8x8: Are there certain news sources you use to stay updated on technology?

CR: I listen to Darknet Diaries, a cybersecurity podcast about hackers, data breaches, and cybercrimes hosted by Jack Rhysider. I also enjoy attending cybersecurity conferences. BSidesChicago is my favorite.

8x8: Thank you so much for your time today, Chris! On a personal note, what are your hobbies?

CR: I enjoy playing video games with my daughters. We enjoy playing Mario. I also like working on my cars and taking them out for a drive or to the track.

(Editor's note: This spotlight originally appeared on the 8x8 Community.)

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