SKILLS SPOTLIGHT
CNET EXPERT TELLS US WHAT SETS THE EDUCATION PROVIDER APART FROM THE REST
Melissa Chambal , US LATAM & Canada Technical Manager and 7x24 Exchange International Career Development Mentor at CNet Training , joined the company with over 20 years ’ data centre and network infrastructure experience , plus five years teaching data centre design and network design programs . She has taught at the Top Gun Marine base in California and performed a Data Centre Audit on Department of Defence facilities . Today , Chambal delivers CNet Training ’ s Global Data Centre programs , including Data Centre Management , Design and Audit . Chambal offers insight into her career journey and tells us what sets CNet apart from others and provides advice for aspiring data centre professionals .
CCan you tell us about who you are and your journey to becoming a CNet Training Instructor ?
My name is Melissa and I joined CNet Training in 2013 as the US , Canada and LatAm Technical Manager . It has been an enriching journey over the past eight years . Prior to working at CNet , I spent most of my career in the New York City area as project manager for an electrical contractor . I started off estimating projects , doing ‘ take-offs ’, managing , engineering and designing projects . It ’ s been an incredible experience .
How did you enter the data centre sector ?
My role in most of my projects involved cabling trading floors with enough copper and fibre cable to resemble a flight simulator and ensured all the cables under each trading desk were terminated and tested in the data centre .
Why did you decide to become an instructor ?
That is an interesting question . As a project engineer , I would review RFPs for submittal , our response to the requirements would naturally be , ‘ understand and we will comply with all the appropriate and related structured cabling standards ’. In the office , we knew the standards , but when I would visit the site and do my QA assessment , it was obvious that the installation teams weren ’ t familiar with the recognised cabling standards and the expected minimum requirements .
When I brought this fact up to my management , they agreed and proceeded to put me in charge of developing an in-house training program to deliver to our electricians that belonged to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers , one of the largest labour unions in the US .
As daunting and challenging as it was , after the class , I found I was completely hooked with the atmosphere of learning and exchanging ideas with other professionals , as we can all learn something new .
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