As DiRAC’s Training Manager, I am responsible for the operational running of our training program. I initially trained as a digital systems engineer before working as a software engineer for 15 years with companies such as the MOD, British Steel and Rolls Royce and then spending another 8 years teaching software engineering and other computer related topics. During this time I became interested in on-line education, eventually obtaining my MSc in eLearning. Soon after this I joined the Institute of Computational Cosmology (ICC) at Durham University as the DiRAC systems Manager.
At the ICC I am involved in the procurement, management, installation and configuration of the DiRAC Memory Intensive Service. I also quickly became interested in DiRAC’s HPC Training programme before taking on the role of DiRAC’s Training Manager. I currently split my time between these two roles.
As the DiRAC Training Manager I am involved in shaping the DiRAC Training Programme and help to develop a range of training opportunities for all levels of our community throughout their career, ranging from basic first steps into HPC, to cutting edge approaches to Machine learning and quantum computing. I am responsible for the day-to-day operational running of our training and act as the main point of contact with our industrial and academic partners for bespoke training events. In some cases, I have become more involved in delivering our training and am a qualified Nvidia Ambassador, and a Software Carpentries Instructor.
I believe that the path to efficient research is through education and maximising the efficiency of code through good design. This is tempered with the understanding that our users have a wide variety of skill-level and are trying to achieve their own research goals in an often limited time-frame.
