Joe Church — professional headshot

IS Senior Engineer 2 · Publix Supermarkets

Joe Church

Transforming infrastructure through cloud innovation

Cloud infrastructure · DevOps · Azure · AI-powered tooling — Tampa, FL

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25+
Years in IT
10
Enterprise roles
11
Certifications

About Me

Listening first, building second

Professional

I'm an IS Senior Engineer 2 at Publix Supermarkets, where I work with application development teams to understand their infrastructure needs and deliver environments that support their goals. My day-to-day involves conducting discovery sessions, coordinating with stakeholders across security and compliance, and helping translate business requirements into practical technical solutions.

With over 25 years in IT, I've learned that the best infrastructure work happens when you listen first. I focus on bridging the gap between development teams and infrastructure platforms—streamlining processes, reducing friction in deployment pipelines, and building self-service capabilities that let teams spend more time on their applications and less time dealing with infrastructure headaches.

I'm particularly interested in leveraging automation, infrastructure as code, and AI-powered tools to improve delivery speed while maintaining enterprise standards. My goal is always to help teams ship with confidence through well-architected, scalable solutions tailored to their specific needs.

Personal

I've been married for 26+ years and have three grown children who've taught me more than any technology course ever could. We moved to Tampa in 2005 to give our kids better opportunities, and watching them grow here has been one of my greatest adventures.

Tampa opened up a world of outdoor exploration. I'm hooked on mountain biking and ebikes — there's something amazing about pedaling through Florida's trails, whether pushing myself on technical routes or just enjoying the scenery. When I'm off the bike, I'm usually hiking, at the beaches, or plotting our next trip.

I'm also a lifelong Star Trek fan; that optimistic view of exploration resonates with how I try to live my life. I'm genuinely curious about almost everything and always trying to learn something new — whether that's a technical skill, a better trail route, or just understanding people better.

Career History

Two decades of enterprise IT

Current Role

IS Senior Engineer 2

Publix Supermarkets · Sep 2025 – Present · Lakeland, FL (Hybrid)

Partner with application development teams to understand infrastructure needs and deliver well-architected environments that enable teams to deploy with confidence.

  • Conducting discovery sessions with development teams to capture infrastructure requirements
  • Coordinating with security and compliance stakeholders to translate business requirements into technical solutions
  • Building self-service capabilities and streamlining deployment pipelines to reduce friction
  • Leveraging automation, infrastructure as code, and AI-powered tools to improve delivery speed while maintaining enterprise standards
Download Full Resume (PDF)

Technical Expertise

Core competencies

Technologies and professional skills developed over 25+ years in enterprise IT.

Cloud & Platform

  • Azure / Office 365
  • Cloud Computing
  • Cloud Strategy
  • Microsoft Exchange
  • Active Directory

Infrastructure & Operations

  • Infrastructure Management
  • VMware / Hyper-V
  • Virtualization
  • System Administration
  • Disaster Recovery

Automation & DevOps

  • PowerShell
  • Automation
  • Infrastructure as Code
  • AI-Powered Tooling

Leadership & Process

  • Team Leadership
  • Project Management
  • Vendor Management
  • IT Governance
  • Change Management
  • ITIL

Featured Projects

Selected work

Corporate Headquarters Relocation

Led IT operations for Trammo, Inc.'s corporate headquarters relocation from Park Avenue to Rockefeller Plaza in NYC. Coordinated with temp staffing agencies for on-site setup support, managed network circuit provisioning and firewall configurations, and participated in strategic planning sessions with the architecture firm. Ensured seamless technology transition for executive operations in the new flagship location.

  • Project Management
  • Network Infrastructure
  • Vendor Coordination

Private Cloud Migration

Orchestrated PharMerica, Inc.'s transition from traditional datacenter to co-managed private cloud environment. Led comprehensive scoping and planning phases, managed migration execution, and provided critical post-go-live support. Served on the cutover team handling overnight migration operations, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations and seamless transition to the modern cloud infrastructure.

  • Cloud Migration
  • Infrastructure Planning
  • DevOps

AI-Powered Development Exploration

Exploring cutting-edge AI coding assistants including Claude Code, Gemini Pro, OpenAI Codex, and Cursor 2.0 to revolutionize development workflows. Building diverse applications from web apps to Windows native utilities using modern tech stacks. Focusing on leveraging AI to accelerate development velocity while maintaining best practices for UI/UX design and code quality.

  • AI/ML
  • Full-Stack Development
  • Modern UI/UX

Certifications & Training

Credentials

MCP ID: 3178979

  • Azure Administrator Associate
  • Azure Fundamentals
  • CompTIA Security+
  • MCSE 2003 with Security
  • MCSA 2003 with Security
  • MCDBA SQL 2000
  • ITIL Foundations
  • Project Management
  • ProofPoint Email Protection
  • ProofPoint Information Protection
  • PURE Storage Administrator

Get In Touch

Let's connect

Whether it's cloud infrastructure, DevOps, or a good trail recommendation — I'd love to hear from you.

Email

joe@cftrek.com

LinkedIn

joe-church

GitHub

cf5joe

Blog

warptrail.blog