Eric Germán Burgueño

Provide strategic and technical guidance on AI, machine learning, automation, advanced data platforms, and cloud ecosystems.

Advise the team on platform architecture, data pipelines, and cloud adoption, implementing best practices for infrastructure and workflows that accelerate discovery and enable scalable, efficient computation.

Maintain a strong focus on delivering practical, MVP-driven solutions that balance innovation with operational viability, helping the startup achieve its mission while building sustainable, future-proof systems.

Design and deliver complex, enterprise-grade solutions across multiple industry verticals, including government, universities, commercial retailers, and financial institutions. Operate at the intersection of architecture, strategy, and operations, translating business requirements into scalable technical solutions.

Proactively identify technical risks and opportunities, ensuring future-proof, efficient, and secure deployments while navigating challenging stakeholder landscapes.

• Led complex cloud and on-premise solution designs, balancing performance, security, and cost, guided by the Azure Well-Architected Framework and enterprise architecture principles.
• Influenced stakeholder decisions through clear communication of architectural trade-offs, fostering alignment and shared ownership of outcomes.
• Automated deployment and configuration of internal and customer-facing applications and microservices (Ansible, AWS, Git, GitLab, OpenShift, Terraform), increasing efficiency and reliability.
• Executed large-scale infrastructure migrations, including VMware Virtual Machines, delivering projects on time and under budget while minimising operational disruption.

Provided cross-functional leadership to the Operations team, bridging development, product, and operations to ensure reliable infrastructure and streamlined workflows. Guided the adoption of modern engineering practices, fostering team capability and operational excellence.

• Mentored and upskilled team members to strengthen technical and operational capabilities.
• Implemented infrastructure security improvements, including SSH certificate management (HashiCorp Vault) and a Web Application Firewall (NGINX), increasing system reliability and resilience.
• Developed automation tooling to improve deployment efficiency and operational agility (Python-based dynamic inventory, Ansible).

Led a team of Research Software and Linux Engineers, accountable for governance, service delivery strategy, and systems architecture for the in-house HPC cluster. Focused on reducing “time to science,” optimising operations, and fostering a community of practice in data management and reproducible research.

• Established and grew the HPC Services team, enhancing capability and operational resilience.
• Delivered “powerPlant Augment,” a multi-year programme modernising user and admin experience.
• Contributed to governance and advisory bodies, including Ethics Advisory Panel and Steering Groups, influencing organisational strategy and standards.
• Organised conferences and training workshops to build skills and community engagement.
• Recognised with the 2018 Chairman’s Award for developing a novel spatial analysis framework for climate change impact on New Zealand crops.

Progressed from Junior to Lead Systems Engineer, managing Linux and scale-out storage environments, and eventually overseeing a team. Drove adoption of IT services and infrastructure that enabled researchers to access resources efficiently and reliably.

• Designed and launched the “powerPlant” HPC cluster, increasing active user base 20x and transforming research capability.
• Mentored and coached staff across teams, fostering skills development and knowledge sharing.
• Established organisation-wide policies and standards in security, identity management, monitoring, and automation.
• Delivered services spanning infrastructure provisioning, storage, containerisation, and CI/CD, enabling robust, reproducible research workflows.

Contributed as a volunteer Board member and later as Chairperson, supporting the Centre’s operations and fostering children’s development, staff well-being, and community engagement. Contributed to the review of the Centre’s vision, mission, philosophy, and policies, applying professional knowledge and governance expertise. Navigated complex stakeholder coordination across legal, HR, organisational leadership, staff, regulatory agencies, and the community, using my background in Law to achieve resolutions in the best interest of all parties.