Kyle Dunkerley

Infrastructure leadership · Hybrid cloud · Azure Solutions Architect Expert

I build capable teams and dependable infrastructure.

I’m Kyle Dunkerley. I lead four engineers across a hybrid estate of 200+ servers serving 6,000+ people in Australia and New Zealand. I step into the hard problems, then build the team so they stop needing me to.

Role
Associate Manager, Infrastructure Services
Experience
15+ years, Microsoft estates
Based
Melbourne · open to Brisbane
Status
Open to Infrastructure Manager roles
Fig. 1 The estate I’m accountable for. One mark per server, and it is 200+.

Post-implementation reviews

Four pieces of work, written the way I’d write them up for a change board: what the situation was, what I did, what changed. Employers and clients are left out on purpose.

  1. PIR-01

    Rebuilding a team around its engineers

    Situation
    After major staffing changes, our Windows infrastructure function was folded into a wider end-user computing group. I was given one onsite and two offshore engineers.
    What I did
    Introduced weekly sprints and a shared Kanban board beside the ticketing system, moved documentation to notes engineers could actually update, and taught Azure and Infrastructure as Code on the job.
    Outcome
    Engineers who started in desktop support now carry server responsibility. Work that used to wait for me now doesn’t.
  2. PIR-02

    Moving production without moving the risk

    Situation
    A business separation meant new infrastructure and a new domain across Australia and New Zealand. It was my first major assignment in the environment.
    What I did
    Owned delivery end to end apart from procurement: build standards, outage windows, cutover plans and decommissioning of the old estate.
    Outcome
    50+ physical hosts and around 100 virtual machines moved with the business still running. A later three-week migration moved 14 more across two sites.
  3. PIR-03

    Automation the whole team can read

    Situation
    Deployments leaned on advanced PowerShell that only its author could safely change.
    What I did
    Moved Azure deployments from ARM templates to Bicep, simplified the scripts, and documented them for junior engineers.
    Outcome
    Fewer manual steps, consistent builds, and no single person who has to be on call for a script.
  4. PIR-04

    A restored server that wouldn’t rejoin the domain

    Situation
    An Azure virtual machine was damaged and restored, but could not authenticate. Domain trust, password age and the computer account were all in question.
    What I did
    Stayed on the bridge, kept stakeholders informed, and kept investigating into the early morning until I found the cause and scripted a computer-account reset.
    Outcome
    Access restored, and the team had a written recovery procedure for the next time.

Operating principles

The best infrastructure isn’t the cleverest. It’s the one a capable team can understand, run and improve.

Clarity first

When pressure rises I slow the noise down: establish the facts, make ownership visible, then give the team a way through.

Develop engineers, not dependencies

A good outcome is an engineer who can do the work without me. I measure my own leadership by what the team no longer needs from me.

Make it outlast its author

Understandable choices, useful runbooks and disciplined operations. Good systems survive the person who built them.

Revision history

Each revision, the scope got bigger and my hands got further from the keyboard.

PeriodRoleScope
2021 – nowCurrentAssociate Manager, Infrastructure ServicesDXC Technology

Promoted into management in 2026 after leading the Windows function. Owns availability, lifecycle, patching, monitoring, escalation and continuity.

200+ servers6,000+ users4 engineers
2021WinTel System AdministratorDXC Technology (contract)

Rollout and server migration through a business separation.

50+ physical hosts
2019 – 2021System AdministratorLANtech, Spark Business IT Services

The technical contact for small businesses: Microsoft 365, Azure advice, statements of work.

Many small clients
2011 – 2019Microsoft Solutions SpecialistProphecy Networks

From monitoring desk to onsite engineer at a port, to Microsoft cloud migrations.

250+ user rollout
2007 – 2011LAN AdministratorUniversity of KwaZulu-Natal

Where it started: imaging, upgrades and looking after a computer science department.

200+ lab machines

Credentials

  • Azure Solutions Architect Expert AZ-305 · 2024
  • Azure Administrator Associate AZ-104 · 2024
  • Azure Fundamentals AZ-900 · 2024
  • MCSA: Windows Server 2016 2018

Beyond the day job

  • Board member, Southern Cross Church 2023 – 2025
  • Co-host, The XboxCast Since 2017
  • Founder, Southlight I/O, a small software studio
  • Microsoft MVP, Windows Insider 2016 – 2018

Building a strong infrastructure function? Let’s talk.

LinkedIn is the best way to reach me. I’m also glad to speak on building capability in infrastructure teams, maintainable automation, and staying useful during critical incidents.

Connect on LinkedIn ↗