Open to opportunities

Nkosikhona Mkhize

@nkosikhonamkhize

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Platform Engineer and DevOps specialist building scalable, automated cloud-native infrastructure.

South Africa

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What I'm looking for

I am seeking a role that emphasizes cloud-native platform engineering, automation, and developer self-service enablement within a collaborative, documentation-driven team focused on operational excellence.

I am a dedicated Platform Engineer and DevOps professional with a National Diploma in Computer Systems Engineering and a recent Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) credential. I focus on building scalable cloud infrastructures and automating IT processes to deliver reliable developer self-service platforms.

In my current role I designed and implemented a fully automated Kubernetes deployment pipeline integrating Backstage, GitLab, ArgoCD, Vault, Crossplane, and Harbor, and configured Kubernetes clusters on a VMWare Virtual Data Center. I routinely use Terraform, Nomad, GitLab CI, and ArgoCD to automate deployments and manage infrastructure.

Previously I led a NOC team where I monitored Kubernetes and application performance, troubleshot networking and platform issues, and operated observability stacks with Kibana and Grafana. I have a track record of optimizing systems and reducing operational costs, including reclaiming significant RDS disk space.

I bring practical experience across AWS, GCP, MongoAtlas, Docker, Kubernetes, Ansible, and monitoring tools such as Prometheus and Grafana, combined with strong technical curiosity and clear technical documentation practices to support cross-functional teams.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Platform Engineer

Current

Nymbis Cloud Solutions

Jun 2024 - Present (1 year 4 months)

Designed and implemented a fully automated Kubernetes deployment pipeline integrating Backstage, GitLab, ArgoCD, Vault, Crossplane, and Harbor to enable developer self-service; configured Kubernetes clusters on a VDC and automated deployments via GitLab CI, reducing manual release effort.

Kubernetes Gitlab CI ArgoCD Terraform Vault Crossplane Harbor Nomad

NOC Team Lead

Wonderlabz

May 2021 - May 2024 (3 years)

Led NOC operations monitoring Kubernetes and remote gaming platforms, used Grafana and Kibana for root-cause analysis, and orchestrated production deployments with Ansible, Terraform, and ArgoCD to improve reliability.

Kubernetes Grafana Kibana Ansible Terraform ArgoCD Monitoring Incident Response

IT Administrator

Moipone Fleet

Apr 2018 - Nov 2020 (2 years 7 months)

Managed Linux CentOS systems, administered Active Directory and AWS VPN/S3 configurations, and maintained monitoring and local cloud storage to improve system availability and SLA compliance.

CentOS Active Directory S3 Monitoring System Administration

Network Engineer

Innervation Value Added Service

Feb 2016 - Dec 2017 (1 year 10 months)

Configured secure client connectivity to Linux firewall servers, managed RADIUS for ISP authentication and billing, and performed OpenSCAP scans to ensure PCI compliance and network stability.

OpenSCAP Network Management PCI Compliance MySQL

IT Administrator

Plus 94 Research

Jan 2015 - Feb 2016 (1 year 1 month)

Configured Asterisk PBX on CentOS and QuexS CATI on Ubuntu, provided desktop support and reduced downtime through proactive system management and troubleshooting.

CentOS Ubuntu QUEXS CATI Desktop Support Troubleshooting

Network Administrator

Western Digital Company

Jan 2014 - Dec 2014 (11 months)

Built and managed Linux servers, configured a RADIUS server with Daloradius/MySQL, and supported virtual environments using VirtualBox to strengthen server and authentication administration skills.

DaloRADIUS Linux Server Administration Daloradius MySQL VirtualBox Configuration

Education

Degrees, certifications, and relevant coursework

The Linux Foundation

Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), Kubernetes / Cloud Native Operations

2024 - 2024

Obtained the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) certification from The Linux Foundation.

Durban University of Technology

National Diploma in Computer Systems Engineering, Computer Systems Engineering

2013 - 2015

Completed a National Diploma in Computer Systems Engineering at Durban University of Technology, focusing on systems engineering and IT infrastructure.