Curriculum Vitae · Michael Herbst

Skills.

Eighteen categories across infrastructure, security, service delivery, commercial management, web, AI and design. Everything listed here is work that has shipped: a competency only earns a place on this page once there is real production work behind it. Anything still being learned lives on the learning page instead.

01 Core Stack

The technologies used most often, day to day.

  • Windows Server
  • Active Directory DS
  • Microsoft Entra ID
  • Microsoft 365
  • Google Workspace
  • Intune
  • Exchange Online
  • SharePoint Online
  • Proxmox VE
  • Hyper-V
  • VMware Workstation Pro
  • VPS / cPanel
  • MySQL
  • SQL Server
  • Microsoft Access
  • PowerShell
  • Bash
  • Git
  • Pandoc
  • Freshdesk
  • Microsoft Defender
  • Linux
  • HTML5 / CSS
  • Ollama
  • Claude Code

02 Infrastructure & Systems

Servers, Cloud & Virtualisation:

Windows Server administration: provisioning, patch management, Active Directory Domain Services, DNS and DHCP, application deployment, monitoring, backup, restore and disaster recovery. VPS provisioning, hardening and maintenance; Proxmox VE; Hyper-V / WSL2 / VirtualBox / VMware Workstation Pro; hybrid on-premises and cloud environments; cPanel and Softaculous-managed shared hosting; multi-tenant hosting architecture review; static-site hosting, deployment and maintenance; domain registration and DNS management.

Cloud Productivity, Identity & Endpoint Administration:

Microsoft 365 tenant administration at Global Administrator level, covering Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Teams and OneDrive; Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) user, group and role administration; conditional access and multi-factor enrolment; Intune endpoint and device management; licensing, distribution groups and shared mailboxes; Group Policy and Registry administration; device build, imaging and rollout; joiner, mover and leaver account administration with access removal and licence reclamation on exit. Google Workspace Business administration through the Google Admin console: configured and solely administer Kouga Digital's environment, with broad capability across Gmail, Drive, Meet and Groups, and familiarity with Vault, migrations, Gmail routing, Shared Drives and organisational-unit management.

Operating Systems:

Windows 10 / 11 including Commercial, LTSC and IoT editions; Windows hardening and debloating; Linux (Arch, Debian, Ubuntu, Kali Linux, Parrot Security, Paladin Linux, CAINE OS); macOS; ChromeOS.

Networking & Infrastructure:

Network configuration across production VPS and on-premises environments; firewall configuration and egress control on Windows and Linux hosts; routing, DNS, DHCP and VPN concepts; structured cabling and endpoint setup; familiarity with IP cameras, VoIP and on-site ICT hardware lifecycles; multi-campus IT needs assessment and computer-lab specification.

Databases:

SQL Server, MySQL (cloud and local) and Microsoft Access: query writing, basic schema design, backup and restore, integrity checks, and day-to-day troubleshooting on live client deployments.

Scripting & Automation:

PowerShell: idempotent provisioning and scaffolding scripts written to fail loudly rather than partially create, SHA-256 hash-ledger and file-integrity workflows, and scheduled tasks. Bash with Pandoc for HTML to Markdown documentation pipelines; Git for Windows version control; single-source-of-truth document-generation tooling; local and cloud AI-assisted automation.

03 Security, Compliance & Risk

Information Security & Compliance:

POPIA compliance awareness and applied review; Windows and Linux hardening and debloating; network, server and endpoint security; endpoint protection and antivirus administration (Microsoft Defender); multi-tenant isolation analysis; identity and access control under a written policy; digital evidence handling to ACPO good-practice guidance and ISO/IEC 27037, with CAINE imaging and SHA-256 integrity verification; TryHackMe practical foundations.

Framing

Security is stated at the level it is actually held: applied compliance review, hardening and identity control as routine practice, plus evidence-handling discipline to published guidance. Offensive-security certification is in progress, not claimed.

04 Service Delivery & Support

Service Desk & End-User Support:

Support-desk ticket management (Freshdesk, Zendesk, custom systems) run to structured incident, request and change workflows: triage, prioritisation, escalation, resolution and follow-up against agreed SLA targets; remote troubleshooting; client onboarding and training; technical documentation, runbook and user-guide authoring; screen-capture and tutorial production (TechSmith Snagit Certification); Sage Pastel Partner / Xpress; Sage Evolution; POS systems (GAAP, Platinum, Odyssey); translating complex technical concepts to non-technical users.

IT Operations & Asset Lifecycle:

Root-cause resolution rather than repeat ticketing; user onboarding and offboarding; asset, licence and hardware lifecycle tracking; knowledge-base authoring alongside runbooks; remote and on-site end-user support and training.

Productivity Applications:

Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Visio and Publisher; SharePoint document libraries and structured filing; template and document-workflow design for non-technical teams.

05 Business, Commercial & Leadership

Vendor, Procurement & Commercial Management:

Vendor and service-provider evaluation and management; hardware procured at cost with disclosed handling and no recovered margin; written third-party spend governance requiring client sign-off; public-sector tender and bid compilation (MBD documentation, Central Supplier Database registration, PPPFA 80/20 scoring); managed-services, retainer and tiered service-catalogue design; proposal, quote and rate-card production.

Leadership & IT Governance:

Accountable technical owner for a full IT estate, reporting to non-technical decision-makers; staff training, induction and day-to-day supervision in an earlier management role; vendor and subcontractor management; translating complex technical matters into plain language; funder-grade documentation and stakeholder reporting.

Office & Administration:

Document control and records management; document and compliance workflow design; structured filing and version control; trial-balance bookkeeping; vendor and service-provider evaluation; proposal and quote production; administrative support across marketing, sales and operations.

Sales & Account Management:

B2B and retail sales; technical pre-sales and product advice; client relationship management; CRM and client-database maintenance; managed-services (MSP) and retainer model design; tiered service packaging and pricing; sales presentations and outbound campaigns; training and handover.

06 Web, AI & Design

Front-End Web Development:

Semantic HTML5; mobile-first CSS with token-driven design systems (CSS custom properties); accessibility basics (semantic landmarks, ARIA); JSON-LD structured data; Open Graph metadata; local SEO; WordPress and Softaculous deployment. Progressing toward full-stack development through structured self-study.

AI & Emerging Technology:

Local and cloud LLM deployment (Ollama, AnythingLLM); Claude, Claude Code and the Anthropic API; Gemini and Gemini CLI; GitHub Copilot; AI-assisted documentation, scripting and operational workflows.

Design & Media:

Adobe Creative Cloud (including Photoshop and Premiere); CorelDRAW; DaVinci Resolve, OBS and Shotcut; TechSmith Snagit Certification; Figma prototyping; technical, educational and marketing design; screen-capture and tutorial video production.

07 Soft Skills

Soft Skills:

Translating complex technical concepts to non-technical users; calm under pressure; meticulous documentation; rapid self-directed learning; rapport-building across diverse stakeholders.

Each of these is evidenced with a concrete example rather than left as an adjective.