Thabo Makhele

Highly experienced and certified Senior Network Engineer / VoIP Engineer with strong background in IP networking, VoIP provisioning, SIP trunking, SBC (Acme/Oracle), Cisco Call Manager/BroadSoft, and network security / penetration testing. Over 18 years' experience across private and public sector environments (e.g., Dimension Data, Internet Solutions, Vodacom engagements, Department of Home Affairs, Department of Health). Proven ability to troubleshoot complex network and voice services end-to-end, deliver stable services, and support customers and teams through incident resolution and change.

Senior Network Engineer at Gijima (2019-01 – 2021-12)

• Day-to-day maintenance and support of environments including VoIP, wireless, and security.
• Design, planning, installation, and maintenance of client LAN/WAN.
• Conduct daily network and security health checks and support technology refresh activities.
• Troubleshoot and maintain VoIP and routing/switching components for service stability.

WLAN/LAN Network Specialist at Three6Five (2018-01 – 2019-12)

• Deployed and supported wireless infrastructure including Ruckus and Meraki access points; performed site surveys.
• VoIP provisioning & installation: configured SIP trunks on ACME Packets (SBCs).
• Provisioned VoIP numbers and implemented routing on Cisco BroadSoft and Cisco Call Manager.
• Assessed client WLAN/LAN readiness to support VoIP deployments and ensured network readiness for voice.
• Supported day-to-day service delivery including VoIP, wireless, MPLS, and SD-WAN.

Technical Team Leader at Dimension Data / NTT (2015-01 – 2017-12)

• Led deployment and maintenance of wireless connectivity for Government/EMS environments (DOH ambulances).
• Designed and maintained Western Cape Department of Health EMS network including VSAT/Diginet access and MPLS links.
• Technology evaluation, day-to-day client network maintenance, and coordination with stakeholders.
• Delivered team leadership across planning, training enablement, issue escalation, and cross-team coordination to closure.

Senior NOC Engineer at Internet Solutions (2012-01 – 2015-12)

• Monitored and responded to incidents for the IS backbone using Netcool.
• Used operational tools including Sysmon, Syslog, Cisco Prime, Infinera Digital Network Administrator.
• First-pass troubleshooting, provided accurate feedback, and followed vendor escalation processes.
• Administered core infrastructure activities; scheduled maintenance using BMC Remedy.
• Compiled monthly outage reports including trend analysis and maintained records of vendor outage investigations.
• Coordinated new service installations and assigned public IPs using the IP Address database system.

Network Engineer at Internet Solutions (2005-01 – 2012-12)

• Supported services including MPLS, VPN, Cloud, IS Fax, Diginet, Access; supported connectivity including VSAT and global connectivity.
• Configured Cisco routers/switches; implemented ACLs and performed network traffic analysis.
• Troubleshot QoS and rate limiting issues and supported service request fulfilment.
• Provided prompt remote and telephonic support to reduce trouble ticket backlog.
• Collaborated with NOC and 3rd-tier support teams; maintained service requests via Siebel.

IT Internship at Dimension Data (2004-01 – 2005-12)

• Prepared new employee machines; created users in Active Directory; applied permissions aligned to user roles.
• Performed security patching, maintenance, and malware remediation; updated applications for end users.
• Installed operating systems and applied security patches to ensure compliance and security baseline.

National Senior Certificate in Grade 12 – Ahmed Timol Secondary (2003-12)