First of all, thank you for wanting to learn more about me.

This page contains some information about my professional and personal background, a download link to my resume, as well as some FAQs.

Table of Contents

Professional Skills

What I do in a nutshell: I use code (primarily Python) to architect and automate cloud infrastructure (primarily AWS).

Some of my skills:

  • Cloud: AWS
    This is the only cloud provider I currently work with. I have all 3 AWS associate certifications and currently working on my Solutions Architect Certification - Professional.
    AWS services I am experienced in: EC2, S3, VPC, Lambda, Step Functions, Route 53, ECS, ECR, CloudWatch, CloudFormation

  • Code: Python
    Python is probably one of the best languages for the cloud. I heavily use the Python SDK for AWS (Boto3)

  • Tools: Git, Docker, VS Code

Download My Resume

You can download a PDF version of my resume by clicking on this link.

Personal Background

I grew up in Lebanon, and moved to the US (Minnesota) in 2000 to attend university. Other than a brief move to Seattle, I have been living in the upper midwest and really loving it. My wonderful wife Emma and I have been married since 2009 and We now live in Iowa City, IA where she is pursuing her PhD in religious studies. We have 2 cats named Mulder and Scully (if you’re younger than 30, you might not get the reference!)

I work remotely for Infor, and I love it!

Hobbies and Interests

While I love tech, there is so much more outside the world of tech that I enjoy, like:

  • Reading: I read a lot, but not enough. One of my recent favorites is Deep Work, by Cal Newport. Read it, I guarantee it will change you life.

  • Fitness: I enjoy being active. Some of what enjoy: going to the gym, running, soccer, cycling, hiking, and anything that gets me outside to enjoy the beautiful gift of nature.

  • Community: I love being active in my community. I am involved with several community and volunteer groups with a focus on volunteering, community-building, and promoting dialogue.

  • Speaking: I am a member of Toastmasters. I have spoken at local tech events and workshops focused cloud and DevOps. I have also had the honor of speaking at bridge-building and interfaith community events.

  • Mentoring: empowering others, in any way that I can, is one of my priorities. To that extent, I am committed to helping others where I can provide value. Please check out my contact page if you think I have anything of value that I can provide to you.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Cloud Development FAQs

Are cloud and DevOps jobs in demand and is this a good career move?
I might be biased, but I honestly think it is one of the hottest fields right now. Anything tech-related is always in demand, but my personal experience tells me that it is MUCH harder to hire good cloud and DevOps engineers/developers than any other engineers. This is pure conjecture, but one possible explanation is that development bootcamps have focused so much on web development and as a result we are starting to see an abundance of web developers but the same thing did not happen with DevOps engineers and cloud developers. As a result, the supply is not able to keep up with the demand. Cloud and DevOps engineers are typically some of the highest paid roles.

I want to become a cloud developer. Where do I start?
You came to the right place. I put together a step-by-step plan for you. Please start by downloading my free eBook.

I read about how you got your AWS certifications. I currently work as an ____ (insert your job title here). What kind of job can I get if I get AWS certified?
As I mention in my eBook, simply getting a certification is not going to magically make you a cloud developer, or get you a job in the field for that matter. Please, don’t assume that passing a test is all you need. A certification provides a good path for learning the theory, but you will need to supplement that with development knowledge, as well as some hands-on experience. In my blog articles and my eBook I provide you with advice on how to get that knowledge and experience.

I have a decent amount of experience in traditional IT (server administration, support, networking, etc.) How do I break into cloud development?
Awesome! The good news is that your experience is very relevant. The challenge is that you will need to improve your development chops. You most likely did not write much code in the past, or maybe none at all. But do not despair, it is not as hard as you think. My advice is to pick up an object-oriented language (Python is a good choice) and learn it. You will also benefit from getting certified with a cloud provider of your choice (I suggest AWS). The certification will probably come easy to you, but getting used to writing code might be a bit of a change. See my blog posts or my eBook for more details.

I am a developer but I want to switch my focus to cloud and/or DevOps. How do I do that?
If you have development experience, then you are in a good place. Your challenge will be learning about the various aspects of infrastructure, like networks, virtual servers, load balancers, etc. It might seem overwhelming at first, but it is not as bad as you think. If you’re comfortable with code, then you’ve got the hardest part done. Going through a cloud provider certification might be very beneficial to you. I recommend AWS, and specifically, the AWS Solutions Architect - Associate certification.

I know nothing about any of this, but I want to get into cloud and DevOps. Where do I start?
If you have no tech experience whatsoever, you can still get into the industry but you have to do a lot of learning. My suggestion to you is that you pick a cloud provider (I suggest AWS) and start learning. Most cloud providers have an entry-level certification (for AWS, it is their Cloud Practitioner certification) that would be a great place to start. Your next step would be to learn more cloud infrastructure, and also learn an object-oriented programming language. I talk about all of this in my free eBook so I recommend you give that a read and go from there.

I am ____ (insert age) years old. Am I too old to learn about cloud and learn how to program?
No, you are not. I started learning about the cloud at age 35 and pushed my first piece of code at 36. I personally have mentored people in their late 50s and they are now cloud developers. You are not too old.

Personal FAQs

How the hell do you pronounce your name?
Just like it is spelled: mo - neer. Many of my friends and family call me Mo. Either one is fine.

Where are you from?
Grew up in Lebanon. My dad’s side of the family is Palestinian, and my mom’s side is Russian. I think of myself as an Arab American, and a proud Iowan! 🌽

Where do you work?
I work remotely for Infor.

I am a recruiter and I have the perfect job for you. Are you interested?
I am currently happily employed but you are welcome to contact me. At the moment I am not interested in anything that is not remote. I live in Iowa City, IA so if you are offering me a 1 month contract 2,000 miles away then no, but thanks. I am not interested in relocating my family at the moment.

Thank You for reading!