Hello Benjamin! Shed some light on your life’s journey.
I've always had an interest in technology, but my route to where I am now has been anything but direct. Some of my earliest memories of interacting with computers are of my family getting one on Christmas morning when I was about ten years old. This computer absolutely captured my imagination and sparked my curiosity. After that initial gift, I spent many nights sneaking out of bed to take apart the family computer and spread its pieces across my living room floor. The best part was always the race to get it back together (and working?) before my parents woke up!
After living in several smaller cities in eastern Canada, I graduated from high school and decided to spread my wings and see the world. Trips to Scotland and a few months in Cameroon opened my eyes quite a bit, and I decided that I'd head to school and get a Bachelor of Theology. After a cross-Canada bike trip, getting married, and backpacking through Europe with my wife, I was ready to put my degree to work and settled into a few years of Pastoring. As time passed, I needed a change, so I opened a cafe down the street from my house. Eight years running the Green Bean Cafe and two kids later, it was time to spread all those parts on the floor one more time. We sold the cafe, and two years later, I had earned a Bachelor of Computer Science. Happy to say, I've been part of Dynatrace since 2019!
Tell us about your work and what interesting things you’re working on.
At Dynatrace, I work as an Extension Architect on the Extensions team. It's been a great fit for me because it's a good balance between working directly with customers and writing code and building solutions. I especially enjoy digging into thorny problems and working with customers to find a solution.
What makes you excited about being a part of the Dynatrace?
Being part of the Dynatrace team has been a wonderful experience. Earlier in my career, I worked as a Product Specialist in Dynatrace One, and from the very beginning, I was blown away by how smart and kind everyone was. It's fun trying to ride the wave and keep up with all the amazing things my colleagues are doing!
What makes Dynatrace Community important to you?
"I enjoy being able to offer some direct assistance on the Community but really appreciate being able to collect feedback and report back when suggestions have been added to an Extension."
As a member of the Extensions team, the Community is one of the main places where we get to hear how users are using our Extensions. Is the configuration easy? Does the documentation make sense? What features do you need to meet your goals? I enjoy being able to offer some direct assistance on the Community, but really appreciate the opportunity to collect feedback and report back when suggestions have been added to an Extension.
Tell us something about you that most people don’t know. What is your biggest joy or passion in life?
Since starting at Dynatrace and my kids getting a bit older, the last few years have been a time to rediscover some hobbies that I had let completely slide. It's been fun to get back into video games (nothing is better than watching your kids get better than you!) and dive pretty deep into running. I've always been part of an "outdoorsy" family, so camping, skiing, canoeing, trying surfing, and hiking are special times for me.
I feel I've been incredibly fortunate and had a chance to do and see so much already. That being said, I've still got a list of things I'd like to see happen! By the time this is published, I'll have run nine marathons and an Ultra (all since starting at Dynatrace) and I'd like to keep that going until my legs won't let me. There are seven marathon "world majors" and it would be a great mix of travel and running to be able to run in all seven. If all goes well, my first major will be this fall in Chicago.
What achievement are you most proud of?
Professionally, it was a really cool opportunity to co-lead a workshop at Perform in 2024. Between meeting co-workers and customers, I'd only ever seen on Zoom and seeing Las Vegas for the first time, it was a trip I won't forget.
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