Getting to know datacenter employees: Naim Jones
Microsoft’s success depends on our people. We are proud to introduce some of the talented folks in your community who work in our global datacenters. Discover what inspired them to pursue a career in the tech industry, the different pathways they pursued, and what a day in the life of a datacenter employee looks like.
Introducing Naim Jones
Senior Datacenter Technician
Dallas, Texas
Employee since 2023
Early days
Naim grew up in Germantown, a neighborhood in Philadelphia, with his mom and three siblings. His upbringing was a bit scattered among a plethora of interests, from musical instruments such as the cello, to math, reading books (the Percy Jackson series was a favorite), gaming with his brother, and walking miles to the mall with friends.
Naim always had a slight aptitude for software. In his younger days, he and his brother would find exploits, or glitches, within the computer games they played to receive free in-game currency. This included figuring out how to unzip files and alter the properties of a game to set it into a specific, vulnerable state.
The path to technology
Naim decided to pursue a career in IT in late 2022. Previously he worked in sales as a licensed optician. After moving to Phoenix, Arizona for a job opportunity that did not pan out as he expected, he enrolled in school full time, majoring in cyber security. Toward the end of his first semester in May 2023, Naim asked all his professors if they knew any tech opportunities that he could jump into for experience. One sent him a link to the Microsoft datacenter internship, and he immediately applied. He interned for three months and was asked to come onboard full time.
A few months in as an entry-level Tech 1, Naim started thinking about how he could grow next. His focus in the datacenter had been in the networking realm, but from talks with managers and peers, he found that becoming a senior datacenter technician meant he had to be well-versed in deployment. Due to his lack of expertise, he felt that progressing upward would be a difficult task, but he began to ferociously attack the deployment of new datacenters to build the foundation of the entailed processes. Before long, he began applying, and when the interview came and they discussed deployment, he was ready.
Superpowers
Naim’s biggest superpowers are collaboration, empowerment, and simply connecting with others and making them feel special. He wants to ensure that his teammates are comfortable, feel valued and welcomed; and are empowered to support the world through their work. He takes time to get to know each of his teammates during downtime, asking thoughtful questions to learn deeper and giving them confirmation that they’re not just another cog in the machine.
In his work specifically, Naim uses his expertise of networking to assist with the communication of devices in the datacenters. He recently obtained CCNA certification, which allows him to deeper diagnose and troubleshoot issues within the network and efficiently work with network engineers for resolution.
A day in the life
Naim’s day starts at 6 AM, when he joins his teammates in daily safety meetings, discussing safety hazards and what they can do to mitigate any incidents. He then scrubs through chats to catch up on what the biggest priorities are and get the day started. The work typically revolves around getting docked servers into production for customers and prepping for server racks that are incoming. Throughout the day, he and his teammates break to talk about the things they are working on, any troubles they’re running into, and to share some laughs.
Favorite childhood food
Baked ziti
Naim absolutely loves this dish. When he was about 13 years old, his stepmother of Italian descent introduced him to baked ziti. The first time he had it was like the feeling when he received his first pair of prescription glasses: not knowing that he needed it until he took the first bite. He has great memories of weekends with no school, eating that dish three times a day and it tasting like the first time he ever had it, every time.
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