[ PLATFORM ENGINEER · IT SECURITY · FOUNDER ]
Mike Houben.
Platform Engineer
& IT Consultant.
Platform Engineer & IT Consultant with 10+ years of experience — from 24/7 data centre operations through cloud & DevOps to founding my own IT consultancy. I build and operate complete IT platforms: infrastructure, CI/CD, identity management, IT security and compliance. Pragmatic, holistic and jargon-free.
Pfaffenhofen a.d. Ilm · DE
Pragmatic, not dogmatic.
Every solution must work in practice — not just in theory.
No blind guessing.
What I recommend runs first in my own infrastructure.
Core Competencies
Network & Security
OPNsense · WireGuard · VLANs · CrowdSec · Traefik · ISO/IEC 27001:2022
Platform & Virtualization
Proxmox VE · xcp-ng · Docker · Podman · LXC
CI/CD & Automation
GitLab CI/CD · Ansible · IaC · Semaphore
Identity & Access Management
Keycloak · Authentik · OIDC · SAML · SSO
Monitoring & Observability
Zabbix · LibreNMS · SNMP · Sentry
Cloud & Data Center
Hetzner · Azure · Rechenzentrum · 24/7 NOC
Operating Systems
Debian · RHEL · AlmaLinux · Ubuntu Server
Development
PHP · Laravel · Vue.js · Node.js · MySQL · MongoDB
IoT & Smart Home
Home Assistant · Frigate NVR · Thread/Matter · MQTT
Managing Director
Houbsi IT Services
IT infrastructure consulting for freelancers & small businesses — platforms, DevOps, IAM, hosting.
Lead Platform Engineer
indibit
Built and operated the full internal infrastructure platform. Introduced CODEOWNERS workflows, service maintainer matrix, debugging checklists, and mentoring through pair sessions. Planned and executed the server migration from IONOS to Hetzner.
NOC IT Service Technician · Data Center
InterNetX
24/7 operations of server & network infrastructure. Built internal platforms using xcp-ng, Proxmox, Docker, Ansible. Big Data and Network Monitoring projects.
Cloud / DevOps Consultant
inSyca IT Solutions GmbH
Cloud infrastructure & DevOps on Azure. EDI application support (BizTalk), requirement engineering, test planning.
DevOps Engineer & Full-Stack Developer
Projekt Langstrumpf GmbH
Complete Hetzner cloud setup, CI/CD automation, DNS. Full-stack with Vue.js (Nuxt, Quasar), Node.js (Strapi), PHP (Laravel, Shopware), MySQL, MongoDB.
Senior Customer Advisor · Deputy Team Lead
CHECK24
Digitalisation of insurance processes. IT bug analysis and escalation to internal IT. Built internal knowledge base. Deputy team lead.
EU IT Support Centre Specialist
Staples
EU-wide IT inbound support. Problem analysis, internal knowledge base, one-touch handling.
Founded & built Houbsi IT Services
Independent positioning, client acquisition, offer strategy and service definition
IT Operations Management — team leadership & development
Staff scheduling, professional development, compliance implementation (ISO/IEC 27001:2022, GDPR)
Regional Manager Swabia — cooperative sales
Coordinating part-time insurance agents across Swabia, personnel acquisition, strategic territory planning
Deputy Team Lead & Knowledge Management — CHECK24
Deputy team leadership, built internal knowledge base, supported apprentice training
Ready to talk?
Often, a short conversation is all it takes to identify the biggest levers.