MEET THE TEAM

Keith Edmunds

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Keith is an award winning entrepreneur who has worked in the IT industry since 1980. Excited and intrigued by Linux, he followed its development throughout the 1990s, using it within the workplace from time to time.

By the end of that decade, it became apparent that Linux had much to offer businesses. Quite apart from the zero licence cost, the Open Source philosophy would also be good for businesses. He set about researching how to help businesses make the most of Linux, and Tiger Computing was the result.

Today, Keith is still a keen Linux advocate, but he takes the view that, for most businesses, Linux is merely a means to an end. The starting point has to be the business requirements, not the technical solution.

Outside of work, Keith plays with aeroplanes, gliders (he’s a qualified gliding instructor and examiner), guitars and attempts to appear cool to his teenage daughter. He’s far less successful at one than the others.

Cecilia Lindberg

FINANCE AND ADMIN MANAGER

Cecilia has been a member of the Tiger Computing management team since 2004, and is the Finance and Admin Manager.

Cecilia’s role within the world of Linux is a far cry from her roots, which saw her early interest in animal behaviour culminate in a Biology degree from Oxford University followed by a PhD in Animal Behaviour and Welfare, and a successful 12 years working as an applied ethologist across the world.

Her move from academia to the business world saw Cecilia join the team at Tiger Computing, where she has been busy applying her scientific background and animal behaviour skills to business problems ever since. A previous enthusiast of the Mac OS operating system, Cecilia is now a true Linux convert and is immensely proud of the Tiger Computing team, not only for its collective wealth of Linux expertise, but for the passion each and every member has for its clients.

When not in the office, Cecilia is often found riding her horses or attempting to create a little outpost of her native Sweden in the Forest of Dean.

Chris Boot

SENIOR TECHNICAL ARCHITECT

Chris has made a hobby of computers since he was 12, got his first taste for Linux in 1998 and has been using it ever since. He grew up in the sunny South of France in a half Polish and half Yorkshire household, and returned to his roots to go to the University of Huddersfield and take a Computer Science degree.

During his course Chris met his wife-to-be, spent his sandwich year at Oracle working with their Web Applications Support team and came out the other end with a First Class degree. He then moved to Devon, where he has been a Linux Systems Administrator, before heading to Monmouth to join Tiger Computing.

In his spare time he enjoys walking his dog, doing Open Source development work and slaying hordes of zombies in computer games.

“Tiger Computing really is a great place to work. Every day brings new challenges to sink your teeth into: we have quite a mixture of clients in various fields and their requirements are all different. We’re a great little tight-knit team and it’s always fun to work together to solve a problem or design a new system for a client.”

Chris is a Red Hat Certified Engineer, a Red Hat Specialist in Security: Linux (110-355-005), a CNCF Certified Kubernetes Administrator (LF-829cf3z587) and is a Debian Developer.

Jonathan Wiltshire

OPERATIONS MANAGER

Jonathan originally trained in technical theatre, but took a sharp left turn into IT – first with a leading ISP in the City, and then with both state and private school network management.

He became a Debian Developer in 2010 and holds a variety of hats in that project, including Release Assistant. Joining Tiger Computing has given him the opportunity to specialise in this field whilst remaining true to his core values of freedom, education and collaboration.

Jonathan never lost his love for theatre and can often be found in dark corners of venues all over the Midlands.

“Working at Tiger Computing really is as interesting as it sounds – if you can stand the pace! It’s a small company so I get a big say in how we do things, and there’s always someone ready to help out when I need a hand. We don’t just fix things – we build some pretty cool infrastructure for our clients too, and I love the challenge of getting that just right.”

Jonathan is a Debian Developer and a Professional Member of the British Computer Society.

Niko Wolf

LINUX SUPPORT CONSULTANT

Niko grew up in Greece at a time when internet cafes were all the rage.

He quickly developed an interest in the infrastructure and software that makes the 24/7 magic happen, and soon discovered Open Source software and the Open Source community.

He followed his passion by designing and maintaining complex networks with thousands of systems. In the process, his appreciation for Linux and Open Source software in general grew.

He retains a passion for computer network security and his downtime is primarily occupied with DIY electronics, chess and web development.

Abigail Murray

LINUX SUPPORT CONSULTANT

Abigail built her first computer while at school; it wasn’t long before she discovered Linux and has been using it ever since!

After university, she began her technical career in the rail industry and became a Linux Systems Administrator in 2017. Following that she made the switch to DevOps in the retail space before moving to Tiger Computing.

In her free time Abbie can usually be found working on her homelab, volunteering on a heritage railway or hiking up a mountain.

Abigail holds an ITIL® 3 Foundation Certificate. She is also a Red Hat Certified Administrator (240-028-969).

Billie O'Dwyer

JUNIOR LINUX SUPPORT CONSULTANT

Billie’s interest in computers became apparent during his first week at primary school, when he was made to sit at the other side of the classroom because he just wanted to play with the computer instead of learning the alphabet. Since discovering desktop Linux during university, Billie has been using it and annoying friends with passionate open-source advocacy ever since.

After graduating with a BA in Japanese, Billie pivoted from languages into IT and took a job with a managed service provider in Harrogate, and later joined the in-house team at a Leeds-based law firm. After taking a year out of work to pursue an MA in Linguistics, joining the team at Tiger Computing fulfils Billie’s dream of a full time job working with Linux.

When not sitting behind a computer keyboard, Billie can typically be found behind the other kind of keyboard; on stage with a guitar and a band or two; or furiously rolling dice in tabletop RPGs.

Shaun Poole

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

One day after completing a National Diploma in Sporting Excellence, Shaun took the next logical step and became an insurance salesman! Over the next 15 years Shaun sold pretty much every type of insurance and then, once he couldn’t take any more insurance jargon, he transitioned into a business development manager for a data storage solutions company. Here he worked exclusively with film and video production companies and one proud achievement was securing the back up storage contract for the James Bond film ‘No Time to Die’.

When he’s not working, Shaun can be found either in the gym, playing football or running around after his two young children Max and Reuben.

Bonita Birkett

VIRTUAL OFFICE MANAGER

After graduating with a BSc in Manufacturing System & Business, Bonita began a career in the defence telecoms industry. Primarily working in project & commercial management, she was involved in the bidding process and project management to manage the development and delivery of secure data network contacts to the defence sector.

Following the arrival of her twin daughters, her career took a change of direction when she returned to her passion for dance and retrained as a dance teacher, spending the next 15 years running a dance school, before joining Tiger Computing as the Virtual Office Manager.

After many years supporting her children at rowing events, she decided to learn to row herself and can now regularly be found rowing on the River Wye or competing for her local rowing club in her spare time.

Rhys

IN CHARGE OF HEARING

Woof, I’m Rhys. I’m a – hang on, someone’s moved my tennis ball – anyway, I’m a Hearing Dog. Note the capitals. Hard work getting them.

I am Cecilia’s Ears, figuratively speaking. She’s deaf, you see. So I’m there, on the case, listening for door bells, kitchen timers and smoke alarms, keeping her appraised of developments. So many sounds. I quite like The Eagles and a bit of Steely Dan, but I don’t need to tell her about those.

I love Linux, apparently, although I’d rather spend my time cataloguing and arranging my bone collection and chasing tennis balls. Very partial to tennis balls, did I mention that? Oh, and despite the name, there are no tigers here at all. Odd.

Anyway, I’m a chocolate Labrador. You should have seen me when I was a puppy! Adorable or what! Still pretty pretty, even if I do say it myself. Sleek, in a kind of sophisticated way, if you know what I mean.

D’ya like the red collar? I can’t make up my mind. I think it brings out my fur tone nicely, but I wish they’d cut that bit off the end.

Oh, it says here I have to mention what my hobbies are. Well, I enjoy dreaming, accompanied by vigorous twitching, and it’s nice to have a paddle in the Wye of a lunchtime. I have a toy monkey that I’m very fond of, but I think the ultimate pleasure is standing in the garden with a tennis ball in my mouth and (can I say “peeing” here? No?), er, waiting.

So that’s me. Will you throw my tennis ball for me?