More about Derek

I grew up in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and moved to Pittsburgh at 18 for college. I earned my bachelor's and master's degrees at Robert Morris University and started my IT Support career there. After a first trip to Germany in 2015, I moved to Berlin.

Since then I've worked for companies of many sizes and industries. Over more than a decade I found I prefer smaller startups, where the challenges are more varied than in a big corporation, so I started working for myself as a freelance IT Support provider.

More about Beary Friendly IT

Working with Berlin startups taught me how small teams really operate and which hardware and tools they need. Most startups don't hire an IT person until around employee 70. Until then they struggle with IT setup, security and knowing which tools to buy, and the first IT person has a big mess to clean up. I started BearyFriendlyIT to help teams get it right before that, so they're ready for a smooth handover when their first IT person starts. Today that also includes preparing them for ISO 27001 and helping them adopt AI safely.

So why BearyFriendlyIT?

The brand is me. I wanted to avoid the techy, nerdy look common in IT Support and show my friendliness, and my identity as a gay man who is part of the bear community within LGBTQI+. That's where the name BearyFriendlyIT comes from, and everyone is welcome here, whatever they look like, whoever they love and however much they know about tech.

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