Ishtiaq Ahmed

Principal Database Engineer and Solutions Architect with 16+ years of Microsoft SQL Server administration, architecture, and performance tuning, plus experience with PostgreSQL and the Azure data platform, and 10+ years in technical pre-sales. Designs and runs high-availability and disaster-recovery platforms for mission-critical workloads, including 911 public safety dispatch and healthcare systems; leads upgrades and migrations from SQL Server 2016 through 2025, on-premises and in the cloud; and serves as the Tier 4 escalation point for a large managed services customer base. Known for turning around poorly performing systems through server- and query-level tuning, building repeatable support processes, mentoring teams, and translating business requirements into reliable, secure, and compliant database designs customers trust.