IT Operations & Cybersecurity

Chance Murphy

I run IT for companies in energy and other regulated industries. Cloud, security, infrastructure, and the service desk that keeps people working.

Email me LinkedIn 817.705.8703

Fort Worth, Texas

$2.2M+annual cloud savings across AWS and Azure
46%faster incident resolution
70%fewer critical vulnerabilities
99.9%uptime across 15 sites

About

I've spent more than 15 years in IT, starting on the floor at a steel mill and working up to leading technology operations and security for an oil and gas company through its IPO.

My work sits where operations, security, and cost meet: building service desks that actually close tickets, tightening access with Zero Trust and privileged account controls, connecting OT and IT safely, and cutting cloud spend without cutting corners.

I also take on cloud consulting work, helping companies get their AWS and Azure environments secure, well run, and priced right.

Experience

Natural Gas Energy Company

Texas
Senior Manager, IT
  • Lead IT operations and cybersecurity, managing the systems and support team.
  • Ran a full security assessment of Azure, Entra ID, and Microsoft 365 and drove the remediation plan.
  • Built Zero Trust remote access into OT and SCADA networks using Zscaler Private Access in Azure.
  • Moved the field device cellular fleet onto a private APN with traffic routed through company Azure infrastructure.
  • Standardized IT policies and procedures on a single template, and replaced the security awareness and phishing training platform.
  • Removed stale third party apps and access from Entra ID to shrink the attack surface.

Cloud Infrastructure Consulting

Independent
Cloud Infrastructure Consultant
  • Cut a fintech client's AWS bill 72%, from $61K to $17K a month, through database and compute right sizing, storage lifecycle rules, and cleanup of idle resources.
  • Delivered cost savings across several AWS accounts in real estate technology and financial services.
  • Built per server cost reporting for finance leadership, using cost allocation tags to track application spend month over month.
  • Tightened access and audit controls: MFA enforcement, least privilege IAM for contractors, and CloudTrail logging tuned for SOC audit evidence.

Public Oil & Gas Company

Fort Worth, TX
Technology Operations & Cybersecurity Manager
Information Technology Services Manager
  • Led IPO readiness for IT and cybersecurity, closing ITGC and SOX gaps ahead of SEC requirements.
  • Ran the IT integration for a major asset acquisition, consolidating infrastructure, security, and service management across corporate and field sites.
  • Saved $1.2M+ a year in AWS through reserved instance planning, storage lifecycle automation, and right sizing.
  • Built an ITIL service management practice that cut ticket response time 52% and resolution time 46%.
  • Rolled out Zero Trust, MFA, and privileged access management across IT and OT; improved patch compliance 55% and cut critical vulnerabilities 70%.
  • Worked with CCUS and power plant teams on secure OT/IT connectivity for emissions monitoring and plant automation.
  • Delivered a production dashboarding and BI initiative giving leadership real time operational visibility.

Multi Site Agriculture Company

Fort Worth, TX
IT Operations Manager
System Administrator
  • Ran IT for 15 locations at 99.9% uptime and led an 8 person team.
  • Saved $500K+ a year in Azure through right sizing, reserved capacity, and lifecycle automation.
  • Rebuilt backup and disaster recovery on Rubrik and Veeam, cutting recovery times in half.
  • Launched a self service portal and knowledge base that reduced ticket volume by 20%+.
  • Managed Azure, Microsoft 365, Intune, and Autopilot, plus 52 virtual servers and Dell EMC storage.

Steel Manufacturer

Texas
Operations and Support Analyst 2 / Site Lead
  • Site IT lead at a steel mill, supporting plant operations, users, and industrial systems.

What I work on

IT Operations Cybersecurity Governance Zero Trust Privileged Access Microsoft Azure & Entra ID AWS Microsoft 365 & Intune Cloud Cost Optimization OT/IT Security ITIL Service Delivery Incident Response Disaster Recovery NIST / SOX Compliance Vendor Management Change Management Process Automation

Education

Computer Science coursework, Navarro College