Peter Grecian

Profile

Experienced Cloud and DevOps Engineer with 15+ years in high-stakes environments—from Hollywood VFX to elite cloud platforms. Expert in building robust, scalable infrastructure with a strong focus on automation, cost efficiency, and sustainability. Skilled communicator who bridges the gap between operations, engineering, and business stakeholders.

Core Skills

• Cloud & Infrastructure: AWS (EC2, EKS, CloudWatch, OpenSearch), Kubernetes, Terraform
• Automation & CI/CD: Puppet, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, ArgoCD, Kustomize
• Monitoring & Troubleshooting: Prometheus, Grafana, AppDynamics, OpenSearch Dashboards. Reduced on-call alarms from 20 to 2 per week.
• Performance & Cost Optimization: Infrastructure cost modeling, instance reservation planning, carbon footprint minimization. Optimized Reserved Instances saving 100k+ per year.
• Programming & Scripting: Python, C++, Linux administration

Professional Experience

• July 2025: Completed CNCF "Introduction to Kubernetes" LSF158 (Certificate)
• July 2025: Completed AWS "EKS Primer" (Certificate)
• Spring 2025: Acting CEO for fitness charity for older people "Silverfit"
• Spring 2025: Consultant pipeline engineer, Film VFX

AWS Cloud Engineer / DevOps • The BMJ

March 2018 – November 2024

• Provisioning and configuration of AWS infrastructure using Terraform and Puppet.
• Engineered intelligent monitoring solutions with Prometheus, Grafana, AppDynamics, and CloudWatch.
• Designed OpenSearch Dashboards for real-time ops troubleshooting.
• Developed models for cost optimization and sustainability; authored AWS Costs Cheat Sheet on Medium and GitHub.

Senior Cloud Engineer / DevOps • Crystal Ski (TUI)

January 2015 – March 2018

• Managed AWS-based booking system handling over £100M in annual sales.
• Automated infrastructure with Terraform and Puppet.
• Delivered rapid and stable releases using Jenkins pipelines.

Senior Systems Engineer • Method Studios

February 2014 – January 2015

• Scaled and tuned high-speed data pipelines for major VFX productions.
• Managed Isilon, 10GbE networks, and LTO storage systems.

Senior Linux Systems Administrator • Google DeepMind

June 2012 – February 2014

• Built and deployed Linux compute cluster with Grid Engine for AI workloads.
• Procured and configured scalable compute and storage hardware.

Freelance Systems & Storage Engineer

January 2008 – June 2012

• Delivered and designed custom high-speed storage and network appliances for VFX studios in Soho.

Senior Systems & Programming Lead • Moving Picture Company

August 1994 – January 2008

• Designed and implemented C++/Python tools for VFX pipelines (e.g. Harry Potter, National Lottery).
• Collaborated with creatives and agencies, operated bespoke hardware and software.

Education

• MSc, IT & Computer Graphics – Middlesex University
• BSc (Hons), Physics – University of Oxford, St Catherine’s College (3rd class honours). Focus on practical experimental Physics.

Publications & Presentations

• AWS Costs Cheat Sheet – Popular Medium post & GitHub gist on optimizing AWS spend
• EC2 - The Making of the AWS Cheat Sheet - Detailed look at EC2 prices reveal bargain regions
• Presented internally on Kubernetes adoption, cloud budgeting, and sustainability in tech

Highlights & Achievements

• Supported infrastructure for over £100M in annual sales
• Migrated production systems to AWS from on-premises, improving resilience and speed
• Reduced costs and emissions via strategic instance and storage optimization
• Technical thought-leader and trusted voice across engineering and business teams