Wesley Geelhoed
Highly skilled Architect in software-defined and cloud-native technologies
About me
Cloud Architect (specialized in Private Cloud)
My name is Wesley Geelhoed, based in the Netherlands. I am a Senior Cloud Architect and Practice Lead VMware at Copaco, operating at the intersection of architecture, strategy, and commercial innovation.
With over 15 years of experience in IT and more than a decade focused on multi-cloud, I specialize in designing and positioning cloud platforms with a strong emphasis on private cloud, hybrid architectures, networking, security, and connectivity. My current role combines deep technical expertise with a strong commercial focus, helping partners and customers translate business objectives into scalable, future-proof cloud solutions based on VMware Cloud Foundation.
Before joining Copaco, I worked at VMware as a Consulting Architect across the NEMEA region, and I continue to bring that enterprise-level experience into every engagement—ranging from architecture design and migration strategies to shaping go-to-market propositions. I am a VMware vExpert for 8 consecutive years and a VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX-NV #290), part of a global elite group of architects recognized for validating enterprise-grade solution design.
What drives me most is turning complexity into clarity—analyzing challenges from both technical and business perspectives, and guiding organizations toward the right decisions. I bring a combination of strategic thinking, hands-on expertise, and strong communication skills, enabling teams and partners to move forward with confidence.
I thrive in environments where innovation, collaboration, and challenge come together.
INDUSTRY RECOGNITION
- VCDX Panelist 2023-2024
- VCDX-NV 290
- VMware vExpert 2018-2025 NSX and Security
- Broadcom Software Knight
- Book Co-Author IT Architect Series: Stories From The Field, Vol. 2
Certifications & Courses
CERTIFICATIONS (HIGHTLIGHTS)
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert | MCSE - Windows Server
- Cisco Certified Network Associate | CCNA
- VMware Certified Implementation Expert (NV) | VCIX-NV
- VMware Certified Implementation Expert (DCV) | VCIX-DCV
- VMware Specialist | VMware vSAN Specialist
- VMware Specialist | VMware Validated Designs Specialist
- VMware Certified Implementation Advanced Professional - NSX-T | VCAP-NV 2023
- VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX) | VCDX-NV (290)
- VMware Cloud Foundation Certificate | VCP-VCF Architect (VCF 9)
- VMware Cloud Foundation Advanded Certificate | VCAP Networking & Storage (VCF 9)
- Find all my IT industry related certifications and badges HERE
COURSES
- Leverage Azure VMware Solution and create a hybrid cloud on proven technology (VMware & Microsoft)
- TOGAF Training
- Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)
- AVI Load Balancing for Web Application Firewalling and Ingress Kubernetes Monitoring for Cybersecurity.
- CCNA & CCNP
- ITIL Foundation v3
- MCSA & MCSE Courses
PROJECTS AND WORK EXPERIENCE
2025 (November) - Present
Senior Cloud Architect
As Senior Cloud Architect at Copaco Cloud, I hold a combined technical and commercial role as practice lead for VMware, responsible for developing, positioning and delivering VMware Cloud propositions based on VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF).
- Lead the VMware practice and help shape Copaco's VMware Cloud proposition.
- Develop commercial and technical propositions for private cloud, VCF and hybrid cloud scenarios.
- Perform VMware Cloud Foundation readiness assessments and translate findings into concrete advisory and migration roadmaps.
- Actively participate in pre-sales engagements, including proposal development, validation and customer presentations.
- Advise partners and customers on architecture, migration paths and cloud strategy.
- Collaborate with sales, product management and leadership to define strategy and portfolio direction.
- Translate Broadcom/VMware product developments into actionable propositions and partner value.
- Establish and standardize assessment and proposal processes.
- Support partner onboarding to VMware Cloud Foundation.
- Position Copaco VMware Cloud as a private cloud alternative for the partner ecosystem.
- Contribute to commercial growth of VMware-related cloud services.
Key Technologies: VMware Cloud Foundation, vSphere, NSX, vSAN, hybrid cloud, private cloud.
2025 (April-December)
Cloud Architect
As Cloud Architect for Equinix, I am responsible for designing and developing a new private cloud product for the Managed Private Cloud (MPC) portfolio. This role focuses on delivering globally consistent IT services through pre-defined deliverables and architectural blueprints.
- Design dedicated customer platforms based on VMware Cloud Foundation 9.0 workload domains standards.
- Conduct a Proof of Concept for VMware Cloud Foundation 9.0 including all infrastructure dependent services such as NTP, Routing, Firewalling etc.
- Create high-level designs with scope, use cases, assumptions and limitations for MPC Core services.
- Develop deployment and fulfillment descriptions for MPC Core infrastructure implementation.
- Address specific customer use cases in the design including backup integration, disaster recovery tooling, and workload access.
- Design single- and stretched clusters related to the different SLA models of Equinix.
- Implement networking solutions with secure access and isolated mangement and customer workloads.
- Design & Configure storage solutions for customer environments.
- Developed automation using Powershell, ansible and terraform for automated VCF deployments.
Key Technologies: VMware Cloud Foundation, vCenter, NSX, vSAN, Equinix infrastructure, backup integration tools (Commvault, Veeam), disaster recovery solutions (Zerto, Veeam).
2025 (January) - Present
Principal Architect
As Principal Architect I mainly focus on design, deployment and migration projects for on-premises private cloud infrastructures and public cloud offerings related to VMware technologies.
- Design and Deploy VMware Cloud Foundation for On-Premises production datacenter.
- Migrate workloads from legacy platform to newly built platform according to business requirements.
- Integrate on-premises VMware Cloud Foundation with public cloud SDDC - Oracle Cloud VMware Solution (OCVS).
- Create network & connectivity design for Hybrid Cloud between VCF on-premises and OCVS in the Oracle Cloud.
- Create network & security design for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI).
November 2024 - June 2025
Lead Consultant
- Conducted Design Workshops for new platform design for on-premises infrastructure.
- Created Virtual Infrastructure Design and Software-Defined Networking Design.
- Created detailed technical migration plan for both networking, security, compute and storage related services.
- Acted as technical lead during entire project from implementation until migration.
Involved technologies: VMware vSphere, NSX and HCX, Dell Storage & Fortigate & Juniper networking.
August 2023 - September 2025
Cloud infrastructure architect
As lead Architect within TenneT I lead IT Architects to design (co-development) and develop a new fit for purpose private cloud with a GitOps driven automation and cloud-native mindset.
- Lead Platform Architect on new private cloud platform initiative focused on Core Infrastructure (Network, Virtualization, automation & cloud native platforms.
- Ensure standardization and automation of platforms and products (Infrastructure as Code and CI/CD) with Powershell, Ansible, Terraform and Github Actions.
- Designed hybrid cloud ready model for technologies used in both public- and private cloud (Microsoft Azure)
- Developed migration plan for compute services within Azure.
- Developed a storage strategy for PCF including all mainstream storage offerings such as, block storage, file storage and object storage.
- Designed Red Hat Developer Hub (Backstage)
- Designed and implemented Red Hat Openshift and created integration with core private cloud platform on networking and storage.
- Co-developed devops strategy and CI/CD toolset for a complete end to end automation chain for both cloud native- and core infrastructure services.
- Co-developed consumption and resourceplane on top of Openshift and VMware Cloud Foundation, based on a HPE compute stack.
2024 (January - June)
Domain Architect Private Cloud platforms
At ABN Amro Bank I was added to the Architecture & Platform Strategy team temporarily for the following tasks
- Create architecture roadmap for IDS/IPS on private cloud
- Define network automation strategy on private cloud
- Guide product teams during migration to the new private cloud
2021 (October) - 2023 (July)
Consulting Architect
As a Consulting Architect within the EMEA region I am working on multidisciplinary projects, which means I am responsible for the successful delivery of a wide variety of VMware Solution products. I currently focus on Networking, Security and Cloud Mobility. As a VCDX within VMware I am recognized as someone who is skilled on both technical and soft-skill level and with the ability to learn new technologies very quickly I am able to adapt very quickly into new roles and projects.
- Taking ownership of business outcomes of projects, lead the technical project teams and take accountability for all deliverables within the project.
- Strategically plan with sales, pre-sales and the customer to build out a roadmap.
- Vision new services and requirements and be a trusted advisor to technical decision makers and key stakeholders on projects.
- Defining and presenting transformational journey to customers.
- Working on project budget with Project Managers.
- Ensures the solution being delivered in a fit for purpose manner.
- Developing VMware consulting service offerings internally with creating best-practices guides and reference designs.
- I am gathering use-cases and requirements to create high-quality architecture design based on the VCDX design methodology.
Key Projects:
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UK) – VMware | Lead Architect on Migration Project Kongsberg Gruppen ASA (NOR), ODC-Noord (NL) – VMware | Lead Architect for Service Providers Gemeente Utrecht (NL) – VMware | Architect on Multi-Cloud Business Projects
2021 (January) - 2021 (October)
SDDC Architect
During my time as a SDDC Architect at ITQ I was responsible for multiple projects as Architect.
Key Projects:
- KPN (NL) – ITQ | SDDC Architect
- HMC Haaglanden (NL) – ITQ | Network Architect
- Tesco (UK) – ITQ | Migration Architect
2020 (April) - 2020 (December)
Solutions Architect
As a Solutions Architect at AnyLinQ I am focused on the VMware portfolio my main tasks were;
- Shaping, guiding and helping on strategies for the internal VMware proposition.
- Working on Architectural Designs for customers
- Technical Pre-Sales at customers.
- Helping our recruitment finding suitable candidates with a VMware background.
- Technical Consultancy assignments within the VMware portfolio.
- Develop and create new services together with our Marketing and Sales departments.
- VMware Evangelist within the company; providing help and steering to colleagues.
Key Project: Van Leeuwen Buizen (NL) – AnylinQ | Lead Architect
2017 - 2020
SDDC Consultant
As a (Senior) Consultant at ITQ I worked on several projects throughout those three (3) years. The most outstanding projects are listed below.
- NSX-T, Network Insight and Micro-Segmentation Project at VDA B (Brussels, Belgium)
- NSX-T Design for Multi-Site at DXC Technology for UWV (The Hague, Netherlands)
- VCF on VxRail Implementation at Cancom GmbH (Munich, Germany)
- NSX-T and Kubernetes implementation at UCB Pharma (Brussels, Belgium)
- Implementation and migration from a legacy environment to a full stack SDDC at Gemeente Haarlem (Haarlem, Netherlands)
- Design and Implementation for Micro-Segmentation at UMCG (Groningen, Netherlands) using Powershell.
- Multi-Site Software-Defined Datacenter Design for Gemeente Haarlem (Haarlem, Netherlands)
- Migration of a on-premises environment, to a new environment at European Patent Office (The Hague, Netherlands)
- Migration of a on-premises environment to the IBM Cloud at Nationale Nederlanden (The Hague, Netherlands)
- Upgrade vSphere Environments and migrate from Fibre Channel to vSAN at Peka Kroef (Odialliapeel, Netherlands)
2016 - 2017
Senior System Engineer
Responsible for projects, consultancy assignments, and providing third-line support to all the customers and resellers of Successfully NL. Besides this, the job also comes with full responsibility for the full cloud platform of Successfully.
2016 - 2017
System & Infrastructure Engineer
System administration tasks and providing third-line support to Inlumni' IT infrastructure and customers.
2011 - 2016
First- and Secondline Support Roles (multiple)
I started my IT career in 2011 where I had several roles as service desk support engineer or 1st or 2nd line engineer.
Education
2009 - 2012
Computer Science & Information Technology - IT Operations
2007 - 2009