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Explore Cisco
Be ready to be curious to learn new things and adapt to a changing environment

Automation engineer

Mukul Manikandan

"Be ready to be curious to learn new things and adapt to a changing environment."

How it all began

I was in my final year of college working towards my bachelor's degree in electronics and communication engineering when Cisco offered me an internship in Technical Consulting. During that internship, I went through CCNA, starting from the very basics, including basic consulting and switching concepts. Then I did the CCNP Enterprise (routing and switching) certification. After a knowledge check session to help identify my strengths, I was chosen to be in network security. I was able to specialize my knowledge and area of technology strength by also earning my CCNA Security certification. I did well in that internship and was offered a full-time role in July, 2017.

Springboard from a solid foundation

That first job built a good foundation for me. It was a place I could pick up and grow from. In 2019, I decided to quit my job with Cisco to pursue a master’s degree in computer networking at North Carolina State University. After I completed my master’s, I started applying for internships again. That’s when I got a call from Meraki and accepted an internship. My summer internship was back in 2020, and now I work here full time.

This was a complete transition to my software side of things. I joined the wireless software automation team and worked on a project building out some frameworks for their location analytics feature. I also managed to clear my DevNet Associate in that internship. I've been trying to do as much I can in the certification field. I'm always thinking about what's next, and how I can continue to challenge myself.

Springboard from a solid foundation

Springboard from a solid foundation

About Mukul

Certifications

CCNA
CCNP Enterprise
CCNA Security
DevNet Associate

Location

San Francisco, CA

Hobbies

Cooking
Running
Working out at the gym
Playing the guitar

What does having a Cisco Certification mean to you?

"The certification experience gave me a lot of the knowledge that I needed for the fundamentals that I didn’t get from my undergrad. The certifications took over and gave me all the necessary background I needed."

Having a Cisco certification gives you more confidence when talking to customers. When a customer is talking to you, they expect that you’re a professional and a specialist who knows everything about the product. If you have a CCNA or CCNP, you have a customer’s trust.

The knowledge gained is also all transferable from paper to the product. If you know the fundamentals, you can figure your way around to help customers with integrating non-Cisco devices, like a Juniper router or whatever it might be. It boosts the value of Cisco.
Mukul Manikandan

What would you tell your younger self?

I should have completed my CCIE lab exam before I left for my masters. I feel like it would have given me a lot more credibility in terms of boosting my professional experience to another level.

What would you tell a friend?

You need to be passionate about what you’re doing to begin with. Become certified because it boosts your credibility. It gives you opportunities to apply for jobs.

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People always want to know who they're talking to. They want to know if you’re qualified. Certifications give you instant credibility.

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Olivia Wolf

"The knowledge that I’ve got from studying for those certifications gave me the confidence that I’ll always be able to get a job if I need to."

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