Robert Barnhardt
About Robert Barnhardt
Robert Barnhardt serves as the Director of Research & Architecture at BlueCat, where he leads a team of software architects, data analysts, and engineers. He has extensive experience in various roles at BlueCat since 2007, focusing on DNS data analysis and system design.
Current Role at BlueCat
Robert Barnhardt serves as the Director of Research & Architecture at BlueCat, a position he has held since 2018. In this role, he leads the Research & Architecture group, which comprises software architects, data analysts, and two teams of software engineers. His responsibilities include overseeing the design and engineering of systems that store, query, and analyze DNS information within a large data lake, specifically for the DNS Edge product.
Previous Positions at BlueCat
Barnhardt has held multiple positions at BlueCat since joining the company in 2007. He started as a Senior Product Specialist in Professional Services and progressed to roles such as Lead Software Engineer in Research & Development, Engineering Team Lead for Windows Development, Development Manager, and Technical Product Director. His tenure at BlueCat has spanned over a decade, allowing him to gain extensive experience in various technical and managerial capacities.
Technical Expertise and Responsibilities
In his current role, Barnhardt is responsible for devising and conducting practical experiments to extract actionable insights from DNS data. He focuses on redesigning and re-engineering systems to enhance scalability, availability, and throughput, particularly for BlueCat's flagship DNS Integrity product. His work emphasizes the importance of data-driven decision-making in the development of DNS solutions.
Career Background
Before joining BlueCat, Barnhardt worked at Frontline Technologies Inc. as a Director of IT and held various engineering roles, including Senior Network Engineer and Senior Applications Developer. His early career provided him with a solid foundation in network engineering and software development, which he has built upon throughout his time at BlueCat.