In our Staff Spotlights, we get up close and personal with our amazing Sophos team members.
Up next is Alyssa Rilloraza, Technical Support Engineer L2-2 and FY24 Sophos Team 10 Member.
Let's Talk Career
1. Can you tell us about your role at Sophos?
I’m an L2 Technical Support Engineer under the APAC NSG team. My main responsibility is resolving complex and escalated cases from our L1 engineers.
Additionally, I mentor and do knowledge sharing among my pod group and our APAC mentoring channel.
2. How did you get to the role you're in now?
I joined Sophos as an L1 engineer in October 2022. Achieving Sophos Support Team 10 status in FY24 opened the door to a promotion as an L2 Technical Support Engineer.
3.What inspired you to get into IT and security?
My dad is a computer enthusiast and used to involve me in his projects. One of my jobs was holding the flashlight while he tinkered with the PC. As a kid, my dad used to limit my access to the computer and the internet by altering our router, which only provoked my interest in figuring out how to fix this. My curiosity about our router access stuck and led me to this industry.
4. What do you enjoy most about your role?
I enjoy the variety of cases I get to handle, especially complex troubleshooting. Scouring through Wireshark captures, and connection tracking logs can be like solving a mystery. Each case I close feels like a reward.
5. What's something you've done during your time in the organization that you're proud of?
I’m proud to say that I’ve only received positive CSAT since I joined as an L1 in 2022.
6. Describe a typical day in your Sophos life.
I start my day by checking emails for any advisories or known issues. Then, I progress my cases, assist teammates where needed, and take care of mentoring requests throughout the day.
7. What's the best advice you can give to someone who has just started their career?
Always keep your customers updated. If you’re stuck on a case, reach out to L2s, managers, or even check the mentoring channels.
You can also go through other CSAT cases to learn how experienced engineers troubleshoot issues and how they communicate.
Lastly, take advantage of different Support Readiness resources like KBAs, training sessions in the Sophos Learning Portal, and other materials found on Confluence, JIRA, and Service Cloud. Keeping up to date makes things so much easier.
8. What would you do (for a career) if you weren't doing this?
Probably a doctor. I think I’d enjoy helping people.
Role in the Sophos Community
9. What's a fun fact about you that you could share with the Community?
Some might disagree with me, but I prefer unique Filipino dishes like bopis (spicy organ meat stew) and papaitan (bitter organ meat stew) food more than the popular dishes like sinigang (sour stew) and tinola (chicken ginger soup).
10. Have you posted any Recommended Read guides on the Community?
Not yet, but I have a few ideas based on the feedback from customers and my troubleshooting experiences.
Who is Alyssa outside of Work?
11. What are your hobbies outside of work?
I enjoy playing games on Steam and Nintendo with my siblings. I also do fun runs with my university friends.
When I’m alone, I play turn-based JRPGs and watch K-pop videos.
12. What’s something you’re planning on doing in the next year that you’ve never done?
My goal is to do a 10K or 16K fun run.
13. What's one thing you're really good at?
I’m a really patient person. My friends say that I can stay calm in any situation.
14. If you could learn how to do anything, what would it be?
This might be surprising to some, but I’d like to learn how to ride a bike and swim.
15. Tell us about where you live (and your journey getting there - if applicable).
I’ve lived in Pasig City my entire life. I attended a local Catholic school from elementary to high school and went to college in Manila City. Eventually, I moved back to Pasig City, after living in a dormitory, because I missed the comfort of home.
16. What's your favorite thing about where you live?
Our neighborhood is very peaceful, and I can feel the fresh air when I go out for walks.
Moreover, I love how everything is accessible – the market, church, pharmacy, and even a clubhouse.
17. Tell us something that might surprise us about you.
I used to work in the telecom industry.
18. Any favorite line from a movie?
“Chaos isn’t a pit. Chaos is a ladder.” - Game of Thrones
19. If you had a superpower, what would it be?
Travel through the multiverse.