// SQL Server DBA  |  AI Systems Builder  |  Rio Rancho, NM

Richard McCrea Database. Evolved.

25+ years turning enterprise data chaos into engineered order. From Intel's manufacturing pipeline to credit union AI — I don't just manage databases. I build the systems that make them intelligent. Currently working with SQL Server 2025.

See if I'm your hire View my work
25+ Years Enterprise DBA
$100M Saved at MGM Resorts
200+ Databases Migrated
185K Members in HELIOS AI
5,000+ AI Queries Self-Learned & Growing
// Featured Project

What I've Built

Built for Sunward FCU

HELIOS — AI-Powered Marketing Query System

Built at Sunward Federal Credit Union. Staff type a question in plain English — HELIOS writes the SQL, runs it, and returns results. It logs every query with the user, timestamp, row count, and how long it took.

We mapped out how the member database is segmented, found the most efficient way to query each piece, joined them together, and built that into a reusable tool. That became the foundation HELIOS was trained on — 72 seed queries to start, 5,000+ self-learned from real tickets over 6 months, and it keeps growing.

Mail return rate dropped from 3–5% to 0.2%. Saves $300+ per 10,000 mail pieces.

LLM Integration C# WPF SQL Server SSIS PowerShell Audit Logging Python API Natural Language → SQL
SUNWARD
Built for Sunward FCU

QDDM — Quick & Dirty Datamart

(It is so not quick, and absolutely not dirty.) A full datamart architecture built to support HELIOS — structured staging, validated address logic, deduplication patterns, seeded with 72 annotated queries — now self-expanded to 5,000+ production queries through 6 months of live operation. The system compounds in value every day it runs.

Data Architecture ETL Design Vector Embeddings SQL Server Training Data Curation
SUNWARD
// Career

25 Years of War Stories

Sep 2024 — Present
SQL Server DBA (Full-Time)
Sunward FCU — Albuquerque, NM
Hired full-time after delivering HELIOS — a self-teaching AI system that started with 72 seed queries and has self-learned from 5,000+ production queries in 6 months. Leading SQL Server infrastructure migration to AWS including S3 bucket configuration. Authored SQL Server installation standards, implemented gMSA across all service accounts, built SSIS packages and PowerShell diagnostics tooling. Brought on permanently for results delivered as a contractor.
Jan 2024 — Sep 2024
SQL Server DBA (Contractor)
Sandia Laboratory Federal Credit Union / Robert Half Tech — Albuquerque, NM
Engaged as contractor to modernize SQL Server infrastructure. Designed and built HELIOS AI query system from the ground up. Work quality led directly to full-time offer upon company rebrand to Sunward FCU.
Sep 2019 — Mar 2023
SQL Server DBA
Clark County Water Reclamation District / Robert Half Tech — Las Vegas, NV
Managed 24 SQL Servers across DEV, TEST, and PROD. Migrated SQL 2012/2014 to 2016–2019. Set up PowerBI, deployed Reporting Services 2017, implemented DevOps automation across infrastructure. Optimized developer queries and reinforced security standards.
Aug 2013 — Sep 2014
SQL Server DBA
MGM Resorts International — Las Vegas, NV
Reduced backup costs by $100M by eliminating redundant offline storage through strategic redesign with Xerox. Managed SQL Server clusters (2000–2014). Built internal C# and PowerShell tools for diagnostics and performance tuning.
May 2011 — Nov 2012
ETL / BI Developer
Intel Corporation / Mindteck Inc. — Hillsboro, OR
Designed Intel's first SSIS package spanning the entire manufacturing pipeline for near real-time visibility. Built ODS staging across MySQL, Oracle, and SQL Server. Achieved sub-10-second report rendering with MicroStrategy teams.
Apr 1999 — Oct 2010
Systems Analyst / Project Manager / Developer
3E Company — San Diego, CA
11 years delivering mission-critical systems. Led DevOps and Agile adoption. Migrated 200+ Crystal Reports to SSRS. Built real-time productivity tracking, MS Dynamics integrations, and full SQL Server infrastructure.
// Capabilities

The Stack

Database
  • SQL Server 2000–2025
  • T-SQL / Stored Procs
  • HADR / Clustering
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL / Oracle
  • Performance Tuning
ETL / BI
  • SSIS
  • SSRS
  • PowerBI
  • MicroStrategy
  • Data Modeling
  • ER Studio
AI / Modern
  • LLM Integration
  • Natural Language → SQL
  • Vector Embeddings
  • RAG Systems
  • AWS / S3
  • Claude API
Dev / Ops
  • PowerShell
  • C# / .NET / WPF
  • Python
  • Git / GitHub
  • DevOps / Agile
  • gMSA / Security
// Interactive

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// Contact

Let's Talk

Phone
702-931-8424
Location
Rio Rancho, New Mexico
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