Thomas J Colby

THOMAS J. COLBY 4310 N Sheridan RD, 3B  Chicago, IL  60613 -http://www.thomasjcolby.com/ QUALIFICATION HIGHLIGHTS Over twenty years management, training and development experience; especially surrounding software and implementation rollouts. Ten years of operational/process-focused management including seven years of business process improvement management for Ryland Homes where I supported twenty divisions in thirty-four markets enterprise-wide. Presently, I am the Technology Training Manager for a VAR and Advanced IT Solutions Provider. Governing Board of Directors for a non-profit, Rogue Philanthropy, over 2.5 years. SOFTWARE PACKAGES           MSOffice Expert MS CRM Dynamics Camtasia Studio Email Marketing Systems (ExactTarget, ClickDimensions, Others) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Professional Services Automation (PSA) Learning Management Systems (LMS) SQL Server 7 Google Docs/Surveys/Drive SKILLS          Effective Public Speaking, Classroom Instruction, Web Presentations, Media Presenter (Green Screen) Instructional Designer, Technical Writing, Video Tutorial Creation Adult Learning Concepts and Learning Methodologies/Models Sales Process Development, Sales Enablement, KPI Reporting Interactive Marketing; PPC, Organic, Lead Acquisition and Lead Scoring, Google Analytics. Project & Program Management Data Analysis & Conversion Business Analysis Social Media for Business Fluency KEY CLIENT PROJECTS Baker McKenzie Law Firm Elite Legal Billing, Financial Management System & Carpe Diem Fidelity Investments Windows NT & Outlook 97 3COM Migration to Lotus Notes 4 Kirkland & Ellis Law Firm Office Migration, iCreate, etc. ABBOTT LABS Migration to Lotus Notes 4 & 4.5 GE Railcar Outlook 98 Migration McDermott, Will & Emory Law Firm MS Office 97, Doc Conversion, iCreate GE Capital Outlook 97 Migration PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE 6/17 – Present ITsavvy Addison, IL. ITsavvy is an award-winning business-to-business reseller offering more than a 1,000 name brand computer products as well as advanced professional services consulting; from cloud-computing, networking to backup and unified communications. Technology Training Manager  Develops and builds a technology-training department for all ITsavvy employees aligned with company               strategy and core principals. Designs training curriculum with metrics to monitor the success of each program. Built our branded Learning Management Solution (LMS) via moodlecloud within 4 months and continues to create high quality learning modules; Camtasia Studio 9. Setup/configured our VAIRKKO Certification Cloud solution to track our skilled workforce's certifications and credentials. Develops and trains both new and experienced employees on best practices and quality processes. Enhances/Updates training programs as platforms change and improve. Creates processes to leverage company data to enhance business development, sales & marketing reporting efforts. Plans and delivers Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategies across the company encouraging client retention and loyalty. Provides direction, guidance and feedback to executive leadership with recommended solutions. SME for all internal business systems (Dynamics CRM, Act-On, Autotask, Rainking, etc.) Evaluates new technology to assess business fit and long/short term strategy alignment, implements and configures systems to meet our business needs. Streamlines business processes and creates business efficiencies. Working diligently everyday to champion organization-wide sales enablement. Expertise in establishing user-acceptance goals, defining minimum requirements for system use, monitoring and reporting on acceptable system usage. Goals: increase new hire time to productivity and works with sales to improve productivity in CRM Dynamics. 4/16 – 2/17 Constellation HomeBuilder Systems Chicago, IL. Constellation HomeBuilder Systems is the largest provider of tailored homebuilding software and website solutions in North America. Constellation provides solutions for Websites & Online Marketing, Sales Management & CRM Systems, Land Development, Scheduling, Estimating, Purchasing, Accounting and Business Intelligence through Warranty and Customer Services. Implementation Manager  Managed multiple Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software implementation projects at once,    including the project team, coordinating and allocating internal resources as needed to ensure a successful implementation. Created, maintained and distributed Project documents including the project plan, schedules, deliverables and financials with a strong ability to manage tasks with excellent organizational skills. Developed and documented procedures resulting in repeatable project management processes thereby improving the success of the overall implementation, keeping the Director of Professional Services apprised of critical issues. Successfully redesigned the entire Sales/Marketing module to be aligned with modern sales funnel practices. 7/08 – 10/15 Ryland Homes (CalAtlantic Group) Deer Park, IL. Ryland is a National leader in homebuilding. As a company, they build on their geographic diversity, financial strength and market-driven strategies to achieve success and staying power with 20 Divisions across the US. National Director, Business Process Improvement and Integration  Ensured that the EVP/COO's strategic business initiatives came to fruition with the aid of technology,         process and opportunities for our 20 Divisions/32 Markets across the U.S. Oversaw and strengthened the company's ability to utilize all interactive marketing techniques to create traffic and sales opportunities. Developed the company's capability to use its information technology platforms and web presence to accomplish the National strategic objectives of: o Ensuring the highest possible returns on investment of marketing expenditures. o Capturing and segmenting data on prospective sources of business. o Ensuring the highest possible efficiency of superintendents, contractors and suppliers. o Ensuring the most cost effective methods of communicating with the region’s customers are utilized. o Ensuring employees are effectively trained in newly developed processes. Assisted in the continuous evaluation of the company’s technology and provided recommendations for the future. Created and managed the Software Enhancement Request Process for the company; reviewed, prioritized, accepted/rejected all enhancements and provided monthly IT governance oversight to ensure IT priorities met our business needs. Lead the National redesign of MS Dynamics CRM in an effort to "streamline" customer data capture and increase entry to sale-submission time. Increased entry to sale time by 80%. Designed and delivered comprehensive training programs for all sales & marketing systems, train-thetrainer and on-boarding for new hires via classroom, webinar, training videos and courseware development. Business Product Manager for MS Dynamics CRM, ExactTarget, ClickDimensions and company Lead Trainer for all sales and marketing systems. Received the Region President's Award for excellence in providing continued direction, feedback, support and guidance. 1/04 - 7/08 Ryland Homes (CalAtlantic Group) Deer Park, IL. Region Project Manager  Manager and point-of-contact for all project and business systems initiatives for all areas of   homebuilding operations; Sales & Marketing, Homebuilding/Production and Warranty/Customer Services. Works with National vendors to streamline business processes in a collaborative manner; streamlined and brought consistency amongst the North Central Region Divisions and the order process where GE Appliances was concerned. Developed Web Lead best practices and internal systems through internal web audits as well as competitor audit and findings analysis. 8/02 - 1/04 Ryland Homes (CalAtlantic Group) Deer Park, IL Independent Systems Consultant  Contracted to Ryland Homes as Region Consultant, "North-Central Region," (Seven Divisions, with  approximately 20 communities each), to oversee the conversion, validation, implementation and training of their Nationwide Client Relationship Management, ("CRM") Onyx system. Provided analysis and feasibility of project success; findings resulted in halting the project Nation-wide to enhance the software, re-prioritize those enhancements, and placed project ownership in the correct hands. 3/02 – 7/02 Kirkland & Ellis Law Firm-Maroe Technology Chicago, IL. Every year since 1995, The National Law Journal's survey entitled "Who Defends Corporate America" has ranked Kirkland & Ellis among the top five most frequently used firms by Fortune 250 corporations. Software Instructor/Independent Consultant  Contracted through Maroe Technologies to assist Kirkland & Ellis law firm with their migration to Office    2000, iCreate, DeltaView and DocX, 'Microsystems'. Developed customized course curriculum to meet each departmental need, i.e.; intellectual property, litigation, corporate, etc. Instructed users on firm software/hardware policy and assesses that training met business goals, investigated compliance breaches and taught fundamental, intermediate and advanced software systems in a classroom setting. Received highest classroom assessments for all consultants of Maroe Technologies. 12/00 – 4/01 Evolve Software, Inc. Emeryville, CA. Evolve is the leading software provider of the Profession Services Automation ("PSA") industry. Evolve's ServiceSphere is an innovative product which streamlines and automates the essential processes that power today's professional services organizations. Global Business Analyst  Directed the implementation and training of ServiceSphere Enterprise through needs and business   analysis in the modules of project accounting, resource management, opportunity management, client relationship management and change management. Directed the planning, design, configuration, customization and deployment of ServiceSphere. Conducted "workshops" for clients and internal staff on product topics and best practices. 03/00 – 10/00 Changepoint Corporation Rosemont, IL. Changepoint is considered a founder of the Profession Services Automation ("PSA") industry; the Changepoint software automates critical workflow processes over the Internet from sales to project management, time and expense to billing. Implementation Specialist and Technical Trainer  Conducted client business needs-analysis, developed project implementation plan, curriculum and   courseware accordingly. Installed the Changepoint “PSA” Enterprise on client’s NT or 2000 platform with SQL Server 7, IIS, and MDAC and configured the Changepoint System manager according to client’s business specification model. Ensured the transference of knowledge to the client’s IT department and the Changepoint System Administrator. 09/98 – 10/99 Baker & McKenzie Law Firm Chicago, IL. Baker & McKenzie is the worlds largest law firm with a true global presence; 61 offices in 35 countries. European Project Leader/Independent Consultant  Lead the implementation of the firm-wide systems standard: Elite Legal Billing Suite, Financial     Management System (FMS) and Sage’s Carpe Diem time and expense tracking for Attorneys. Managed all aspects of the implementation for the German and Italian offices from training, distance learning, change-management, conversion, validation, parallel runs, troubleshooting, etc. Coordinated and managed the Elite on-site resources, 3rd party vendors and measured progress and performance against business goals; approximately 10 direct reports, revised operating plans accordingly. Prepared business analysis requirements per office specifications and unique accounting laws per Country, compared local statutory requirements to the International Executive Office guidelines, as well as systems functionality; made appropriate recommendations and wrote specifications for 3rd party interface requirements such as Equitrac, (cost recovery), and enhancement requests. Measured and managed the expectations of senior partners, the director of finance and coordinated the activities of the accounting, billing, and IT departments per implementation.