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SIM Memphis Quarterly
Volume 3, September 2012
About the Newsletter
The Memphis Quarterly SIM Newsletter is designed to share information about its members, upcoming meetings and other events, to reflect on recent accomplishments, and to provide information about SIM. 
In This Issue
Community Outreach Update
Membership News
Upcoming Chapter Meetings   
 
Crescent Club
6075 Poplar Avenue
Memphis, TN 38119
 

  

October 4, 2012 
Cloud Issues: Cost, Value, Privacy, Security, Management, and More
Panelists from FedEx, the City of Memphis, St. Jude, and Buckman Labs

November 8, 2012 
IT Customer Satisfaction: How important is it? How do you measure it? How do you manage it?
Panelists: Bruce Livesay, CIO, First Horizon; Elaine Watson, CIO, University of Memphis

December 6, 2012
SIM Holiday Party
Duck's Unlimited HQ 

 SIM Memphis 2012 Board of Directors

   

PRESIDENT
Rick San Roman 
 
SECRETARY/TREASURER 
Steve Schaefgen 
 
MEMBERSHIP CO-CHAIRS 
Jana Branham 
Susan Caldwell  
 
PROGRAM CHAIR 
John Oglesby  
 
COMMUNITY OUTREACH CHAIR 
Dennis Norton 
 
MARKETING CHAIR 
Kevin Morgan 
 
STRATEGY SERIES CO-CHAIRS 
Della Adams 
Jim Boyd 
 
SIM INTERNATIONAL LIAISON 
Rick Pride  
 
PAST PRESIDENT 
Dick Vandenberg
Quick Links

 

SIM Memphis

  

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SIM Regional Leadership Forum
  
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2012 RLF Reading list
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Kevin Morgan
Newsletter
Contributors


Susan Caldwell
Kevin Morgan
Dennis Norton
John Oglesby 
Darrell Price
About SIM
 
Established in 1968, the Society for Information Management (SIM) is the premier network for IT leaders.  SIM is comprised of more than 3,600 members including CIOs, senior IT executives, prominent academicians, and foremost consultants.  Through its 31 chapters, SIM provides resources and programs inspired by IT leaders for IT leaders that enable CIOs to further develop their leadership capabilities and those of the emerging leaders in their organizations. SIM provides the premiere collective voice to advocate policy and legislation on behalf of the IT profession.
2012 Strategy Series

The Transformational Leader: 

Leading, Innovating & Transforming in a Connected World

 

On September 11, 2012 area executives fortunate enough to be at the Cook Convention Center Cannon Ballroom learned how transformational leadership coupled with innovation could be leveraged to provide an advantage for their organizations in our increasingly connected world. After a period of early networking with attendees and vendor sponsors, the day began with a moment of silence and a special tribute for 9/11.

 

The Strategy Series helps fund SIM Memphis Community Outreach Programs. Proceeds are used to support college IT Career Days and scholarships, K-12 Teen Tech Camps, STEM initiatives, and SIM's partnership with the Soulsville Foundation and Stax Music Academy.

 

Dr. Robert R. Taylor of the University of Memphis facilitated the program. The keynote addresses began with Peter High of Metis Strategy, LLC who made a compelling case for Information Technology as the central nervous system for businesses. Karstin Bodell from IBM described the ever morphing but vital relationship between the CIO and the CMO. In an encore performance, Dr. Kellie Maske from FedEx wowed the audience with a presentation on the Global Economy, followed by an energizing presentation on Social Media impacts that can be leveraged by enterprises at the consumer level given by Chris McGugan of AVAYA.

 

Everyone learned that no amount of planning can prevent obstacles when launching an event as two unplanned fire drills caused the facility to be evacuated. However, after the second false alarm, Della Adams sprang into action and worked with the Cook Convention Center management as well as the Memphis Fire Department to resolve the issue before it further dampened the day.

 

Over lunch, Dennis Norton gave a presentation which explained each of the outreach programs supported by SIM. Executives of McDonald's showed their support by presenting SIM a check for $1,500. Afterwards, Dennis made several awards. One award was made to Soulsville Foundation for $3,000 and one to the University of Memphis MILE program for $5,000. 

 

The afternoon was equally engaging and informative beginning with a panel discussion on Leadership Strategies and Innovation with Michael McKieran of Citrix Systems, Brent Nair of the City of Memphis, and Sonny Sonnenstein of First Horizon/ First Tennessee as panelist. Following the panel discussion Michael McKeirnan of Citrix provided an executive briefing on using mobility to drive business results. In the final keynote of the day, Bettina Roberts and Frank Liberio of McDonald's shared specific examples of how McDonald's uses leadership principles to drive business results.

 

Of course there was a prize giveaway by sponsors at the end of the session which leads us to thank our sponsors: Avaya, IBM, CDW, Citrix, EMC2, Good, kapow, okta, servicenow, Tibco, vmware, Acxiom, Adobe, Cisco, epsilon, Information Builders, Presidio, ProTech, Syntel, TCSI, Wiley, Egon Zehnder International, Heidrick & Struggles, Korn/ Ferry International, Russell Reynolds Associates, and SpencerStuart.

 

A hearty thanks to our sponsors and attendees in making this year's Strategy Series a resounding success.  

Community Outreach

 

SIM Teen Tech Camp Turned Eight

by Dennis Norton 

  

Students work on SCRATCH projects

Teen Tech Camp - Library was a big hit!  Rick San Roman said, "This is the most impressive group of kids we've had.  Most said they want to pursue technically based careers.  Two years ago most of the campers wanted to be professional athletes."

 

This eighth annual camp, a partnership between SIM and the Memphis Public Library, was held at the Benjamin Hooks Central Library the week of July 16.   Twenty-two students, aged 13-15 attended.

  

SIM team conducts Jumpstart exercise.  Mark Marcus (foreground), David Ulloa, Ed Charbonnet, HP Chatham (back)

SIM members kicked off each morning with a daily module of Jumpstart, Inc.  This is a supply-chain simulation which gives students an overview of how technology enables business processes such as order management, inventory tracking, and production scheduling.  Each student manufactured a made-to-order jump rope which they got to keep at the end of the camp.

 

Jana Markowitz gives IT Career talk to students and parents 
For the remainder of each day, campers learned to work with the "SCRATCH" programming language and other creative software such as Audacity, and Artrage. 

 

Saturday was "graduation day."  Students and their families came to the library to review the SCRATCH projects.  Jana Markowitz opened with her talk on "Careers in IT", where she explained how technology is utilized in virtually all careers. 

  

SIM was well represented during the week-long event.  Members were on hand to conduct the Jumpstart sessions, to meet the students during lunch on Friday, and to participate in the closing ceremony on Saturday.

 

2012 Teen Tech Camp campers, library staff and SIM members

Thanks to SIM TTC-Library co-leaders Ed Charbonnet and David Ulloa for a well-organized and executed Outreach event.  Also, thanks to Mark Marcus (SAP), Rick San Roman, Jana Markowitz, HP Chatham, Michael Boyd, Phillip Mashburn, John Oglesby, Rick Pride, and Larry Raines for volunteering.  

Thanks to Century Management, Inc, a McDonald's Franchisee in the Greater Memphis area, for donating food for Friday's lunch, and to SAP,Thomas & Betts, Inland Intermodal Logistics Services, LLC, IMC Companies and Windstream for donating items for camper gift bags. 

 

Also special thanks to Library staff Keshia Williams, Verjeana Hunt, and John Lloyd.

 

 

Community Outreach Announcements!  

 

McDonald's USA, Great Southern Region Honors SIM Outreach

by Dennis Norton  

 

McDonalds executives took the stage during Strategy Series to congratulate SIM for its Outreach programs and support of the University of Memphis' MILE program.  A check for $1,500 was presented to Dennis Norton, SIM Outreach Chair by Bettina Roberts, Vice President, General Manager; Frank Liberio, SVP of Information Technology, CIO; and Kevin Morgan, Regional Strategy & Communications Manager.

  

Soulsville Wins SIM Award

by Dennis Norton

 

Soulsville Foundation was recognized by SIM with a Community Improvement Award.  The award was granted for outstanding service to the community through the educational advancement of young people.  The amount of the award is $3,000 and was given in memory of former SIM board member Samuel Frank Dillard (1970-2012.).  The award was presented during Strategy Series by Dennis Norton to Mark Wender, Chief Operating Officer, Soulsville Foundation; and Justin Merrick, Operations Manager, Vocal/Choreography Director, Stax Music Academy 

 

SIM Celebrates MILE

By Dennis Norton

 

SIM showed appreciation to MILE (Memphis Institute for Leadership Education) during Strategy Series.  A SIM Community Outreach Award was presented to Dr. Bob Taylor, Associate Professor Department of Management & Director MILE Program, University of Memphis.  The award in the amount of $5,000 recognizes MILE for outstanding service to the community by helping university students develop into business leaders.  The award was presented by Dennis Norton, SIM Outreach Chair.

 

Membership News

 

New Members!

Our numbers for 2012 membership are phenomenal.  We are now 81 strong and growing.

 

Barry DeWitt, Director of Information Technology, Briarcrest Christian School

Barry is the Director of Information Technology at Briarcrest Christian School. He is ultimately responsible for all technology in the Organization as well as direction and leadership for the school. 

 

During the six years that he has been in this role, he has drastically improved the visibility and availability of technology to Faculty and Staff as well as students, and dropped the Technology spend roughly 40%.  Over his career, Barry has served in various roles for organizations from Corporate to Non-Profit. 

 

Barry has a B.S. in MIS from University of Atlanta and is currently working on a B.S. in Organizational Leadership from Fort Hays State University. He plans on pursuing his Managerial MBA from the University of Arkansas in 2014.

 

John Halbert, Chief Information Officer, Shelby County Government

John comes to Memphis from Jefferson County, Alabama, where he was Deputy CIO.  He heads the consolidated Shelby County computer and information technology system.

 

 

 

 

 

Maria Lensing, Vice President, Signature Client Group, AT&T 

Maria leads a team of engineering, sales and consulting professionals that work with AT&T's largest global clients headquartered in the Southeast in providing strategic and technical direction to address their unique business challenges. 

 

Maria's background in delivering enterprise IT solutions provides her with the expertise and experience to assist AT&T customers in transforming their business through the adoption of emerging technologies.

 

Maria has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering & Master of Science in Engineering Management from Christian Brothers University (CBU).  She completed her Executive Education from Harvard Business School.

 

  

Members in the News!

 

First Horizon Honored for Technology 

By Andy Meek

Monday, September 17, 2012

  

The parent company of First Tennessee Bank is one of the most tech-savvy banks around, according to the information technology trade publication InformationWeek.

 

Memphis-based First Horizon National Corp. walked away with first place in the banking and financial services industry segment on the 2012 InformationWeek 500 list, which recognizes the nation's most innovative users of business technology. The company, which has a strong capital markets business as well as a regional banking unit with more than 170 bank branches in and around Tennessee, won the top spot for transforming its information technology organization, systems and infrastructure.

 

First Horizon, which has now appeared on the list 10 times, ranked 14th overall on the InformationWeek 500 and is the highest-ranked bank in the 2012 list.

 

"Today when customers walk into one of our financial centers or call one of our support lines they interact with our employees who have at their fingertips more timely and relevant information about our customers' accounts, their relationships and their needs," said Bruce Livesay, executive vice president and chief information officer for First Horizon.  "We are proud to be honored by InformationWeek for using technology to best benefit our customers and our employees who serve them."

 

Congratulations Bruce for your accomplishments at this great Memphis company! 

   

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