It's still not too late to renew your membership for 2015. You may pay securely by credit card via PayPal or by personal or corporate check. Although our costs have continued to rise, our successful Strategy Series has allowed us to hold dues at the same rate for over eight years without an increase!  Click HERE to renew by credit card or email sim_memphis@yahoo.com to request an invoice.

Dues cover your membership in SIM International, the Memphis Chapter monthly programs including seated dinners, Strategy Series, the holiday party for member and guest, annual subscription to MIS Quarterly, access to the Advanced Practices Council (APC) and Regional Leadership Forum (RLF), help for Members in Transition, discount on SIMposium, the annual SIM International event.

Depending on your level of membership, this works out to a less than $40 a month investment in your professional development. Even if your company does not reimburse you, there is no other investment you will make in yourself and your career that will match the benefits of your membership in the only premier society for information technology professionals - and it is tax deductible.

Membership is excited to welcome these new members to SIM Memphis. We all look forward to getting to know you and seeing you often!

Joe Cutrell
Director of Strategy & Innovation
AT&T

 Joe Cutrell is a Director of Strategy & Innovation at AT&T Global Business Solutions.  As a strategy resource for AT&T's largest customers, he provides technical direction to help them address their unique business challenges.  Joe assists with infrastructure architecture and works directly with enterprise executives to align technology with business priorities.  With a focus on communication and collaboration solutions, he also provides design expertise for connecting users and systems with reliable, scalable network services.


Aaron Goodwin
CIO
Wunderlich Securities

 Aaron J. Goodwin is the Chief Information Officer for Wunderlich Securities, Inc.  He has been employed with Wunderlich for 10 years where he was promoted to CIO in 2009.  He is responsible for all areas of Information Technology for Wunderlich's 33 branch offices across the U.S.   Aaron's primary functions are strategic forecasting, acquisitions, project management, and infrastructure design and implementation.  In 2014, Aaron was bestowed the honor of MVP by Wunderlich's Chairman Council for his years of service and dedication to the company.  Aaron is a graduate of ITT Technical Institute with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Information Systems Security.  He has more than 10 years experience in multiple areas of Information Technology.  In his spare time he pursues mentoring young IT professionals, traveling, and being a photographer.

Ajitabh Gupta
Sr. Manager, IT Applications
Sedgwick CMS

 Ajitabh Gupta is a senior management executive with Sedgwick Claims Management Systems, the largest Third Party Claims Administrator in North America.  Ajitabh is responsible for management and delivery of strategic and enterprise initiatives, aiding in the achievement of business strategies and goals for the organization.  Ajitabh has spent over 18 years in the IT industry, much of that time as an IT leader in an influential role in Third Party Claims Administration space shaping business architecture, product development, direction and management of an array of business programs.  Ajitabh has an established history of delivering complex enterprise initiatives with end to end solutioning and managing distributed teams delivering value to the organization. He is currently leading multiple strategic initiatives for the organization with globally dispersed teams.  Ajitabh's ability to be a hands-on and management person allows him to interact equally well with technical and management teams.  Ajitabh holds an MSBA degree from University of Memphis.

 

Ken Kloker
IT Manager, Technical Services
International Paper

 Ken Kloker, IT Manager with International Paper's Technical Services Organization, is currently responsible for ITIL Processes and internal Account Management functions.  Ken joined IP as the Help Desk Manager in 2000.  He previously worked for AT&T as a Senior Operations Manager in Jacksonville, Florida, and Lubbock, Texas, and FedEx as an IT Manager in Memphis.  He is a graduate of the University of Memphis and is a verteran of the U.S. Army.  Ken has been married to Lynn for 10 years.  He loves to travel and recently took up running.

  

Kim Ladd
IT Manager Business Process
ACH Food

 

Kim Ladd has been involved in Information Technology for over 30 years.  She currently serves as an IT Business Process Manager at ACH Food Companies where she has been employed for the last 11 years.  Her primary responsibilities include managing a team of Business Analysts who are responsible for supporting the Supply Chain business processes (Supply Planning, Transportation/Logistics, Warehouse Management, Procure to Pay, Manufacturing, and Quality) as well as managing larger projects involving both IT and the business. Prior to working for ACH, she spent 20 years in various IT positions at Jimmy Dean Foods (division of Sara Lee/Hillshire Brands).  Kim received her Project Management certification in 2005 and served as VP of Communication for the local PMI Chapter (Project Management Institute). She also served on the PMI Membership Committee helping to develop a program to introduce new members to the local chapter.  She has served on other PMI committees such as PMI Professional Development Day and Jingle Bell Run.  One of Kim's passions is mentoring others using her professional and life experiences.  

 

Jason Landrum
CIO
Sedgwick CMS

 Jason Landrum is Chief Information Officer with Sedgwick, the leading North American provider of technology-enabled claims and productivity management solutions. At Sedgwick, Jason is responsible for all facets of technology and innovation for the organization.  Jason has a proven track record of over 18 years delivering critical technology solutions, driving IT organizational efficiency and creating improved enterprise profitability.   Prior to joining Sedgwick, Jason held various IT leadership roles at global claims management and insurance companies.  He holds a bachelor's degree in Management of Information Systems from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Robin Poston
Associate Professor; Interim Dept Chair and PhD Coordinator in MIS
University of Memphis

 Dr. Poston is a Systems Testing Research Fellow and Associate Director of the System Testing Excellence Program for the FedEx Institute of Technology and she is an Associate Professor of Management Information Systems at the Fogelman College of Business & Economics at The University of Memphis.  Dr. Poston's research focuses on understanding how individuals use web-based knowledge management applications and feedback systems, internet-based dissemination of information, and systems testing management.  Dr. Poston has over 10 years of experience in the information systems field working for KPMG Consulting, Educational Computer Corporation, Meta Group Research, and Convergys, as well as consulting with several Fortune 500 companies and government agencies.  Today, she works with local organizations, such as FedEx Corporation, First Horizons, St. Jude/ALSAC, Pinnacle Airlines, Rhodes College, and the University of Memphis IT Division to conduct projects and educational programs.  She has published articles in journals such as MIS Quarterly, Journal of Management Information Systems, Decision Sciences Journal, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Communications of the ACM, IEEE Computer, and others, as well as in major international conference proceedings. She currently serves as an Associate Editor at Decision Sciences. Dr. Poston received her Ph.D. in Management Information Systems from Michigan State University (2003).  

 

 

Joe Sanders
CIO
Memphis Housing Authority

 Joe Sanders is the CIO and Director of Information Technology Services for the Memphis Housing Authority where he is responsible for the technology services and systems that allows the Housing Agency to provide low-income housing assistance to the citizens of Memphis, TN.  Before joining the Memphis Housing Authority Joe was General Manager and Vice President at TW (Formally Time Warner) Telecom, Inc. where he managed a Sales and Operations organization for Memphis, TN and Little Rock, AR.
Joe has a career span in Information Technology of more than twenty five years and has played major roles in large organizations and institutions.  He has held Senior and Executive level positions at the City of Memphis, First Horizon/First Tennessee Bank, Sabre (an American Airlines subsidiary) and First USA Bank (now JPMorgan Chase).  Joe began his career in the US Treasury and the US Department of Justice before becoming an Independent Consultant for Mobil Oil Corporation. Joe has been a keynote speaker to national and international conferences for Hewlett Packard, IBM, Oracle, World Cyber Security Conference in Nigeria and most recently in Wilmington, Delaware for the NAAAHR National Conference.


Dan Schweizer
Director Enterprise Architecture & Emerging Technology Research
Sedgwick CMS

 Dan Schweizer serves as the Director of Enterprise Architecture and Emerging Technology Research at Sedgwick, the leading North American provider of technology enabled claims and productivity management solutions. Dan has spent the majority of his life in Memphis, moving here when he was just starting high school.  In his 20 years at Sedgwick, he has performed numerous roles in IT. Dan played a key role in the development of JURIS, Sedgwick's proprietary claims management system, and provided architecture direction through many years of accelerated company growth. In his current role as Director, he leads a team of enterprise architects that provide architecture vision and direction for the organization as well as standards and best practices. When not at Sedgwick, Dan likes to dabble in photography. He can also be found most Sunday mornings behind the lighting console at Highpoint Church Memphis.

Paul Shook
Manager Business Process
ACH Food

 Paul Shook is a Manager of Business Processes for ACH Food Companies where he has been working for over 12 years.  He is currently responsible for managing a team of business analysts who are responsible for supporting the processes and projects for the Finance, Sales, Marketing, Customer Service, Product Development, and Demand Planning functional areas of ACH's business.  He is also responsible for organizing and leading ACH's Data Management Organization, which is an IT/Business cross-functional team responsible for establishing governance rules and managing master data at ACH as well as the applications/processes needed to support data governance and data entry.  Paul is a graduate of Mississippi State University.  He also received a Graduate Certificate in Project Management from Christian Brothers and has been certified by the Project Management Institute as a Project Management Professional (PMP).   Paul has worked actively in his church for many years serving as a Deacon and sitting on multiple committees throughout those years.   

Richie Trenthem
Director IT
Rhodes College

 Richie is the IT Director at Rhodes College.  He has 20+ years in IT; most of this time has been working in higher education.  He is part of the leadership team for Rhodes' merged Library/IT division, and enjoys being at the center of the tech-driven transformation of research, teaching, and learning that is disrupting higher ed.  Much of his previous experience has been administering systems and networks. He has learned to feign ignorance during wistful discussions of VMS.  He's not hiding his age; he's simply sparing his broken heart.  He is a native Memphian, and lives in midtown Memphis with his wife, three kids, and a gratefully geriatric rat terrier. 

 

  

Sharon Weymouth
V.P. IT Casualty Operations
Sedgwick CMS 

  

 

Andrew Wylie
CIO
Southeastern Asset Management  

  

 

 

RETURNING MEMBERS

   

After a brief "vacation", we warmly welcome back the following members to active membership in SIM Memphis!

Scott Herren
Director Global IT Infrastructure
Buckman International

As Manager of Network and Computer Systems for Buckman International, Scott is responsible for network performance and security at all Buckman globally, establishing standards for computer system architecture, and supporting each location around the clock. For over 20 years, Scott has been a respected member of the the talented IT professionals at all Buckman locations working to achieve the goal of World Class IT.


Brian Janz
Professor, Management Information Services; Innovator in Residence - FedEx Institute of Technology, Associate Director, FedEx Center for Supply Chain Management
University of Memphis

Dr. Janz is the First Tennessee Professor of MIS and also serves as the first Innovator in Residence at the FedEx Institute of Technology.  He is also the Associate Director of the FedEx Center for Supply Chain Management at the University of Memphis, and has been named a George Johnson Teaching Fellow.  Brian is a recipient of the University of Memphis's Distinguished Teaching Award, a recipient of a Suzanne Palmer Professorship for Teaching, as well as the University of Memphis MIS Advisory Council's Outstanding Teaching Award.  He is currently focusing on how to improve the quality of pedagogy in online education.  Brian's research interests focus on how information technologies affect organizational strategy, design, business processes, and supply chains. His most recent research is focusing on the implementation and use of emerging technologies in the healthcare industry, the use of social action networks and co-creative models in healthcare, and the pacing and sequencing of implementing organizational strategies.  Brian's research has been published in book chapters as well as many academic and practitioner journals as including MIS Quarterly, Decision Science, Communications of the AIS, Journal of MIS, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Database Management, Journal of Information Technology Management, and Information and Management.

Brian has been affiliated with SIM for over 20 years in both Minneapolis and Memphis, and is a past president, program chair, and Strategy Series chair for the Memphis Chapter. He has over 30 years of experience in the information systems field working for The University of Minnesota, IBM, Honeywell, and General Motors, and consults widely with many Fortune 500 companies and governmental agencies.  Brian did his bachelor's degree work in electrical engineering at both The University of Wisconsin and The University of Minnesota, and earned an MBA and a Ph.D. from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. 

SIM Memphis started talking to the four girls' schools in Memphis in 2012.  We've come a long way since then.  This year SIM introduced Rock the Street, Wall Street (RTSWS), a non-profit based in Nashville which focuses on getting more young women interested in degrees and careers in Finance, to three girls' schools in Memphis.  How is Finance STEM?  Finance is very math-centric - and of course there is no Finance without Technology.  

RTSWS's program is a combination of classroom time (materials from Wharton, teachers who are Finance professionals), field trips and mentoring - all just for girls.  RTSWS is currently working with girls from 14 public and private high schools in Tennessee and expanding soon to Chicago.  

There will be lots of volunteer opportunities for SIM members and their Finance and Engineering colleagues in 2015, so be sure to register as a volunteer on NPower/The Community Corps here:

or copy/paste this link:
http://thecommunitycorps.force.com/TCCLogin?SIMMemphisVol=true

Contact Jana Markowitz, Jana.Markowitz@yahoo.com, if you are interested in getting involved with the girls' schools.  

For the past two months the outreach group has been particularly focused on initiating more STEM projects for students in the Memphis areas.