Resume/CV

You can review my qualifications and resume here, and .

About Me / How Did I Ever Wind Up Here?

I started out as an inquisitive kid in Racine, Wisconsin in 1963, wondering what made things tick, light up or make sound. Given a screwdriver and a few quiet moments, things sometimes got disassembled. I also learned that taking something apart and breaking it in the process was NOT a good thing. The lesson that I learned was that making a change without having a way to get back to the beginning was dangerous. Always have a backup plan.

I got an electronics project kit from Radio Shack when I was nine or ten years old, and by age twelve, I was repairing television sets and stereos for friends and relatives and others around the neighborhood. I tended to bury myself into technical manuals or reference books for a good Saturday afternoon read, which caused mother concern, but I think delighted dad. All of that early tinkering and study started an interest in electronics that lasts until today, and I'm always getting itchy to design and build something new.

While working at Colortron TV in Racine in 1980 when I was 16, I was approached by Ken Klema of Norco Manufacturing, a Racine manufacturer that builds door systems for airplane hangars and other industrial applications. He wanted to see if I'd be interested in installing a phone system that he was able to buy used from a company that went out of business in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Divestiture of AT&T a couple of years earlier meant that businesses were no longer forced to rent their telephone equipment from the phone company - pretty exciting stuff, at the time. Knowing little to nothing about what I was getting myself into, I agreed, and removed the Executone key system from the empty building.

There were no installation manuals, and getting information from the manufacturer without being a dealer was impossible. I carefully mapped the system while removing it, remembering to always be able to get back to where I started from. After a bit of time and effort and a few tense hours along the way, Ken's trust in me paid off. Norco now owned their own phone system, and saved a bundle in rental fees they had been paying to the phone company. That began an early career in telephone system and repair. Colortron TV themselves, Racine's first Apple Computer dealer, became the next customer, and then a law office and an investment firm from referrals.

My first career job, based on my self-taught skills in Racine, was after a move to Milwaukee, Wisconsin as a business telephone installer and repair technician. After two years in this position, moving exclusively into service and repair, I had an opportunity to develop several telecommunications switching products when fax machines and desktop modems were becoming commonplace, and the idea of sharing a phone line for multiple purposes was popular as a cost-saving measure.

That developed into an opportunity to perform computer hardware maintenance and to begin programming and application development. Ironically, programming was the one thing I always intended to avoid doing. Fast forwarding ahead, I ended up becoming an excellent programmer and built, programmed and administered a world-class, reliable and secure electronic messaging system, housed in redundant data centers in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area. I had no idea that was going to happen.

I've always had a thirst for learning something new and enjoy applying all of my skill to the successful completion of your next project. Through proven experience, I strive to carefully -- and efficiently -- develop a plan, implement and test it, and bring it into production. How can I help you today?