it services Archives - Page 3 of 4

Laura DaSilva, Big Fish Technology, and Michael Cross, Briskin, Cross & Sanford, LLC

May 8, 2019 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Laura DaSilva, Big Fish Technology, and Michael Cross, Briskin, Cross & Sanford, LLC

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**John Ray, Laura DaSilva, and Michael Cross**

Laura DaSilva, Big Fish Technology

Laura DaSilva is a Technical Sales Account Manager for Big Fish Technology. Big Fish Technology is a full-service technology support company that delivers high quality, timely technology services and solutions for small and medium sized businesses and organizations. Our clients range from small sole proprietors to capital management firms with international offices.

Big Fish Technology is a hands-on company. They use many of the same processes and technologies they recommend to their clients. Therefore, they know what works and what does not. Here is a partial list of what they can do for you: CIO services; wired and wireless network design, implementation, and management; network security audits and tuning; Windows server and Windows server application design, implementation, and management, including MS Exchange, MS SQL, MS SharePoint, Citrix, and others; SQL application design, implementation, and management; remote and onsite Windows and Apple desktop support; data backup and business continuity services, managed services solutions for Windows servers and desktops; hosted applications such as MS Exchange email, MS Sharepoint, online/offisite backups, and others; phone system services (hosted, VoIP, on-premise); and internal low-voltage network and phone wiring and infrastructure.

For more information on Big Fish Technology, go to their website or call 678-528-7713.

Michael Cross, Briskin, Cross & Sanford, LLC

Michael Cross is an attorney and partner with Briskin, Cross & Sanford, LLC. Michael’s practice focuses on matters involving business law, including general corporate transactions, mergers & acquisitions, partnership and LLC law, and franchise law; employment law, including executive employment agreements, employment manuals, sales, distributor, and independent contractor agreements, and employment litigation; commercial real estate, including commercial lease preparation and negotiation, sales, acquisitions, and construction; and non-profit organizations, including the formation of and application for tax-exempt status for charitable organizations, private foundations, and trade associations.

From negotiating business agreements to aggressive representation in commercial litigation, Briskin, Cross & Sanford provides comprehensive legal service to entrepreneurs, executives, and companies in Alpharetta, Roswell, Johns Creek, Sandy Springs, Cumming, Marietta, and other communities throughout the north Atlanta metropolitan area.

Their chief focus is providing counsel to technology firms and other businesses located in the developing Georgia 400 corridor. Two of their attorneys were founding members of the steering committee for the 400 Technology Connection, which fostered technology and commercial growth in the area prior to partnering with the Technology Association of Georgia (“TAG”).

For more information, go to their website or call (770) 410-1555.

Julie Haley, Edge Solutions and Taylor Gray, Roam Innovative Workplace

February 5, 2019 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Julie Haley, Edge Solutions and Taylor Gray, Roam Innovative Workplace

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**John Ray, Julie Haley, and Taylor Gray**

Julie Haley, Edge Solutions, LLC

Julie Haley is the Founder and CEO of Edge Solutions. Julie’s invaluable 20-year career as a business and commercial litigation attorney, with a focus on driving public sector initiatives, drives the success of Edge Solutions. Julie uses her intimate knowledge of the community and greater southeast region to establish and maintain relationships with key customers, as well as set goals and direction for the overall organization. In addition to serving as Edge CEO, Julie continues to donate her time in service to the community. Currently, Julie sits on the Board of Governors for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Executive Board of Directors, Greater North Fulton Chamber of Commerce, Alpharetta Technology Commission, Board Member for Gwinnett Technical College, and serves on the Board of Councilors for The Carter Center. Julie was named as the North Fulton Small Business Person of the Year in 2011, CRN’s Top 100 Women of the Channel in 2011 through 2017, and Georgia’s Women in Technology’s Woman of the Year in 2015.

Edge customizes data center/cloud services & products to solve our clients’ business problems, specializing in hyperconverged infrastructure that simplify IT environments & cut costs so that clients’ IT budgets can be focused on innovation and disruption. For more information, visit https://edge-solutions.com/.

Taylor Gray, Roam Innovative Workplace

Taylor Gray is a General Manager of Roam Innovative Workplace. Roam is an all-inclusive meeting destination that also provides collaborative coworking space that accommodates an ecosystem of businesses. Roam’s spaces are intentionally designed to stimulate creativity, energy and collaboration. Their spaces allow its members to connect with others, work productively and grow their businesses. Roam’s service-oriented meeting experience provides everything from technology to catering to business class WiFi to coffee; their aim is to serve you so that you can get your best work done. For more information, visit https://meetatroam.com/.

E17 Thor Thomsen and Jim Watkinson from THORFeed and Jeanne Barry from RGP

October 22, 2018 by Karen

PROJECT-MANAGEMENT-OFFICE-HOURS-Operations-Leader-Jim-Watkinson-with-THOR-Feed-and-Jeanne-Barry-with-RGP1

Phoenix Business Radio

E17 Thor Thomsen and Jim Watkinson from THORFeed and Jeanne Barry from RGP

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E17 Thor Thomsen and Jim Watkinson from THORFeed and Jeanne Barry from RGP

In this episode of Project Management Office Hours, Joe Pusz, PMO Joe has a great discussion with special guests Thor Thomsen and Jim Watkinson from THORFeed and Jeanne Barry from RGP.

We don’t often think about Project Management within the Farming industry. However, in this episode we get insights from Thor and Jim about the benefits, challenges, and growth opportunities farmers are experiencing through use of project management principles. Jeanne shares her experiences within traditional project management and compares those to the stories shared by Thor and Jim.

Requirements gathering, planning, monitoring and execution are discussed, but when working with farmers who haven’t been exposed to project management principles unique challenges are identified. This is a fantastic episode to understand the wide reach and benefits project management provides to business across all industries.

Tune in for upcoming shows with Project Management leaders discussing a wide range of current topics and events! Our next show will be November 1st.

THOR Feed’s purpose is to simplify and transform. We help organizations improve operations and reduce costs. Our current focus market is farming and we have established the THOR Feed solution as the leading farm inventory solution provider starting with farm feed inventory. Cattle and dairy farms single largest expense is feed. This expense is approximately 50% of operating cost. Unfortunately, feed loss (called ‘feed shrink’) occurs from feed planting to storage to feeding The University of Wisconsin, Kansas and other leading universities show an average 18%. Lowering shrink a few percentage points can reduce costs on improving farm profitability. THOR Feed provides the farmer with the following key operating metrics using smart devices on Windows, iOS and Android platforms:

Accurate inventory for all feed.
Near real time inventory status.
Precise feed utilization rates
Projected depletion dates for each feed and feed class.
Dynamic reporting

The THOR Feed solution provides benefits to farms in the following areas:

Reduced ‘backup’ feed is purchased, due to improved feed accuracy
Wise purchase based upon true need(s).
Improved negotiating power (lower costs) due to a longer lead times on future depletion dates
Less time to gather and report information (improved people productivity) with smart devices
Lower interest rates on feed loans from lending institutions due to detailed monthly reports
Reduced feed shrink due to improved planning with THOR Feed team regarding harvest, storage and herd feeding processes

Thor Thomsen grew up on a farm in Wisconsin, served in the United States Marine Corps’ special operations unit, married and entered the family entrepreneurial occupation.

Thor’s first business, Risk Management Planning, LLC, involved responding to hazardous chemical accidents around the globe using a unique subscription and consulting model. The service grew predominantly from companies and involved emergency management, first responders, schools, hospitals and even major sporting venues. Risk Management Planning expanded into another product line and simplified emergency response between first responders and various venues.

Stepping away from the family and businesses, Thor worked for Versar Inc. and eventually Thomsen Security. Services included security and safety in the water and food industry. The major program was establishing and building the United States DoD Food defense program which entailed securing the food supply chain from Field-to- Fork® around the globe. Thor conducted over 2,729 risk and vulnerability assessments, hundreds of reports and consulted with military and civilian food supply chain entities.

Thor established ThroughPoint Solutions which developed an assessment and reporting tool for the United Stated DoD and has been most recently adapted as a farm inventory solution, utilized by over 13 farms with over 32,000 head of cattle and in excess over $80 million dollars in feed inventory.

Jim Watkinson is a widely-traveled IT and project management mentor with experience in large (IBM, Unisys, Ports America) and several start-up tech companies, as well as non-tech companies seeking tech improvement. A key strength is introducing new IT functionality to industries (such as: ATMs to banks, Point-of-Sale to retail, satellite networking to energy companies, remote office communication to insurance, scheduling systems in supply chain & logistics.)

Much of Jim’s work involved process improvement in the above-mentioned industries. As a PMP and ACP, Jim enjoys thoroughly evaluating an ongoing organization, then (if needed) developing and presenting a plan to improve operations. Once, given the approval, Jim would lead the desired changes in a project management capacity.

Jim’s main purpose is to help individuals and organizations reach their top level of potential. As a team player, working along-side teams, Jim will coach, critique, appraise and recommend. Once a team finds a pace and rhythm toward reaching their potential, he moves on to the next adventure needing IT technology.

Follow THOR Feed on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

RGP (NASDAQ: RECN), Resources Global Professionals is a multinational professional services firm that helps business leaders execute internal initiatives. Partnering with business leaders, RGP drives internal change across all parts of a global enterprise – accounting, finance, risk management and internal audit, corporate advisory, strategic communications and restructuring, information management, human capital, supply chain management, healthcare solutions, and legal and regulatory services.

Jeanne Barry is a seasoned Project Manager with 20+ years experience in the IT field with PMP, CSM, and MBA credentials. She has worked mainly on multi-million dollar infrastructure and information security projects and programs with a smattering of Development/SCRUM PM projects under her belt. She’s also worked as a Business Analyst and QA Test Lead, giving her a well rounded background in the IT field.

Before joining RGP (a former division of Deloitte and Touche) in 2017 as an IT Project Management consultant, she worked in the banking industry for 18 years, mainly on Information Security projects. She’s currently one of the PM’s managing projects in a PCI Program for a large client in Scottsdale who is in the process of obtaining their much coveted PCI AOC (Payment Card Industry Attestation of Compliance). Her PMO background is vast; fortuitously helping with the creation of PMOs in highly successful organizations, namely KeyBank and Data Management, Inc.

In her spare time, Jeanne is a semi-professional singer (she used to perform in a popular pop/rock covers band in town called Superhero), as well as a volunteer at Feed My Starving Children in Mesa (one of her most favorite charitable organizations). She loves to travel locally – especially to San Diego and Sedona). She attends holistic events around town and enjoys working on her new house she just purchased in May. As a Reiki Master, she also offers energy work clearings and healings to balance and harmonize herself and those around her.

Connect with Jeanne on LinkedIn, and follow RGP on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

ABOUT PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE HOURS SERIES

Project Management Office Hours is intended to provide Project Management professionals a place to drop in and discuss Success Stories, Best Practices, and Lessons Learned. Project Management Consultant Joy Gumz has shared with us, “Operations keep the lights on, strategy provides the light at the end of the tunnel, but project management is the train engine that moves the organization forward.”

Each of us has a unique story to tell, but collectively we share a message that organizations who embrace Project Management Best Practices perform better than those which don’t. Organizations which align Projects to Strategy perform better. Organizations with Engage Executive Sponsors deliver better results. Organizations which measure Project Management performance outperform those which don’t.

During our Project Management Office Hours, we hear directly from Industry leaders how to make an impact in our profession. How we, collectively, will Advance Project Management Best Practices, One Listener at a time!

Project Management Office Hours is powered by The PMO SQUAD.

ABOUT YOUR HOST

Joe Pusz started THE PMO SQUAD to bring real world PMO Leadership experience to the consulting space and to advocate for Project Management through his blog PMOJOE.com. The old saying is “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Following this mindset Joe left Corporate America in 2013 to start THE PMO SQUAD and work with fellow Natural Born Project Managers to advance Project Management Best Practices.

THE PMO SQUAD focuses exclusively on PMO and Project Management consulting. Corporate America is full of Accidental Project Managers running projects who haven’t been trained to be PMs. To help solve this problem THE PMO SQUAD is on the Leading Edge with PMO As a Service. PMO As a Service allows our clients to focus on their respective core competencies while THE PMO SQUAD delivers Project Management expertise. Contact Joe at 678-591-7868. Follow The PMO Squad on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Tino Mantella with Tier4 Advisors

May 22, 2018 by Mike

North Fulton Business Radio

Tino Mantella with Tier4 Advisors

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Tino Mantella/Tier4 Advisors

Tier4 is one of the fastest-growing private companies in Atlanta and 2-years running PaceSetter award winner. The company is five years old and was founded by Jake Sherrill. Jake started the company on the premise that there had to be a better way to help companies procure their IT services. Tier4 was created to save companies time and money through their trusted advisory services. The company has developed a unique model of matching clients to optimum IT solutions. Their clients have recognized their extraordinary work by giving them a cumulative NPS score of 97 (in comparison, Disney is 83 and considered one of the best). Tino Mantella wanted a new challenge so he left TAG for Tier4 in January 2017.

Matt Hyatt with Rocket IT

April 5, 2018 by Mike

Beyond The Cupola

Matt Hyatt with Rocket IT

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“Beyond the Cupola” allows invited customers, community, and team members of Oconee State Bank to have an opportunity to share their stories of success and inspiration, and/or how the Remarkable culture of Oconee State Bank has inspired them to mark lives in their own right.

Matt Hyatt/Rocket IT

Rocket IT is the IT department for other organizations. Think of them as the company that does both the strategy and support to help people thrive. Their approach focuses on increasing efficiency, decreasing risk, and increasing revenue, which has been recognized with the Gwinnett Chamber’s Overall Impact Regional Business Award, garnered Rocket IT a place on the Inc 5000, and resulted in a 23-year track record of helping people thrive.

Greg Eldridge with Home Helpers of Alpharetta, Will Nobles with Vector Choice Technology Solutions, and Jon Wittenberg with Minuteman Press Sandy Springs

March 21, 2018 by Mike

North Fulton Business Radio

Greg Eldridge with Home Helpers of Alpharetta, Will Nobles with Vector Choice Technology Solutions, and Jon Wittenberg with Minuteman Press Sandy Springs

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John Ray, Will Nobles, Greg Eldridge, Jon Wittenberg

Greg Eldridge/Home Helpers of Alpharetta

Home Helpers of Alpharetta provides award-winning personalized home care that nurtures the youthful spirit in each of their senior clients. Serving communities in the north Atlanta metro area, Home Helpers hires only heart-motivated caregivers and carefully matches them to each client. This thoughtful selection enables each client to achieve and maintain their highest possible level of independence while continuing to live at home. Services can include all client’s personal care needs as well as a large variety of companionship activities. Home Helpers can provide care from six hours a day to live-in or 24/7. For a free consultation, call 770-681-0323.

Will Nobles/Vector Choice Technology Solutions

Vector Choice is a Technology Service Provider designed to fit each customer’s unique needs. Will Nobles, the Founder and CEO, is an expert in the area of helping small to medium business owners dramatically improve employee productivity and lower operating costs. He helps business owners gain incredible peace of mind by eliminating costly, frustrating and time consuming problems that most businesses have with technology. Vector Choice provides outsourced IT services, hosting services, technology project services, and cyber security services.

Jon Wittenberg/Minuteman Press Sandy Springs

Minuteman Press Sandy Springs is a local, full-service, professional design and printing company. Their mission is to make a company’s or person’s image the very best it can be. They do this through offering a wide variety of quality product options and providing a first-rate customer experience. Minuteman Press Sandy Springs stands behind what they sell with a customer satisfaction guarantee. They carefully review artwork and make recommendations for improvement, or if preferred, they provide professional design for their customers. One-stop shopping makes them an excellent resource for not only conventional printing, but also posters, signage and promotional products. Plus, they offer free delivery within six miles. Minuteman Press Sandy Springs loves to have visitors, so come by for a fresh baked cookie, a warm greeting, and see how they make a difference at Minuteman Press Sandy Springs!

Cyber Security

May 10, 2016 by angishields

Midtown Business Radio

Cyber Security

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Cyber Security

Breaches to enterprise data and information are making news with troubling regularity these days. Businesses of all sizes need to be aware of their security status, plans for handling breaches if they occur, and how to mitigate the risk of exposure for the company if it happens. I talked to two experts on the subject, David Katz, partner with Nelson, Mullins, Riley, and Scarborough, and Brian Mikes, VP with Marsh USA, a highly-regarded insurance company that has expertise in cyber security.

David and Brian shared information on the importance of having a plan of action in place for businesses large and small, for the necessary steps to take in the case of an actual breach of an enterprise’s network or data. They emphasized how vital it is to have such a plan in place well in advance of problems occurring. Given the variations in legal requirements for how to handle information breaches when they occur it is essential that the enterprise secures the expertise of a legal consultant familiar with the various laws affecting such data breaches.

Brian explained some of the nuances of risk reduction and policies designed to protect the business in the event data breaches do occur. We also got into the steps to take if it is discovered that a company’s network or data has been compromised.

David and Brian discussed some of the typical areas of weakness they discover when engaging businesses to evaluate their cyber security plan, policies, and procedures. With the extent of the internet of things, devices connected to the internet via networks, and vendor portals, there are a host of points of entry for hackers and other bad guys looking to engage in nefarious activities by penetrating an enterprise’s network.

Special Guests:

David Katz, Partner, Nelson, Riley, Scarborough, and Mullins

Brian Mikes, Vice President/Advisor, Marsh USA

Stellar Consulting Solutions and Orange Theory Fitness

February 18, 2016 by angishields

Midtown Business Radio

Stellar Consulting Solutions and Orange Theory Fitness

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Stellar Consulting Solutions and Orange Theory Fitness

Today I had the pleasure of talking to Sugra Naqvi and Varun Jhanjee, founders and consultants for the growing boutique technology consulting and staffing firm, Stellar Consulting Solutions, LLC. I also caught up with CEO/Founder of Orangetheory Fitness, Dave Long to talk about their very effective approach to helping their members achieve a higher level of fitness, regardless of their fitness level when they start.

Varun brings seventeen years of experience beginning as an engineer moving rapidly into the technology field working with several major Fortune 500 companies and has been in the Atlanta area for the past fifteen years. I

Sugra makes contacting Stellar Consulting Solutions personal….letting potential clients/clients know she is only a click away from a response through any chosen media…a rarity in today’s depersonalized business world.

Our guests are two upwardly mobile entrepreneurs who saw a growing need in the business community: maintaining traction in the rapidly changing world of IT. Using their combined business acumen, they developed Stellar Consulting Solutions to help businesses alleviate the stress and strain of staying current in the IT world; imperative in today’s market.

SCS, LLC specializes in the IT field offering a resource pool of experts to assist on technology projects, provide experienced consultants, and deliver end-to-end recruiting staffing solutions, and the list is only the beginning of what this company can offer. Concentrating on the H2H factor allows Stellar to bring the right solution with the right talent to its clients. Varun feels the importance of not only providing quality IT answers but takes their expertise into the personal realm allowing companies to blend their needs with Stellar to build the perfect profile.

Sugra shared that Stellar Consulting assists those in the job seeking market to connect with companies looking for people to fill sort-term projects, fill full time positions, or fill contract jobs. Because the resource pool for specialized IT professionals is limited, SCS can offer businesses the freedom to concentrate on business while SCS provides quality staffing to respond to the data driven issues that arise daily.

Sugra and Varun also foster diversity in the workplace, as Stellar is a minority business enterprise (MBE). Authenticity matters to SCS. Our guests shared that SCS can bring the personal and the professional into the IT field of constant change and guarantee quality results.

Stellar Consulting Solutions also addresses specialty areas: ERP Systems Database, Social, Mobile Analytics, Cloud Project/Program Managers, Infrastructure technologies to name a few.

A little over a year ago, a long-time friend of mine began talking about Orangetheory Fitness. I had heard of the fitness concept brand before but as I watched my friend’s physical and personal transformation before my eyes, and heard her rave about her experience with them, I wanted to learn more.

David Long graduated with a degree in Physical Therapy and an MBA from the University of Florida. David has an extensive, successful past as an entrepreneur and visionary. He has had management roles with GNC, Massage Envy VP of Operations, and is Partner and Founder of Orangetheory Fitness.

David has been immersed in personal fitness since he hit the retail scene in 2001 as a Director of Operations with Lifestyle Family Fitness. Reviewing David’s extensive professional background, it is apparent why he again is instrumental in leading the fitness industry to a unique new concept: Orangetheory Fitness.

Orangetheory Fitness combines interval, cardio, and a floor workout into a one hour session. What sets this concept apart is focusing on the individual working out within a community and using a Heart Rate Monitor for each client. Each studio is a “boutique fitness” location. Studios are conveniently located, franchise driven, and staffed with hand-picked experts in a variety of fields. Clients are exposed to a non-intimidating climate, a community, and can quickly blend in, therefore, removing the stigma of being “different” because they are newbies, walked in from a sedentary life style or have no clue about the world of physical fitness.

Personal is a key word at Orangetheory Fitness. Someone can go from zero experience in working out or be a seasoned fitness buff. No one is competing with anyone else: an important component to individuals hesitant to even walk into a fitness location.

Orangetheory Fitness empowers members to have more control over their effort level by having clients wear a Heart Rate Monitor (HRM) to track progress while working out. We have all heard “Get that heart rate up!”, but Orangetheroy Fitness makes tracking the heart rate an active component. Clients work toward a target zone that stimulates metabolism, increases energy, promotes extra calorie burn for up to 36 hours post-workout.

Clients WANT to return to the Orangetheory Fitness studio; the dread, lack of visible results, and overly aggressive tactics are gone. Simply stated: it works.

You can hear Dave Long’s Orangetheory Fitness interview on its own below:

Special Guests:

Sugra Naqvi, Vice President of Sales, Stellar Consulting Solutions

BS, Sociology, Georgia State University
BS Nutrition Sciences, Kaplan University
Active Wellness/Lifestyle Coach
Fluent, Urdu/Hindi

Varun Jhanjee, SVP, Stellar Consulting Services

BS, Electronics, University of Pune
Former Senior Programmer Analyst, Microtek International
Previous Development Lead, CAD Images, Government of India
Fluent, Hindi, Punjabi, English

Dave Long, CEO/Founder, Orangetheory Fitness

BS, Health Science/Physical Therapy, University of Florida
MBA, Management, University of Florida
Developer and Owner, European Wax Centers
Former Regional Developer–NY, Massage Envy

Talking IT Strategy with Atlanta’s CIO Samir Saini

May 12, 2015 by angishields

Midtown Business Radio

Talking IT Strategy with Atlanta's CIO Samir Saini

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IT Strategy in Atlanta

This week I had the special treat of sitting down with a long-time acquaintance of mine, Samir Saini, Atlanta’s recently-appointed CIO (2014). He shared the story of his professional journey, beginning as an IT program manager with General Electric and his experience of successful completion of their 2 yr leadership training program.

He spent 10 years with this well-respected organization before accepting the opportunity to step into the role of VP, Corporate Strategy in IT for the MGM International Resorts in Las Vegas. They were in the middle of tackling the IT challenges that come with acquiring several established companies into an existing enterprise, in this case, several well-known hotels.

He was able to successfully lead them through the process of moving the hotels onto a common platform, allowing the company to begin to leverage their company’s size through its expanded buying power and maximize efficiencies in numerous other areas.

Samir returned to Atlanta several years ago, this time bringing his leadership and IT expertise to bear in the public sector, taking a role with Atlanta’s Housing Authority. Four years later he was appointed to be the new CIO for the City of Atlanta by Mayor Kasim Reed.

We talked about the challenges a municipality the size of Atlanta faces, balancing budgetary constraints against a myriad of government agencies, the world’s busiest airport, large population and infrastructure necessary to support them, along with a fast-growing business sector.

Samir discussed several of the tech solutions he and his team are working on and several that are already implemented to the benefit of Atlanta residents. Until we spoke I wasn’t aware that the city provides free Wi-Fi access in Piedmont Park, Grant Park, and numerous other hotspots (with more coming).

He shared the city’s plans to update the fiber optic network to allow for numerous tech upgrades such as synchronized traffic lights to alleviate gridlock, applications that allow drivers to easily locate available parking, and more. I also had the chance to ask him about the priorities he has laid out for the city going forward to address the enormous tech needs of our city to prepare us for the years to come that will make the city a better place to live as a resident and a solid choice for businesses looking for a place to plant their flag.

Special Guest:

Samir Saini, CIO, Commissioner, City of Atlanta