Corporate Advisory Board

Lori T. Healey is a Principal at the The John Buck Company (JBC), a privately-owned, full-service real estate firm based in Chicago. Ms. Healey is leading the firm’s new business efforts, with a focus on fee-development projects for corporations, institutions and the public sector. She is also assisting in raising capital for the JBC Fund and exploring infrastructure-related and public-private partnership opportunities.

Prior to her present position, Ms. Healey served as President of Chicago 2016, the organization whose mission it was to seek the privilege of hosting the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Ms. Healey oversaw the bid’s community outreach and government relations activities, Olympic Village development and implementation of sports, education and cultural legacy programs.

She was appointed by Mayor Richard M. Daley as his Chief of Staff on April 23, 2007, after serving as Commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development since October 2005. Prior to that position, Ms. Healey was a Principal in Perkins+Will’s Chicago office, serving as the market sector leader for corporate, commercial and civic architecture.

In 2002, Ms. Healey was appointed Vice Chair of the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) Board of Commissioners, in addition to serving as one of 18 members of Mayor Daley’s Zoning Reform Commission, charged with modernizing Chicago’s complex zoning code.

Ms. Healey has also served as the Executive Director of the Federation of Women Contractors (FWC), a not-for-profit business association consisting of women-owned firms in construction and construction-related industries throughout the Chicago metropolitan region. In addition, she provided consulting services in real estate, economic development and tax-increment financing as Vice President of Louik/Schneider & Associates, a Chicago-based firm.

Ms. Healey is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago and serves as a board member for the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the Chicago Architecture Foundation and the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association. Prior to her position with the City of Chicago, she served as the Chairperson of the Chicago Loop Alliance and as Co-chair of the Metropolitan Planning Council’s Urban Design Committee. She also served on the board of directors of the Women’s Business Development Center and the Alliance for Illinois Manufacturing (AIM).

In 1999, Crain’s Chicago Business included Ms. Healey in its “Forty Under Forty” annual publication and in 2009 she was named by Crain’s as a “Woman to Watch.” She also has been honored with the Motorola Excellence in Public Service Award in October 2006; named a Woman of Achievement by the YWCA in 2008; and received the 2008 Woman of the Year award from the Women in Transportation (WTS) Chicago Chapter. In September 2009, Ms. Healey received the Advocacy Award from the Women’s Business Development Center at their annual meeting.

Ms. Healey is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Kansas State University, where she received a BS (magna cum laude) in economics and political science and a master’s in public administration.

William A. Marovitz is a real estate developer and business consultant who served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1974 to 1980 and the Illinois State Senate from 1980 to 1993. Mr. Marovitz was Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Vice Chairman of the Senate Public Health Committee. He quickly gained credibility and a reputation as one of Illinois’ most effective and respected legislators. Throughout his long legislative career, Mr. Marovitz received “Best Legislator” awards from numerous Illinois organizations.

While Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Marovitz was the leading proponent of toughening gun control legislation in Illinois and received the Distinguished Service Award from the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence. He also authored and passed the country’s first Safe School Zone law aimed at protecting school areas from the use of drugs and weapons.

Sen. Marovitz was also Chairman of the Senate Stadium Sub-Committee and was point person in the Senate on legislation creating the new White Sox Park. Mr. Marovitz also was instrumental in the creation of the United Center for the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago Blackhawks. He helped mediate a compromise between the Chicago Cubs and the Lakeview community leading to the installation of lights at Wrigley Field for 18 night games.

In 1993, Mr. Marovitz retired from the Senate to devote most of his time to business development. Along with partners Bud and Bob Cataldo, he purchased some of the most valuable property in Chicago and brought together several major companies in consortia such as U.S. Equities, American Invesco, Magellan Properties and Near North Properties. Lead by the Marovitz/Cataldo team, these companies constructed several 60-story structures to successfully develop the properties bordered by Clark Street, State Street, Grand Avenue and Ohio Street, including building condominiums, apartments, and retail and parking facilities.

Mr. Marovitz is a partner in one of Chicago’s leading restaurant organizations, Lettuce Entertain You, Inc., headed by Richard Melman. He opened one of Chicago’s most popular new dining spots, Carnivale, in a building he purchased with restaurateur Jerry Kleiner, and Quartino, located in a Marovitz/Cataldo building and operated by Steve Lombardo of Gibson’s Restaurant and Hugo Ralli of Hugo’s Frog Bar.

In addition, Mr. Marovitz serves on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau, the Anti-Defamation League, the Weizmann Institute of Science, and the Gene Siskel Film Center of the Art Institute of Chicago, and he has been an active supporter of the Little City Foundation. Prior to his legislative service, Mr. Marovitz was a Chicago Public Schools teacher and was selected one of Chicago's Ten Most Outstanding Citizens for his public and private efforts throughout the city.

Mr. Marovitz has continued to be actively involved in government and civic affairs, serving as the Democratic State Central Committeeman for the Ninth Congressional District and the Vice Chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois. He also is a senior consultant with Cassidy and Associates, the largest governmental relations firm in Washington D.C., as well as counsel to several pension funds, including the Municipal Employees Annuity and Benefit Fund, and the Laborer's Annuity and Benefit Fund.

In recognition of Mr. Marovitz's contributions to the civic, charitable, political and business community in the City of Chicago, Crain's Chicago Business recognized Mr. Marovitz as one of Chicago's Who's Who in business from 1996 to present, acknowledging Mr. Marovitz's consistent success in the public and private sectors.

The former state senator lives in Chicago with his wife, Christie Hefner, former Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Playboy Enterprises, Inc.

Sharon Gist Gilliam has spent her career leading and managing organizations in both the public and private sectors during times of significant change, including the administration of the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA).

Ms. Gilliam became Chief Executive Officer of the CHA in October 2006 following seven years as Chair of the CHA Board of Commissioners. She was appointed to both positions by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley. AS CEO, Ms. Gilliam led the CHA’s Plan for Transformation, a 10-year, $1.5 billion program to redevelop 24,700 units of public housing in 22 family developments, 58 senior housing buildings and 2,400 scattered sites occupied by 142,000 Chicagoans. She directed a staff of about 400 employees and managed an annual budget of $980 million to implement the Plan. As Chair of the 10-member CHA board, Ms. Gilliam led oversight of the CHA’s redevelopment of nearly 25,000 units of public housing and the demolition of 13,000 units that were deemed as no longer viable by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

In the private sector, Ms. Gilliam became the founding partner and Chief Operating Officer for Unison Maximus Inc., a provider of aviation planning and consulting services, including retail concessions planning and management services, concessions management engagements services, and concessions planning and implementation. There, she oversaw the government services practice with an emphasis on strategic planning, organizational development, financial planning and controls, capital improvement funding and debt management services.

Prior to joining Unison, she served as Chief Operating Officer for the City of Chicago responsible for policy implementation and day-to-day operation and management of the city’s 42 departments and agencies, its 40,000 employees and a budget totaling $4 billion. She served as the first Deputy Budget Director for the city (July 1983-January 1988) under the late Mayor Harold Washington and as Chief of Staff of the Mayor's Office under former Mayor Eugene Sawyer (January 1988-June 1989).

Ms. Gilliam's experience includes four years as Chicago Budget Director responsible for planning, production, implementation and control of the city’s $2.8 billion operating budget and $1 billion annual capital budget; four years with the District of Columbia government as Budget Officer for the Department of Housing and Community Development; Acting Commissioner of the Department of Consumer Services; and Grant Coordinator/Assistant Director of the Mayor’s Office of Budget and Management.

Ms. Gilliam has been actively involved in public policy research and public employee recruitment and retention. She has served on the board of the Metropolitan Planning Council, a member of the Visiting Committee to the Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago, and is a member of the Editorial Board of Illinois Issues. In addition, Ms. Gilliam served as adjunct faculty for organizational budgeting and finance in the Master’s in Human Services Administration program at Spertus College.

In January 2009, Ms. Gilliam became the first woman and African American to chair the board of the Chicago History Museum. She is also a board member of Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the Chicago Consulting Alliance, and a trustee of Northern and Northern Institutional Mutual Funds.

Avis LaVelle is a communications expert who has designed communications and strategic marketing campaigms for mayors, presidential candidates and public and private sectors entities, applying nearly three decades of practical application of the strategies she recommends.

Ms. LaVelle, President of A. LaVelle Consulting Services, LLC, is additionally informed by her previous work as a senior news reporter in Chicago, one of the nation¹s largest media markets. Covering major stories as they unfolded offered Ms. LaVelle a unique opportunity to observe a wide variety of communications styles and practices in the public and private sectors. Ms. LaVelle covered high-profile stories such as the Tylenol tampering incident and the Jewel milk salmonella outbreak, both of which provided excellent case studies in handling crises. As Press Secretary to Mayor Richard M. Daley, Ms. LaVelle oversaw more than two dozen city departments and crafted strategic and crisis communications for major initiatives such as workforce privatization, the Lake Calumet Airport initiative and the Chicago flood of April 1992.

As press secretary for both the Daley mayoral campaign and the Clinton/Gore presidential campaign, Ms. LaVelle designed and implemented grassroots community outreach strategies to keep members of multiple ethnic and geographic constituencies informed about campaign activities through strategic use of community and foreign language print, radio and television.

As a former U.S. Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs under the Clinton Administration, Ms. LaVelle supervised a staff of more than 500 communications professionals at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and directed the rollout of major national health marketing initiatives such as the Childhood Immunization Program and the FDA's Food Nutrition Labeling initiative under Secretary Donna Shalala.

As a senior level executive of private sector entities such as Waste Management Inc. and the University of Chicago Hospitals, Ms. LaVelle was responsible for communications, community relations and advocacy for such major initiatives as the Blue Bag Recycling program, a campaign that resulted in changes nationwide in transplant organ allocation practices, and annual efforts to secure more funding for Medicaid and Medicare at the state and federal levels.

Ms. LaVelle served seven years on the Chicago School Reform Board of Trustees, five as its vice president. During her tenure, Ms. LaVelle provided strategic communications consulting to the board to guide the Chicago Public Schools through major policy shifts on potentially controversial issues such as busing, school closings and the end of social promotion.

As State Party Chairman for the Kerry/Edwards presidential campaign in 2004, Ms. LaVelle developed and orchestrated a grassroots political operation that mobilized 14,000 volunteers who signed up via the Internet to raise money, write letters, increase visibility, and monitor the media.

Allen Pomerance, P.E., is a professional electrical engineer who has spent the majority of his career involved in top-level management of major projects vital to the Chicago-area economy.

Mr. Pomerance is Executive Vice President and Director of Epstein Aviation for Epstein, one of the largest, oldest architecture, interiors, engineering and construction firms in the world. He served as Epstein’s principal-in-charge for the $750 million Midway Airport new passenger terminal project, supervising a team of 20 designers, day-to-day design and construction administration.  Mr. Pomerance was project director for the design of the first new runway to be built as part of the O’Hare Expansion Projec and is currently project director for the design of runway 10R-28L at O'Hare.

Mr. Pomerance oversaw design management, contract and sub-consultant administration of the McCormick Place Convention Center South Hall Expansion, as well as construction administration of the $675 million design-build convention center expansion, which provided an additional 3.2 million square feet of structure. He also was project manager on the award-winning $500 million United Airlines Terminal One Expansion at O'Hare.

Mr. Pomerance is a member of the American Association of Airport Executives; the Airport Consultants Council; the Electrical Association (board of directors); the Consulting Electrical Engineers of Chicago (board of directors); the Electric Association Education Foundation (treasurer, board of directors); and the City Club of Chicago.

His past experience includes:

BRAC - Surface Deployment & Distribution Command Temporary Facilities – Scott Air Force Base, Illinois: Principal-in-charge of two-story, 74,000-square-foot office building that houses the BRAC – Surface Deployment and Distribution Command (SDDC) temporary administrative facility. Epstein was responsible for the development of the site, landscape design, force protection, interior and exterior signage design, fire protection, intrusion detection and CCTV systems.

Campbell Soup Company Conceptual Design Study – Camden, New Jersey: Project manager for concept development and design of a “next generation” food processing plant.

Department of Veterans’ Affairs Hospital Renovation – Hines, Illinois: Provided electrical system design and engineering for electrical renovation of a 300,000-square-foot warehouse.

Department of Veterans’ Affairs Electrical Systems Modernization – Danville, Illinois: Provided design and project management for the renovation of six buildings on a 23-building hospital campus.

General Services Administration Office Building – Chicago, Illinois: Project manager of a $34.7 million renovation of the 600,000-square-foot, 10-story Federal Building at 536 S. Clark St. The project included asbestos abatement, new mechanical and electrical systems, and new floor plans.

Kellogg Company Food Processing Plant – London, Ontario, Canada: Project engineer for a 250,000-square-foot high-tech dry cereal processing plant.

Midway Airport Automated In-Line Explosives Detection Systems (EDS) – Chicago, Illinois: Project manager for the design and development of the Automated In-Line Explosives Detection System (EDS).

Midway Airport Concourse A-Infill Addition – Chicago, Illinois: Project manager for a 56,000-square-foot, two-level building addition to Concourse A at Midway Airport. Services included demolition and concrete pavement replacement of the operations apron; evaluation of pre- and post-construction plane movements and clearance envelopes at gate positions; relocation of fire protection main; site drainage and storm sewer design; sanitary sewer design; pavement striping for plane and ancillary vehicle movements; construction sequencing; and construction document preparation.

Midway Airport New Passenger Terminal – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for a $448 million facility that replaced the existing terminal built in 1947. Epstein's responsibilities included project management and administration, terminal structural engineering, and preparation of architectural and structural construction documents.

Midway Airport New Passenger Terminal Garage – Chicago, Illinois: Principal-in-charge of the project management/administration, terminal structural engineering, and preparation of architectural and structural construction documents for a new passenger terminal and parking facility. Mr. Pomerance coordinated the efforts of the Midway Terminal Design Associates, a consortium of six firms, each with extensive airport terminal design experience.

Midway Airport North Security Hall Expansion – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for development of the $12 million North Security Hall, the first phase of the new security expansion at Midway International Airport.

O’Hare International Airport Taxiway Whiskey Tango (WT) – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for the coordination, layout, design, review and preparation of the construction documents for the removal of existing Runway 18/36 from Taxiway H to Taxiway U; the construction of new Taxiway WT from existing Taxiway H to the new North Runway 9L/27R; and the removal of existing Taxiway V and the construction of new Taxiway V.

O'Hare Modernization Program Runway 9L-27R – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for the new 7,500-foot-long, 150-foot-wide, Group V-capable Cat II/III runway, including a full-length parallel taxiway and associated high-speed exits, a runway and taxiway underdrain system, pavement markings and NAVAIDS systems.

O’Hare Modernization Program 14L Threshold Relocation – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for the design of the relocated navigational aids (NAVAIDS) and CAT II/III ALSF-2/ SSALR approach lighting system for the threshold displacement of Runway 14L, as part of the O’Hare Modernization Program. Project included relocation of the CAT II/III Glide Slope antenna and equipment into a new shelter; relocation of the existing Far Field Monitor (FFM) antennas; relocation of the existing Inner Beacon Marker; relocation of the existing 14L touchdown and mid point RVR equipment; new Runway 14L in-pavement approach light system (ALSF-2); and new Runway 32R localizer equipment and shelter.

O’Hare Modernization Program Runway 10R-28L – Chicago, Illinois: Project director for a new 7,500-foot long, 150-foot wide, Group V-capable Cat II/III runway that includes a full-length parallel taxiway and associated high-speed exit and crossover taxiways between the parallel taxiway and runway, as well as connections to the existing airfield.

Port Columbus International Airport In-Line Checked Baggage Screening System – Columbus, Ohio: Principal-in-charge of the design of an inline baggage screening system for all checked baggage at Port Columbus International Airport. Epsteinreplaced and/or upgraded various components of other baggage conveyor systems, specifically, but not limited to, inbound belts/baggage claim devices.

Scott Air Force Base Child Development Center – Scott Air Force Base, Illinois: Principal-in-charge of the new Scott Air Force Base Child Development Center (CDC), which includes 16 child care rooms, a staff and parent resource room, administrative areas, laundry and kitchen, common areas including a breakroom, mechanical and electrical areas, and other spaces including a playground with four outdoor learning centers.

Scott Air Force Base Security Forces Operations Center – Scott Air Force Base, Illinois: Principal-in-charge of the new $11 million, 34,619-square-foot Security Forces Operations Center at Scott Air Force Base. The Security Forces Operations Facility includes administrative areas, training and classroom areas, conference rooms, a ballistic proof control center, an alarm room, long-term detention, short-term holding, investigations, interview rooms, weapons vaults, common areas including a breakroom, and mechanical and electrical areas.

Signature Flight Support Facility – O’Hare Airport, Chicago, Illinois: Project manager for the one-and-a-half-story, 14,700-square-foot facility comprised of a lobby, conference rooms, VIP suites and lounges for private and charter passengers, a facility for the aircrews’ layovers, and secured parking for 110 cars adjacent to the facility.

Signature Flight Support – Chicago Executive Airport - Wheeling/Prospect Heights, IL: Project manager for the conceptual design of a new terminal and hangar facility.

United Airlines O’Hare Airport Terminal One Complex – Chicago, Illinois: Overall project manager of the 1.2 million-square-foot Terminal One Complex at Chicago-O’Hare International Airport.

U.S. Postal Service Mail Processing Facility – Palatine, Illinois: Project manager for the new 630,000-square-foot, $63 million mail processing facility, including a 1,090-car parking lot.

Federal Life Insurance Company – Riverwoods, Illinois: Project manager for a two-story headquarters facility.

Kraft Company – Decatur, Georgia: Project manager for a power distribution and process control system in a margarine plant.

The Perlman Rocque Company – Lemont, Illinois: Project manager for a 100,000-square-foot distribution center.

Arpad Toth is a globally recognized technologist, scientist, inventor and business executive in the rapidly emerging practices of Converged Security Protection (CSP), Macro and Micro Urban Security Protection (MMUSP), and “Smart Cities” / “Smart Buildings”. He has spent his career working in industries involved in cutting edge, innovative technologies such as telecommunications, digital television, imaging and security.

Currently, Mr. Toth is managing government and global business development for Powerwave Corporation, an innovator in fourth generation wireless systems and solutions.

Prior to Powerwave, Mr. Toth worked as GTSI's Senior Solutions Architect. His prime responsibilities included business strategy, technology capability, solution planning and technical architecture development of complex federal, state and local government solutions. Mr. Toth was intimately involved in developing successful multi-company, multimillion-dollar program proposals for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (EAGLE-II) and the National Institutes of Health (NITAAC CIO-SP3).

Mr. Toth is Chairman and CEO of Alacera International, a spin-off from GTSI responsible for managing global growth and providing solutions and services for Converged Security Protection, integrated building systems, building automation, energy management, technology and products leadership, and development of global alliances with vendor partners in the IT and physical security fields. Mr. Toth demonstrated exceptional leadership at Alacera. He co-founded international operations with offices in Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the USA; headed numerous safety and security protection projects in Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Egypt and Saudi Arabia; and formed and chaired the Alacera International Consortium Board, which oversaw homeland and physical security business opportunities in the aforementioned countries.

The Alacera International Consortium Board of Advisors was comprised of top security experts and national industry leaders, including former U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge; Retired General James Jamerson, President of Lockheed Martin Mid-East operation; Jim Leto, CEO of GTSI; former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Chief Security Officer Jack Johnson and former DHS Chief Information Officer Steve Cooper. Alacera partners included Lockheed Martin, Cisco Systems, Schneider Electric / Pelco, ICX Technologies, PWC, Adesta, Ross & Baruzzini, Argonne National Laboratory, Atheeb Group of Companies - Saudi Arabia, and specialized security solutions providers.

Under Mr. Toth's leadership, Alacera and its consortium prepared a complex multi-year, multi-company project proposal for security of a city of 2.5 million in Saudi Arabia; developed a TSEC Academy business proposal for the R&D and training institute to advance homeland security protection techniques, services and solutions in Saudi Arabia, as well as to train up to 5,000 professionals annually; led numerous executive presentations with international executive audience in the USA and the Persian Gulf region; became a trusted advisor to the Saudi Ministry of Interior and SAGIA (Saudi Arabian Government Investment Agency); and contributed to the Saudi New Economic Cities Security Master Plan.

In the past three years, Mr. Toth has headed numerous security protection projects, including Cairo, Egypt, Diplomats City security protection master plan; Kuwait Parliament building security; Kuwait Ministry of Interior Correction Facility; Kuwait Central Bank headquarters; Qatar Barwa Urjuan City security; Bahrain Petroleum Company; Oman New Muscat Airport; and Aramco heliports and oil drilling platforms.

Mr. Toth published his vision of the “Secure Model City of the Future™” while working as a scientist at Nortel Networks in the 1970s and 1980s. He was involved in the research and development of the world’s first broadband smart home solutions based on fiber optic, CATV and power-line communications as alternatives. He was able to advance his pioneering work on the subject as chief scientist of Philips Research in the late 1980s and became a key contributor to the EIA (now CEA) Smart House activities.

Mr. Toth is also one of the inventors of HDTV. In 1987, he published and presented one of the first papers worldwide on an hierarchical, scalable multi-resolution digital video system structure that led to the definition of the MPEG TV standard family, including MPEG-2 HDTV standard and motion JPEG. In the 1990s, he continued his efforts as the chief digital imaging architect at Kodak's R&D Center. Under his leadership, more than two dozen Internet-enabled digital network imaging patents were created at Kodak for the professional, medical and consumer imaging fields. For his innovative work, Mr. Toth was awarded lifetime membership in the Kodak Research Scientific Council.

Prior to co-founding Alacera in 2006, Mr. Toth was Chief Technologist for GTSI responsible for overall IT, homeland/physical security, and force protection technology leadership. He also was Chairman of the GTSI Technology Council ensuring that GTSI solution development and integration aligned with new technology-driven capabilities and government client demand. Mr. Toth was the founder of the InteGuard Alliance, a group of more than 60 corporations in the physical security field that provided trusted physical security protection services to governments. As the former head of the GTSI Physical Security Protection (PSP) technology practice, Mr. Toth led the team that provided the security protection master plan for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security headquarters; led a multi-company team to design and implement the video surveillance system for Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville, Florida, which included protection of the entire downtown, all major highways, the river, and the stadium; and was involved in dozens of physical security project proposals for university campuses, hospitals, airports and macro urban development projects for the City of Baltimore.

Throughout his career, Mr. Toth has held a variety of executive positions with leading public and private sector technology companies. He was the co-founder and senior vice president of a wireless data solutions startup firm in Washington D.C., (a spin-off from Metrocall); chief technology officer and corporate vice president at Circuit City; chief imaging architect and executive director of Eastman Kodak; and chief scientist, HDTV, at Philips Research. He contributed to the formulation of fundamental patents for HDTV systems, online network imaging solutions, and broadband telecommunications including ISDN, broadband-ATM and SONET.

Carolyn Taylor is a delivery executive and organizational change specialist with more than l7 years of experience in managing large-scale global engagements for Fortune 500 companies and one of the country’s leading consulting firms. Her strong track record in delivering bottom-line business results is based on her philosophy that integration of organizational change management is key to successful implementations.

Ms. Taylor, Engagement Manager for Cisco Systems, joined Cisco in March 2007 to lead a multimillion-dollar initiative to design the global engagement model for Cisco Advisory Services. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading a staff of more than 200 professionals to deliver a new network infrastructure spanning 350 sites worldwide for a major healthcare manufacturer. Ms. Taylor is involved in the full network life-cycle process including site surveying, procuring, configuring, staging, installing equipment, training, Day 1 support and transitioning to Cisco Remote Operations Services. Ms. Taylor coordinates business operations across seven Cisco divisions; manages a third-party implementation partner; provides consistent internal and external communication to business owners as well as detailed site and program-level planning; oversees scheduling and execution; and conducts comprehensive budget management.

Prior to joining Cisco, Ms. Taylor served as Director of Revenue Supplier Systems for PeopleSoft, heading up global financial systems. She led a global project team of more than 100 professionals in the redesign of all financial business processes, as well as the internal global implementation of the company’s ERP modules.

Previously, Ms. Taylor served in two key positions at McDonald’s Corporation: Director of Global Financial Systems in charge of developing and managing accounting, treasury and tax application systems; and Senior Manager in the international division who led a global team in the redesign of financial business processes and deployingment a new accounting system for the company worldwide.

Ms. Taylor has extensive consulting experience including 10 years with Ernst & Young, where she led engagements across a range of industry segments including financial services, consumer products, manufacturing, membership and insurance. She also served as Senior Program Management Consultant for the California State Automobile Association and founded Business Resource Partners, a firm offering strategic consulting and program management for leading corporations.