Q: What do clients like best about working with you?
A: Attention to detail and results. I’m also able to bring depth to a discussion surrounding why service providers operate in a certain fashion or suggest best practices that service providers may have overlooked given my lengthy experience in this industry.
Q: What is unique and valuable about your expertise?
A: For over 21 years I lived in the shoes of the service providers with whom I now negotiate. This provides me with unparalleled insight into the challenges service providers face behind the scenes to push certain terms and conditions through their Legal Department as well as pricing concession approvals with their leadership. I also bring a varied mix of experience from traditional mail, copy, and stationery supply services to advanced imaging, e-Discovery/Litigation Support, and Records Management/Information Governance.
Q: What are some successes you are most proud of and why?
A: I’m proud of my accomplishment restructuring a mixed manufacturer multi-function device fleet into a single manufacturer, expanding color output capabilities, while reducing costs for a large Midwest-based firm with a national footprint. The project had a great deal of moving parts in terms of current service providers, owned vs. leased equipment, and of course contract termination dates and a whole host of varying exit fees that go along with that mix of providers and agreements.
Wading through information provided by various organizations, resolving conflicting data, and distilling everything into a concise package for this client was no small feat. The client is thrilled to be working with the service provider they selected, has flexibility to upgrade, downgrade or return devices as their needs flex throughout the term, all at a significant savings.
Q: Desert island book
A: I’d need to have 2 books. The practical side of me would want some sort of ultimate guide to bush craft survival. To help with boredom, anything by Dan Brown – I find his writing to be entertaining and thought-provoking.
Q: Tell us about the recent success at Cooper Levenson
A: Cooper Levenson needed to not only develop an Information Governance program to create a defensible disposition program across all electronic and physical information assets, but they also needed to tie this into an offsite storage agreement that allowed the Firm to action destructions without astronomical spend. I worked with their current offsite provider to deliver an agreement that included rate reductions, and a multi-year rate freeze, across all storage and service categories. Their new agreement also includes comprehensive SLA’s along with performance penalties. In the end, Cooper Levenson’s storage rate was reduced by 18% and destruction rate by 66%.
Q: Your most recent thought leadership contribution?
A: I recently authored a white paper for the ILTA information governance issue which is to be published in November. My contribution, “Ch-ch-ch-changes: IG Says it’s Time to Make a Change. But How?” provides a practical blueprint for how firms can start a roadmap and implement an IG policy.