Christopher R. Barber is senior vice president and chief information officer at WesCorp, a corporate credit union headquartered in San Dimas, California. WesCorp is the largest corporate credit union, with more than $30 billion in assets. At WesCorp, Mr. Barber is responsible for the leadership, strategic direction, and creation of a visionary approach designed to align IT and business development in support of the company’s strategic initiatives. Mr. Barber has more than twenty years of experience leading strategic development and implementation in the financial services and investment technology arenas. Prior to joining WesCorp, Mr. Barber served as SVP and CIO for GlobeNet Capital Corporation in Orlando, Florida, an innovative company that built and operated electronic trading systems. He also held leadership positions with Vector Securities as senior technology officer and with Mercer Investment Consulting as the director of software development for their Global Resource Group. Mr. Barber received his M.B.A. in finance from DePaul University and his bachelor’s degree in computer science from Central Michigan University.
Christopher C. Barron joined CPS Energy in 2004 as an executive in the company’s information and communications services division. As vice president and chief information officer, he is responsible for leading the company’s technology strategy and chairs the global internal information technology governance function. During his eighteen years in information technology, Mr. Barron has worked in the high-tech industry with Micron Electronics, headed an international consulting services company, and has been a senior executive with Weyerhaeuser, a Fortune 100 corporation. Mr. Barron’s affiliations include the Project Management Institute and the ISSA—International Systems Security Association. He is also a certified Six Sigma Black Belt and is a graduate of Stanford University’s Advanced Project Management certification program. Mr. Barron has been recognized internationally as a leader in developing the next generation of IT concepts in mobility, enhancements in business efficiency through the use of technology, and talent management as an integral responsibility of the CIO. He recently spoke at an international symposium in Sydney, Australia, about the parallel developments in IT strategies between the United States and developing regions in China and India. Today, Mr. Barron is leading collaboration to bring IT to the forefront of the energy sector as a key competitive differentiator. In 2007 and 2008, Mr. Barron was honored by CIO Magazine as one of the year’s top 100 global chief information officers for significant advancements in technologies to support a mobile workforce. This honor comes from his work on the development of the Magellan Program at CPS Energy, which has utilized technology to facilitate evolutional changes in the social structure of the company, while greatly improving business efficiency. Mr. Barron holds a Master of Science in management and systems from New York University, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, and a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from the University of Idaho.
Francisco DeArmas is the executive vice president and chief information officer of Whitney National Bank, headquartered in New Orleans. He is responsible for leading the bank’s back-office operations, security/business continuity, and technology, to include architecture strategy, delivery/development, infrastructure, and operations. Mr. DeArmas has more than twenty-three years of banking and financial services experience. Prior to joining the Whitney, Mr. DeArmas spent four years with GMAC as vice president, chief administrative officer (CAO), strategic information officer, global applications and architecture. In this role, Mr. DeArmas was responsible for leading the development and delivery of a coherent global enterprise architecture for the GMAC Information Technology Group. He was also given responsibility for leading the global delivery of applications through his leadership of the GMAC Systems Development Factory (SDF). Mr. DeArmas received his B.B.A. from Northwood University and his M.B.A. from California Coast University. He is married to Janice and is the father of two daughters, Lauren and Stacey. Mr. DeArmas is a member of several charities and is a veteran of the U.S. Army, having served eight years.
As chief information officer of the Research Foundation of the City University of New York, Jacek Olszewski is responsible for ensuring that the RF and GrantsPlus’ information technology investments are aligned with their strategic business objectives. With more than twenty years of experience in information systems, specializing in financial systems, Mr. Olszewski’s experience includes a business systems analyst position at Irving Trust Bank on Wall Street; IT director at the Navy Motion Picture Service, reporting to a commanding officer at the Brooklyn Navy Yard; and a business analyst/developer manager at True North, an advertising agency responsible for the design, development, and implementation of financial systems. He has also done some consulting work in business continuity and implementation of financial applications. Mr. Olszewski received his B.A. in management information systems from Pace University and completed his study toward an M.S. in information systems from Brooklyn College.
Dave Schroeder was formerly senior vice president and chief information officer at PRG-Schultz International, Inc., the world’s largest recovery audit firm. Prior to his role at the company, Mr. Schroeder served as chief technology officer for Esquire Deposition Services, the largest court reporting firm in the United States. He also served as CTO for Law.com, a major Web site targeting lawyers and legal professionals. Mr. Schroeder has held senior technology management roles at innovative consulting organizations, such as iXL Inc. and IBM’s Interactive Media division. Mr. Schroeder earned a Master of Science in industrial administration from Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper Business School, a Master of Divinity, magna cum laude, from Drew University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Swarthmore College.
As vice president, information technology, Tracy Schroeder has been leading the information technology services department at the University of San Francisco since the fall of 2002. In this role, she has overseen the replacement of the campus voice and data network infrastructure, technology upgrades to 90 percent of USF’s classrooms, implementation and upgrading of an enterprise portal, and implementation of a new ERP software suite. Prior to leading USF ITS, Ms. Schroeder served USF as an administrator in its College of Professional Studies and Academic and Enrollment Services group. Ms. Schroeder has a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and a master’s degree from USF. For more information about USF’s information technology services department, visit www.usfca.edu/its.
Thomas Skill is associate provost and chief information officer at the University of Dayton. He joined the provost’s office in 1997. His role in the provost’s office has been to develop and lead the strategy for integrating technology-enhanced learning across the university. This strategic initiative strives to enrich teaching and learning within and beyond the classroom through innovative applications of technology. Mr. Skill has more than twenty-five years of computing and communications technology experience in higher education. He has been on the faculty at the University of Dayton since 1984 and currently holds the rank of professor in the department of communication. Prior to his current position, Mr. Skill served three years as associate provost for educational innovation and technology, three years as assistant provost for academic technology, and four years as chair of the department of communication, the largest undergraduate academic program at the university. Mr. Skill also has served as director of graduate studies in communication for seven years, interim dean of the graduate school for two years, and lead researcher in the School of Business Administration’s Information Systems Laboratory from 1986 to 1993. Mr. Skill earned a Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1984.
Jeff Smedley is the chief information officer for J&J Maintenance Inc. J&J Maintenance provides military base operations support services, logistics services, and medical facilities operations, maintenance, and construction services for all branches of the U.S. military. He is responsible for information technology design and planning, technology oversight, and business technology culture. Mr. Smedley played an integral part in building the systems consulting practice for Sterling Information Group in the mid-1990s. After the acquisition of Sterling, he formed Nspire Group Inc., a recognized systems consulting practice still active in Austin, Texas. In 1999, Mr. Smedley became the chief information officer, vice president of Internet operations at FreeMe.com and helped bring the company to an acquisition by VA Linux in 2001. FreeMe.com was the first application service provider (ASP) in Austin with more than 50,000 users. In 2001, Mr. Smedley helped found and held the position of director of operations for Alter Point, a configuration management software company. He helped Alter Point define the product strategy and helped bring them to the first round of funding in 2002. Mr. Smedley then became the first CIO at J&J Maintenance in 2003 and has provided business and technology leadership as he has built and implemented a successful IT strategy companywide.
John Smithers is the vice president of technology and the chief information officer of Johnson & Wales University. He was a key contributor to the university’s implementation of the Oracle Financials System, the opening of the Charlotte campus, and the student information system conversion to Banner. As a member of both the University and the Providence leadership teams, he has been instrumental in the acquisition and implementation of several third-party systems, including Talisma, an admissions marketing tool; StarRez, an automated housing solution; and Eatec, a culinary order processing and inventory control system. Mr. Smithers has overseen changes to the university’s technical infrastructure, including increased network security, improvements to the wireless network, the installation of an emergency notification system, and the introduction of voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) telephone systems. Mr. Smithers’s department is currently deploying new or enhanced solutions for a student portal, an enterprise reporting system for the Strategic Enrollment Team’s retention efforts, an online learning platform, and a degree audit program. IT is also supporting the Web redesign project by implementing a new content management system and new interactive Web capabilities. As co-chair of the University Capital Team and a member of the University’s IT Advisory Committee, Mr. Smithers is also a member of the United Way Housing and Homelessness subcommittee and a board member of the Ocean State Higher Education Economic Development and Administrative Network (OSHEAN). Prior to joining the university, Mr. Smithers served as director of strategic alliances at Mesa Systems Inc. of Warwick, Rhode Island, a software company that provided a product development portal for Fortune 500 companies. Mr. Smithers received his Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Hartwick College, Oneonta, New York, and a project management certificate from Boston University.
Randall B. Sparkman has more than twenty-five years of experience in the information technology field, most of those years in health care. He has served at MedAssets Supply Chain Systems since 1989, most recently as senior vice president of information technology. Since 2001, he also has served as chief information and technology officer for MedAssets Inc. While with MedAssets Supply Chain Systems, Mr. Sparkman and his staff have been responsible for developing several strategic systems and technologies that give MedAssets its superiority in software, including the industry-leading CDQuick e-catalog. In his current role at MedAssets, Mr. Sparkman is responsible for shaping the technology and direction of all information technology initiatives. Mr. Sparkman began his computer career in 1981 as vice president of software development and partial owner at Cape Computer Service Inc., where he specialized in the design and development of custom PC systems. Mr. Sparkman graduated magna cum laude from Southeast Missouri State University with a Bachelor of Science in computer science with an emphasis on business system development.
Bart Waress is vice president and director of information technology for Home Buyers Warranty. He has been in the field of technology for more than seventeen years. His dedication to adding business value through technology has made him successful throughout his career, from operational oversight to strategic vision. His ability to partner with business leadership has proved the value his IT teams have brought, and he is proud to say he has worked for or with many great professionals. Mr. Waress has been fortunate to experience many different approaches to technology, whether in health care, telecom and cable, financial and insurance-based companies, or the oil and gas industry. Balancing these learnings, his ability to manage to the bottom line while still moving an organization into new competitive structure approach and adapting to the culture of the organization he is serving has been his strength. Mr. Waress is also active in the community he lives in, whether it is serving on the local school board or volunteering to coach many different sports. He believes that we all are blessed with an opportunity to give back—we just have to choose to make it part of our priorities.
