Keith Cook has been with TC2 since January 2000 and was formerly a senior consultant in Deloitte Consulting's networking practice. Keith has assisted clients in both sole-source and competitive telecommunications procurement and the related contract negotiations, producing millions of dollars in savings. His expertise spans all phases of the procurement process from data collection and traffic cost modeling, benchmarking, and RFP development and evaluation, through to vendor selection and contract negotiations. Keith also has managed the competitive procurement of local telecommunications services, as well as conducting competitive procurements of telecom expense management (TEM) services. Keith holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and an MBA from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Jack Deal joined TC2 in October 2000 and has over 25 years of telecommunications and finance industry experience. Jack leads consulting engagements covering every phase of strategic sourcing for wireline, wireless and managed services, from developing the initial procurement strategy through final negotiations. He delivers value through both substantial cost reductions and improved business terms to clients in many industry sectors, including media and entertainment, financial services, manufacturing, transportation and retail. Jack's past experience includes sales leadership, management and finance positions at Qwest, AT&T, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Jack holds an MBA from Loyola College in Maryland, and is a CPA.
Ben Fox became a TC2 consultant after serving with Deloitte Consulting's London telecommunications sourcing group. At TC2 Ben has led projects for major U.S., U.K. and global companies that have succeeded in realizing significant cost savings across the entire spectrum of telecommunications services. Ben's expertise includes basic transport services as well as managed and outsourced contracts, and often involves evaluating large-scale deployment of new technologies such as MPLS and Voice over IP networks. Ben's work encompasses the sourcing of domestic in-country requirements through to managing global telecommunications procurements, and with extensive experience in U.S. and European wireless services, he leverages his experience of the more mature European wireless market to assist his U.S. clients. Ben is based out of TC2's London office.
Julie Gardner has over 15 years of experience in telecommunications, finance and audit. She has developed and led global telecommunications RFP and rate review efforts. Additionally, she has extensive experience in bill auditing, complex contract negotiations, contract compliance, dispute resolution, and telecom expense management. Julie has successfully identified and implemented multimillion-dollar refunds and cost-saving measures, including reducing effective rates, by taking advantage of state tax minimization and tax refund opportunities. Julie worked in KPMG’s Atlanta-based audit practice and was a member of Gateway’s management team in Information Technology / Telecom. She received her accounting degree from the University of Georgia.
Pat Gilpatrick has spent a total of 27 years in the telecommunications industry, including 19 at AT&T. Pat has extensive experience in field sales and technical support roles for all major telecommunications service technologies. As an offer manager supporting the Financial Sector in New York, she supported some of AT&T's largest corporate clients, providing both strategic pricing and service bundling for both domestic and international service offerings. A TC2 consultant since 2000, Pat has managed the procurement strategies and contract negotiations for several Fortune 100 companies. Recent projects have included procurement of managed MPLS networks, evaluation of VoIP technologies, and large enterprise RFPs for global voice and data network services.
Theresa Knutson has over 18 years of telecommunications and finance industry experience. She has led global telecommunications procurements and has managed complex contractual arrangements, delivering millions of dollars of savings through global RFP sourcing and pricing negotiations, contract compliance/SLA management, provisioning management, rate reviews, bill audits and fee/tax refunds. Additionally, she has in-depth experience with IT outsourcing as well as IT hardware and software contract negotiations and management. Theresa’s past experience includes leadership positions at KPMG Peat Marwick in Atlanta and as leader of Gateway Computer’s global telecommunications group. Theresa received her accounting degree from the University of North Dakota and is a CPA.
David Lee has over 20 years of technical and management experience in technology infrastructure, networking services and telecommunications. David has managed large multidisciplinary and international teams, and has developed practices to apply networking infrastructure to solve business problems and reduce costs. In particular, David has led or contributed to several global LAN and PBX outsourcing benchmarking, design, and planning projects in the financial services and high-tech manufacturing industries. At TC2 he also focuses on global wide-area network infrastructure design issues critical to successful IP and MPLS procurements. He is regularly quoted in publications such as Network World, Internet Week, Insurance & Technology, and Crain's New York Business, and is a frequent industry speaker on network services, procurement and outsourcing. David holds an electrical engineering degree from Northwestern University, and his past technology and leadership experience includes positions with Deloitte Consulting, Booz Allen & Hamilton, IBM, California Microwave, and US Interactive.
Tony Mangino is a TC2 consultant experienced in assisting large multinational enterprise clients with all phases of the procurement process including data collection and demand set development, benchmarking, RFP development, financial modeling and evaluation. Recently, Tony has assisted financial services, consumer products and manufacturing clients in the procurement and migration of global enterprise data networks to MPLS. He also assists clients with contract compliance and bill auditing. Tony holds a master's degree in telecommunications management from George Washington University.
David Rohde is a TC2 consultant with broad experience in analysis of carrier enterprise services and telecommunications industry structure. David has been a senior research analyst at the Yankee Group, a writer and columnist for Network World, and tariff analyst for the Center for Communications Management Information. At TC2 he has assisted retailers, hospitality companies, financial institutions and others particularly in the procurement and migration of multimillion-dollar enterprise data networks across a range of frame relay, MPLS and dedicated Internet solutions. David also specializes in analysis of the financial position of national and global carriers with regard to their financial stability and capability to invest in particular areas of network deployment that are most important to enterprise users. David is a regular author in Business Communications Review and a frequent speaker at telecom industry conferences.
Joe Schmidt has more than 25 years of telecommunications design, management, and sourcing experience. Over his career Joe has lived and worked in the U.S., the U.K., Hong Kong, and currently, Singapore. Joe has extensive experience developing network and procurement strategies, leading global, regional, and in-country fixed-line and wireless procurement projects, conducting market and technology assessments, and benchmarking analyses. In particular, Joe is intimately familiar with the service capabilities of telecommunications providers around the world. Joe and is a regular speaker at industry conferences in the U.S. and Asia and periodically writes articles on telecommunication topics important to global enterprises. Prior to joining TC2, Joe held senior-level networking positions with Concord Computing, IBM Global Services, Deloitte Consulting, and Andersen.
Mark Sheard is a telecommunications and information systems professional with significant experience in sourcing and commercial negotiation, technical and business strategy, program delivery, and operations management. After a number of years with the Royal Air Force, Mark worked for Deloitte Consulting, leading the 35-strong networking and telecommunications sourcing practice. Major engagements included acting as the procurement lead for the London congestion charging system, as well as a £300 million network outsourcing deal. As a director of a networking installation company, Mark led on all program delivery including commercial negotiation. Typical projects included a successful 2,500-site base station replacement program and a broadband service rollout encompassing several hundred sites. Immediately prior to joining TC2, Mark was the program lead on a £250 million command and control rationalization project for the English Fire and Rescue Services. Mark has an MBA, an MSc in Telecommunications and Information Systems, and is a Chartered Engineer.
John Smith joined TC2 as a consultant after leading First Data Corporation’s telecom procurement area for nine years. With 19 years of telecom pricing and negotiating experience in both wireline and wireless, John successfully managed First Data’s carrier contracts, achieving significant savings targets year over year and negotiating market-leading rates for a wide range of network products. John's expertise includes leading and running each phase of the telecom procurement process, from initial data collection, rate benchmarking, modeling and negotiation strategy through to final negotiations. Prior to First Data, John worked at Sprint and at BellSouth Long Distance in the Market and Business Analysis group, where he was responsible for pricing and negotiating hundreds of customer contracts. He developed special pricing and filed tariffs for commercial mid-market and national accounts, as well as the wholesale carrier segment. John holds a BBA in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin.
Janis Stephens, a TC2 consultant since January 2000, was formerly a senior consultant at DuPont and Computer Sciences Corporation. Janis has assisted clients in both sole-source and competitive telecommunications procurement and the related contract negotiations, producing millions of dollars in savings. Her expertise spans all phases of the procurement process, including data collection and traffic cost modeling, benchmarking, billing validation, RFP development and evaluation, and vendor selection and contract negotiations. Janis has special experience with call center services as well as implementation planning and execution, including transition of large networks to a new supplier.
Larry York is an Atlanta-based consultant with TC2. Over the past five years, Larry has assisted large clients in industries such as financial services, manufacturing and distribution, retailing, food services, and technology with their U.S. domestic and global telecommunications purchases for voice, data, wireless, and managed outsourced deals. In particular, Larry has been involved with leveraging his customers' procurements to make a migration away from the frame relay/ATM environment to MPLS, often including the implementation of new alternative access technologies. Previously, Larry was with the special pricing divisions of two of the Big 3 national carriers, with responsibility for developing and negotiating pricing, terms and conditions for national and global accounts, and also had responsibility for developing custom billing and reporting solutions for the largest customers at one of these carriers.
