Resume for Steve Sobel - Contact:
Steve Sobel (steve@openingbands.com) 2021 N Kedzie #2C Chicago, IL 60647 (312) 560-2605

Objective:
To acquire a position that enables me to utilize my combination of business and technical skills and make a significant impact on an organization's bottom line.

Business Skills:
Experienced in team management, business analysis, project management, business and technical writing and oral presentation. Strong interpersonal and team leadership skills. Background in technical development.

Current Work:

15 Letters – Director of Technology - May 2008 to Present Duties: Manage a dedicated group of developers and creative technologists for the development of interactive marketing programs Web server administration, configuration and maintenance Web and Kiosk development using PHP/MySQL Participate actively in the innovation / creative stages of projects Ensure that the technology team has the necessary infrastructure and tools to work efficiently Work with clients and cross-functional teams to develop requirements for projects and marketing initiatives Analyze and improve internal workflow processes for technology and project management departments Serve as a mentor for Project Managers Achievements: Managed a team of direct reports including developers and creative technologists Implemented the use of the Subversion Version Control system and best practices for the technical team Developed 15 letters inc's business continuity / disaster recovery plan Authored and enforced programming and production best practices Managed a variety of projects ranging from web promotions to museum kiosks and iPhone applications Served as primary client liaison on most projects Provided both business and technical direction on all client projects

Previous Employment:

Duo Consulting – Maintenance Director / Project Manager – Jun 2007 - April 2008 Duties: Manage a dedicated group of developers and designers for site and application maintenance Manage client relationships with respect to both ongoing maintenance and new projects Provide expertise on the architecture and infrastructure of client solutions Analyze and improve internal workflow processes Achievements: Creation of a dedicated group to serve client maintenance needs Automation of client maintenance budget reporting HSBC – Senior Lead Management Specialist – June 2004 to June 2007 (Promoted to Senior Feb 2006) Duties: Manage the planning and implementation of marketing technology and infrastructure projects and processes Manage technical projects for the improvement of HSBC’s branch marketing system Assist in planning marketing communications creative. Execute marketing communications programs that drive maximum effectiveness of promotional programs and campaigns to improve Consumer Lending business results. Coordinate with campaign teams to load marketing leads to be disseminated through the branch network Perform analysis of report data to monitor system performance and make recommendations for improvement Manage and research incoming questions for Marketing and Lead Management related issues Assist with the project planning and prioritization process for HSBC’s Consumer Lending business unit Achievements: Creation of an automated lead file audit system Conceptualized and managed development of a of database driven support ticketing system called "Marketing Questions" Developed and taught a training course for HSBC employees wishing to learn about the marketing system OpeningBands.com – President, Webmaster, Programmer, Editor - August 1997 to 2006 Duties: Manage a staff ranging from 20-50 students and volunteers Write and copy edit articles for publication on the site Author and maintain a MySQL database driven website and online community Planned and ran organizational meetings twice a week Acted as booking agent and event manager for two concerts per week Achievements: OpeningBands is now a household name in Champaign-Urbana and is gaining popularity in Chicago and St. Louis in addition to drawing attention from major labels such as Sony, Warner Brothers and Maverick. Founded and managed a successful not-for-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of independent music Developed leadership skills as a personnel manager, stage manager and concert promoter – booking artists ranging from small local bands to national touring acts such as Grammy nominated band Liquid Soul. Riverwatcher - Web Developer / Client Services Manager - March 2001 to May 2004 Duties: Management of several concurrent projects with multiple employees Production and programming of websites and web-based software applications Directly responsible for maintaining client relationships Authored our Scope of Work documents for potential clients, and determined pricing of software / websites Achievements: Wrote customized project management software for Riverwatcher, which reduced paperwork and increased management efficiency by 30% Responsible for the complete overhaul of several businesses backend processes by developing easy to use web-based tools. In one such example: Converted an office consisting of 4 walls literally full of post-it notes to a simple web-based management system Developed several internal tools used to automate our development of websites - cutting development time by as much as 50% in many cases

Other Relevant Work Experience:

Nuevos Horizontes - Web/Database Developer – Sep 2000 to May 2001 Maintained and updated database, developed embedded multimedia broadcasts Laboratory for Community and Economic Development - University of Illinois – Jan 2000 to Dec 2000 Designed visual-end and back-end development of LCED’s website and online tools Beckman Institute Systems Services, University of Illinois - System Administrator / Web Programmer – Jun 1999 to Oct 1999 Administration and maintenance of a multi-user Sun server running Solaris / Created and maintained web pages and CGI/Perl scripts. Microprof, Computer Graphic Artist, Sound Engineer, and Web Designer - Jun 1998 to Jan 2000 Created 3d and 2d graphics in 3d Studio MAX and Photoshop / VRML game and action scripting / Created in-game sounds and music / Administration of office's Windows NT domain and clients / maintained company website Collegeclub, Marketing Director (UIUC Campus) – Nov 1998 to Sep 1999 Management of UIUC marketing team for www.collegeclub.com / Planning of marketing materials distribution using a coordinated team of UIUC campus representatives Illini Media - The Daily Illini - Web publisher / Web designer - May 1999 to Aug 1999 Published the summer edition of the Daily Illini newspaper to the web, as well as maintenance of websites and data DMISI, Network Technician - Fall and Spring Aug 1996 to May 1997 On-site installation and configuration of Ethernet connections in University certified residence halls University of Illinois Mathematics Department, Mathematica Lab Instructor - Aug 1996 to May 1997 Taught and assisted students with mathematics homework, and the Mathematica software package for University classes

Education:
Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics and Computer Science from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Personal Accomplishments / Activities:

Assisted in the development of a custom designed web programming language called RACE - www.racekit.net Founder of openingbands.com, an organization dedicated to the promotion of independent music Served as Corporate Liason, ACM (UIUC Chapter) - Coordinated speaking events and seminars involving high-profile technology companies Developed and released several pieces of software to the public domain Administrator of a colocated Linux based web and email server which hosts dozens of websites and provides traffic monitoring and spam/virus protected email service to clients

Technical Skills:
Web Development	Desktop Applications	System Administration	Programming
Scripting: Perl, PHP, RACE, ASP (C#) Web: HTML, CSS, Javascript, DHTML, jQuery / jQuery UI Database: MySQL, PostgreSQL, Access, MS SQL Content Management: Drupal, OSCommerce, Mambo, PostNuke	Design: Photoshop, Illustrator Web: Flash, Homesite / Dreamweaver Office: Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Visio	OS: FreeBSD, Linux, Windows Web Servers: Apache with ModSSL, Xitami, Microsoft IIS Mail Services: Postfix, Maildrop, SpamAssassin, ClamAV Analysis: AWStats, Webalizer, Google Analytics, MRTG	Languages: C / C++ Scheme / LISP ML / APL MIPS Assembly